There is an old adage that you need to spend money to make money, and it seems that Ursinus Baseball is trying to do just that. In this case, making “money” means success on the field, and Coach Kyle Lindsay and the Ursinus Athletics department are making significant investments in the baseball team in search of more wins in the spring of 2025.
With the fall season just getting underway at Thomas Field, Ursinus Baseball has begun to make some additions in the hope that they will be beneficial to the team for years to come. One of two brand new batting cages has been erected down the left field line, with the second set to go up in the near future. Along with the brand new cages, Ursinus Baseball is installing new Pitch AWRE technology that films every play from every angle, with a six HD camera setup that provides automatic highlights and an instant replay portal that can be utilized for scouting and player development.
Senior pitcher David Morgan, sees limitless possibilities for the new Pitch AWRE platform, explaining, “We’re all really excited for what [Pitch AWRE] can do for the pitchers. It gives us the opportunity to go back and look at our pitching mechanics during the game and remember what pitches we threw that we may have given up a hit on and potentially see why.”
These significant additions do not come without significant cost for Ursinus Baseball and Ursinus Athletics, with the field upgrades costing tens of thousands of dollars in fundraising money. Lindsay is clearly making a concerted effort to improve the facilities for his players in an attempt to enhance practices and best use the limited space that he has for such a large team.
Finishing the 2024 spring season with an unsatisfactory, 12-26 final record, it was time for changes to be made and with the nature of college baseball, changes made for the immediate present and the future would easily be the most beneficial in the long run. Dan Bass, Ursinus Baseball ace, recounted last year’s disappointing outcome, saying, “it didn’t go how we expected it to,” and expressed his excitement for the new additions to the field. The new cages and new Pitch AWRE cameras will be invaluable to player development for Ursinus Baseball as well as being a notable selling point for future recruits.
Players are ecstatic about the upgrades, with one batting cage that is quickly deteriorating and the other having blown over during a harsh storm last season. Jordan Williams, Ursinus Baseball senior infielder, is extremely grateful for a new look down the left field line, feeling that the cages will “allow us to be more productive during practice and will be beneficial to the program going forward.” Furthermore, Ursinus Baseball has become accustomed to their limited camera view not only for livestreams, but also to analyze performances, players, and scout, and with the new Pitch AWRE that will be a problem of the past.
The ramifications of these expensive additions are yet to be seen, but one thing is for certain, Coach Lindsay is doing what he came here to do and that is to improve the Ursinus Baseball program. While sustained success is the ultimate goal, small steps like improving the facilities for the team are costly bullets to bite, but a necessary move for the future of the program.