The Science of Pitching in Kearny Mesa
Plus: LV Multi-Cultural Fair and Parade Announcement, North Italia Restaurant Review, Bayside Seed Class this Friday, and Signs and Signals in LV Area,
Each spring brings back fond memories of those long ago days when I played baseball for my college team. Back then, when I got on the mound and tried to get my fastball past opposing batters, the only advice I received from my coach was “Throw strikes.” Needless to say, I could have used a bit more insightful feedback. Of course, these were the days before society relied on the wonders of high tech to provide in-depth, data-rich pitching motion information. In observing my performance and dispensing advice during the primitive 1970’s, I believe my well-meaning coach followed the practical wisdom of baseball great Satchel Paige who said “My pitching philosophy is simple—keep the ball away from the bat.” Alas, life was so simple then.
But now, as I recently discovered while taking a tour of Point Loma Nazarene University’s (PLNU) state-of-the art Biomechanics Lab, located on Balboa Avenue at the University’s Kearny Mesa campus, the art of pitching has clearly evolved into a science. Besides the words “Throw strikes”, baseball pitchers must now become familiar with such exotic terms as “energy flow”, “pelvis rotation”, “sheer rotational velocity”, “kinetic patterns,” and “hand to ground forces.” The technology available at this Biomechanics Lab, which consists of high tech cameras and sensors, provides baseball teams with the unique opportunity to collect precise pitcher motion data that can be used to improve athletic performance and hopefully prevent injury. Once inside the lab, pitchers can stand on a mound and go through all the motions of pitching a baseball, and then have those cameras and sensors immediately generate sophisticated data, to include 3D images, on up to 150 key points on the body. The data can immediately be presented in various forms on nearby screens for analysis.
The Biomechanics Lab is a 2.3 million dollar product of a partnership between the University and the San Diego Padres, which uses the facility to work on improving the performance of their pitching staff. The lab just opened in February of this year.
On the day I toured the facility, the Francis Parker School varsity baseball team from Linda Vista was also taking a tour and investigating all of the capabilities of the lab. A couple of the school’s pitchers threw pitches from the lab’s mound and had their motion quickly analyzed to demonstrate what kind of data is typically available for analysis.
The data collected on a particular pitcher can be used to establish a holistic baseline of information on the pitcher’s motion, which can then be used to compare and contrast at some later time with another analysis should a pitching coach perceive a potential problem. As explained by Dr. Arnel Aguinaldo, the director of the lab, this high tech approach allows a team to “see kinetic patterns that provide a framework” for analysis by “seeing things that the naked eye can’t.” What is amazing is the amount of precise data regarding motion analysis that can be immediately generated after each pitch. Based on such data, pitching coaches can then give a pitcher credible advice on such nuanced items as pitch grip and hip rotation.
The Biomechanics Lab also provides PLNU Kinesiology grad students with the chance to study body motion and conduct research based on collected data, while also operating the equipment along with lab staff.
As with any major league team, the Padres have quite a bit of money invested in the contracts of its pitchers, and so they want those capabilities to ensure they get the most out of their investment. Every major league coaching staff is in pursuit of increasing the velocity and spin rates of their high-priced hurlers. They are looking for that competitive edge. And a place like the PLNU Biomechanics Lab is one tool they can use to attain that edge.
The University plans to make the Biomechanics Lab available to other local baseball teams, to include high school teams. The University’s baseball team has already used the facility. Additionally, the San Diego Sheriff’s Department will also use the lab to help improve the performance of its deputies and help prevent injury.
After touring the lab I can confidently say that I could have been a major league baseball player, if only I had been give access to such a world-class high tech facility as the PLNU Biomechanics Lab—though I think it would have also helped if I was 4 inches taller and in possession of a 97 mph fastball.
As famous New York Yankee baseball player and part-time philosopher Yogi Berra once said “You can observe a lot just by watching.” It also helps if you can call upon the help of twenty-some high-tech cameras and assorted sensors to deliver a mound of valuable data for further analysis!
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The Linda Vista Update wishes to thank one of our enthusiastic readers—Dr Alisa Ward, a professor of kinesiology at PLNU—for being so nice as to arrange my tour of the facility.
Upcoming Community Event
Lunch at Fashion Valley’s North Italia
Seems like we have had so many cool, rainy days lately that we haven’t been able to enjoy an outside meal for a while. Today that changed. Beautiful sunny day, low 70’s just begging for an outside patio lunch complete with people watching and scenic views. What better place to go than right down the hill to Fashion Valley Mall? There was one restaurant we had been wanting to try, so we thought this was as good a time as any, so off we went to North Italia.
North Italia is of course an Italian restaurant. They have locations in about 14 states. They pride themselves on giving you a food experience you won’t forget, creating new dishes daily for your enjoyment. I’m pretty critical of Italian food since I grew up in an Italian family of great cooks. Nothing is ever as good as I remember my mother making it. But I thought I would give North Italia a try.
Although North Italia is not technically in Linda Vista, it could hardly be closer. It is located close to Bloomingdale’s in the Fashion Valley Mall. Parking is sometimes an issue on that side of the mall, but if you are feeling special, you can always have valet parking. We were lucky and found a close parking space. Although you can make reservations, it wasn’t necessary. We asked for patio seating and were seated very quickly. We knew we had made a good decision when we were seated near a half wall which had a good view not only of the people scurrying by, but also up the hill where we could almost see where we live, only blocked by the pink condos of City Scene. We not only could people watch, but also luxury car watch. Never saw so many Porsche’s at one time driving by Bloomingdale’s. If anyone tells you there are problems with the economy, don’t believe them. With the parking lot full of luxury cars, and people rushing to go in the mall and spend money, I think our economy is doing well. We even saw an Uber SUV dropping off a whole lot of shoppers at one time in front of Bloomingdale’s. What a good idea that is. No parking worries for them. The day was beautiful, sun shining, and back to feeling like California.
The menu at North Italia is quite extensive. They have what they call small plates (big prices), soup, salads, entrees, sides and of course drinks. The bar is quite beautiful. I decided on a small plate of Crispy Eggplant parmesan with fresh mozzarella, spicy vodka sauce and torn basil. Steve chose a Seasonal Vegetable salad with butternut squash, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, kale, radicchio, pecorino, fregola, pistachio, dates, dressed with white balsamic vinegar.
Our server was very friendly and told me prior to my ordering that the eggplant dish was a little spicy. You know how I don’t like spicy, but I love eggplant, so I decided to risk it. I was so glad I did. The eggplant was fried very crispy and with the vodka sauce just a bit spicy, and the stringy cheese melting all over, it was out of this world. There were about 4 slices of the eggplant, so it was plenty for lunch even if on a small plate. I let Steve taste it and he liked it.
Steve’s salad was chock full of veggies and very colorful. I’m not a fan of kale, but love butternut squash so I did taste it. It was very good, and the white balsamic dressing was light and added to the dish. Steve did not finish it all but did a good job of trying.
Their small plates included zucca chips, tuna crudo, wild shrimp scampi, calamari, meatballs, and mussels. They had many salads to which you could add chicken, or salmon. They also had pizza and sandwiches as well as several pasta dishes. You can see the entire menu on their website.
North Italia is open Monday – Friday for lunch 11:00 am – 4:00 pm; Sunday – Saturday for dinner 4:00 pm – 9:30 pm; Brunch Saturday – Sunday 11:00 am – 4:00 pm.
Give it a try if you haven’t yet. The food is excellent as is the people watching. Next time we will try to get the Carnivore to join us.
Bayside Offers Class this Friday
This month’s Bayside Community Center Seed Starting Basics Class will feature an introduction to warm season crops - Beans and Marigolds. Attendees will plant and take home bean and marigold seed starts. The class and materials are free of charge. PLEASE RSVP if you plan to attend, so enough supplies are available for each participant. Children are welcome.
Additionally, Bayside and the San Diego Parks Foundation are pleased to announce that construction has started on the Linda Vista Community Garden. They need volunteer help every Saturday in May to help build it out!
May 4, 11, 18 and 25
Volunteer shifts will be available from 9:00 am - 12:00 pm and 12:30 pm - 3:00 pm
Volunteer activities will include soil prep and moving, planting, mulching, assembling, and more. There will also be art activities for children during both the morning and afternoon. Water, coffee, snacks, and lunch will be provided.
Please sign up to volunteer. See instructions below:
1. Click on our google sheet here
2. Go down to the bottom of the sheet
3. Choose (Group Sign Ups Tab) or (Individual Sign Ups Tab )
4. Choose a Saturday or Saturdays (not limited to 1, scroll to the right for all dates )
5. Pick your time slot or slots and add your information (see the example at the top of each sheet)
If you have any questions, please reach out to Amy Zink, Bayside Community Center, azink@baysidecc.org
Assorted Signs and Signals Around the LV Area
While driving around the area, we happened to take notice of a few interesting signs and signals positioned on/alongside various roads. Most are brand new, though one was basically overlooked until a few days ago. We feel each of these signs and signals say a little something about what is happening in the community, or at least remind us of how the community has changed over the years.
The first sign we would like to point out is a new one—recently installed on the side of Linda Vista’s own Skateworld. The handsome sign can be seen when driving up the mesa on Linda Vista Road. We commend the owners of Skateworld for this attractive addition. It proudly advertises a proud and popular Linda Vista institution. With Skateworld operating on a month-to-month lease with the City, it’s hopeful to see the sign as an essential long-term investment and a good omen that Skateworld is not going anywhere anytime soon.
Next, we spotted the above new signal on Friars Road, adjacent to the Riverwalk development construction. In previous issues of this newsletter we have pointed out the high class bike lanes added along this stretch of Friars Road. They are wide, and the protective curbs are prominently painted black and white. But these bike lanes got even classier these past few days with the addition of new yellow bicycle lane traffic signals! This must be a part of the City’s fascination with spending so much money on bike lanes. As many of us have already noticed, bicyclists are notorious for disregarding traffic signals. Red lights on traditional traffic signals are merely suggestions for most bold beacons of bicycle mobility. So, it will now be interesting to see if bicyclists making their way through Mission Valley pay any more attention to these brightly colored yellow traffic signals than they do the traditional ones.
Next, we suddenly noticed the appearance of railroad traffic crossing signals at the end of Fenton Parkway (adjacent to the Mission Valley Costco), where the Parkway intersects with the Trolley tracks. For so many years, Fenton Parkway ended right before the tracks. There was no way to get to the other side (which meant you could not “illegally” park your car in the big Costco parking lot and walk this way to Qualcomm Stadium and later Snapdragon Stadium). But now that the new River Park is open next to Snapdragon Stadium, one can drive across cross the trolley tracks and enter the beautiful Park and/or walk to the Stadium. City plans for this crossing have been in the works since 2001. Glad to see progress being made, slowly but surely.
Finally, a few days ago I took notice of the above sign on Morena Boulevard. I may have noticed the small sign before, but this time I was driven to do a little research on the famous US Highway 101 (aka Pacific Coast Highway) and its relationship to Morena Boulevard. In doing so, I found an interesting and informative 2019 article from the San Diego Reader that describes what Morena Boulevard looked like when it was actually an active part of the Pacific Coast Highway (before it was replaced by I-5 in 1964). The old photos in the article were fascinating. Though this may not be news to some of the LV old-timers, I had no idea that a Der Weinerschnitzel once existed where the Carl’s Jr. now stands. Our community has progressed in the past few decades, but I for one question if losing a Der Weinerschnitzel can be considered progress.
I highly recommend viewing the article to get an idea of what this part of Linda Vista used to look like back in the olden days.
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Every week I look forward to reading your wonderful newsletter! The articles are informative well written and I always get a good laugh. The piece about pitching hit close to home because as a baseball fan I loved to pitch. So add my thanks to Dr Ward! Also appreciate the info on upcoming events and we enjoy visiting the restaurants you cover. (Plus the review includes prices which is truly helpful!) Please keep up the good work- thanks again.