Technology

The new MLB umpire labor contract includes the possible use of an automated ball-strike call system. (Image: MLB)

MLB and Umpires Reach Deal to Develop Computer Strike-Zone System

Major League Baseball and the MLB Umpires Association reportedly reached an agreement on Saturday to develop and test a computer strike-zone detection system. The automated system, which should greatly improve call accuracy, could be used in MLB games sometime within the next five years. According to Associated Press sources, the […]

Fox and the Dish Network have reached an impasse, causing sports blackouts. (Image: YouTube)

College and NFL Games Face Blackout in Fox vs. Dish Network Dispute

Fox-owned television stations in 17 markets have gone dark on the Dish Network because of a failure to renegotiate and extend a contract. Blacked out channels include sports outlets such as the Big Ten Network, FS1, FS2, Fox Deportes, and Fox Soccer Plus. The loss of access will reach over […]

Can New Technology Rescue Major League Baseball’s Shrinking Audience?

Can New Technology Rescue Major League Baseball’s Shrinking Audience?

Major League Baseball is going all-in on technology. And all the tech advancements are aimed directly at the shrinking MLB fan base. Improvements are pointed at speeding up the game, making play less subject to human (umpire) error but overall playing to the new younger wired generations. Baseball has always […]

F1 is developing an in-race betting platform that it plans to launch in time for the start of the 2020 season. (Image: Getty)

F1 Partners with Sportradar to Create In-Play Live Race Betting Offering

Formula 1 has announced that it will partner with Sportradar to create a live odds platform that will allow for comprehensive in-race betting on F1 races around the world. The agreement will see Sportradar work hand in hand with Interregional Sports Group (ISG), the sponsorship and data rights partner of […]

The Secretariat Turf Course is ready for action. (Image: Colonial Downs)

Horse Racing Returns to Virginia: Colonial Downs Reopens Thanks to HHR Law

After an absence of six years, Thoroughbred racing returns to Virginia next week. The reason: historical horse racing (HHR) electronic gaming machines are resurrecting the state’s dormant equine industry. Slot machines and casino gambling remain illegal in Virginia, on the eastern edge of the Bible Belt. However, the State General […]

MLB hitter Bryce Harper argues a strike call with non-robot umpire

MLB Umps Blew 34,294 Calls Last Year. Would Robot Umpires Do Any Worse?

Major League umpires miscalled 34,294 balls and strikes in 2018, according to a recent academic study. Maybe that’s why the Atlantic League, an independent minor league, recently introduced robot umpires — or more accurately, technology-assisted umpires — which are being met with both cheers and jeers around the batter’s box. […]

Are you cutting the cable too soon? (image: flickr.com)

Getting Your Sports Information: Streaming or Cable?

Most of us get our sports information from some combination of television and the internet. Today, the question many are asking: Should I cut the cable and stream my data? Be careful before you do. The trend toward going all internet all the time could cost sports junkies vital information, […]

Historical racing machine revenues from Churchill's Derby City venue helping to boost Kentucky Derby purse. (Image: Louisville Business First)

Historical Horse Racing Machine Legality Heads Back to Kentucky Supreme Court

The Kentucky Supreme Court says it is again examining the legality of historical horse racing machines. The move follows an appeal from the Kentucky Family Foundation. The organization seeks to overturn a lower court decision on the slot machine-like terminals. An opinion is expected to be fast tracked. But, exactly […]

The NBA announced that it will be rolling out a virtual sports betting project next season known as NBA Last 90.

NBA Tapping Into Virtual Sports Betting Market with NBA Last 90 Game

The NBA and National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) have announced the launch of a virtual sports betting product known as NBA Last 90 that will give gamblers the chance to bet on simulated games that feature actual game highlights from the league. The product is expected to launch sometime during […]

Laurel Park jockeys display new tech riding crops before Thursday races. (Image: Laurel Park)

First Group of Jockeys Issued New Padded Whips at Laurel Park (VIDEO)

Technology could soon be changing the relationship between Thoroughbred horses and their riders, with the first widespread use of a new, padded riding whips at Laurel Park in Maryland. On Thursday, all the riders at the suburban Washington, DC, track used the new, cushioned riding crops for the first time […]

High tech equipment to be used to solve the mystery of equine deaths at Santa Anita (Image: racingtv.com)

Santa Anita Horse Deaths Puzzle Track Investigators, Racing Stakeholders

Twenty-one equine fatalities in less than three months at Santa Anita Park have forced an indefinite suspension of all racing and training activities. As officials try to determine if they’re looking at a statistical anomaly, deteriorating track conditions in the face of unprecedented rain and cold, or something else, the […]

AAF co-founder Charlie Ebersol has embraced both technology and gambling with his innovative football league. (Image: AP)

Gambling, Technology Key to Success of American Alliance of Football

Before the start of the American Alliance of Football’s season, a group of gaming executives, including Jay Kornegay, vice president of race and sports operations for the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook, were flown to San Antonio by the league to watch an exhibition game. That trip gave those in the […]

California horse racing authorities contend the technology at Santa Anita Park was good enough to determine the winner of this  TK (Image: Santa Anita)

Is It Time for Horse Racing to Upgrade Photo Finish Technology?

In horse racing, a picture is worth only four words – win, lose, or dead heat – not the thousand as the bromide goes. But now, at least one prominent trainer is calling for the racing community to reconsider the technology that determines the difference, saying that his horse got […]