Yogi Berra Museum Opens State-of-the-Art Interactive Baseball Experience

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The Yogi Berra Museum & Learning Center is hosting a members' and supporters reception for the opening of an interactive installation that incorporates emerging digital technologies to engage a new, tech-savvy generation of visitors. PITCH! is an immersive experience that will excite visitors of all ages, while providing the basis for a range of educational curricula for visiting school groups, youth sports teams and other youth development organizations. PITCH! opens to the general public on Thursday, June 14, and is included in the price of Museum admission.

Sited within the Museum’s 800-square foot atrium, PITCH! allows visitors to face off against an animated batter and catcher displayed on a video wall. When players throw a soft rubber ball against the wall, the installation tracks the ball’s measured velocity as well as the accuracy of the pitch (“strike” or “ball.”) The animated characters on screen react to each pitch in keeping with the rules of the game, with the batter swinging at “good” pitches and passing on balls, and the catcher delivering an apt “Yogi-ism” as appropriate. Players can compare throwing speeds, which will flash on screen after each pitch.

“We are hugely excited about PITCH!,” says Eve Schaenen, the Museum’s Executive Director. “The installation is a perfect example of how we are engaging new audiences: it’s immersive, interactive, and incredibly fun. It also allows us to fulfill our educational mission – with PITCH! we can teach young people about physics, statistics, and new technologies. And underlying it all, PITCH! lets us promote the values that are central to Yogi’s legacy: perseverance, confidence and sportsmanship. It's a tremendous addition to our offerings"

The exhibition will incorporate state-of-the-art technologies donated to the Museum by Stalker Radar, the country’s leading manufacturer of speed radar. Further support for PITCH! was provided by the Blanche & Irving Laurie Foundation, and the Hyde and Watson Foundation.