Season 4 Episode 31 is out with Benjamin Jones. He is currently a Sports Scientist at Driveline Baseball located in Kent, WA. Benjamin obtained his MA and BS in Exercise & Kinesiology from the University of Puget Sound and San Jose State University. Benjamin has an extensive background within his internship route ranging from high school, college, and professional levels. These included Albany high school located in Albany, CA, St. Mary’s College located in Moraga, CA, San Jose Sharks, and the University of Utah.
The Sports Scientist role has become a huge part of professional and college organizations. A Sports Scientist’s background can range on many different levels from academic to former strength coach. Data has become a huge integration piece of sports towards the overall evaluation of sport. Ben goes on to explain his experience learning how to code and the overall hurdles he had to accomplish.
Driveline baseball has become the data-driven center for baseball player development. Ben talks about his experience working in the Motion Capture Lab every day and why it is so important for Driveline Baseball. He talks about how important data is in the sport of baseball and why it’s only going to grow over time.
I really enjoyed my time talking to Benjamin and learning about the growing field of Sports Science!
Timestamps:
BS in Kinesiology and Exercise Science at the University of Puget Sound
MA in Kinesiology and Exercise Science at San Jose State University
Background (2:20)
- Albany High School (Albany, CA)
- St. Mary’s College (Moraga, CA)
- San Jose Sharks
- University of Utah
What is a sports scientist (Want the audience to understand) (20:00)
- What is a sports scientist
- Proper background
- Coding background (18:39)
Sports Science at Driveline (33:39)
- Explain the Motion Capture Lab
- How are you presenting the information to athletes (38:35)
- Working in Unison with Throwing trainers and High Performance Trainers
Recent Studies: (45:20)
- Recent study of Pelvis and Torso Biomechanics associated with Pitch Velocity at Puget Sound
Player Development within 2 years
- What does the future look like
- How are colleges going to adapt
2-4 years player development (58:20)
Closing