The Importance of Vision in Sports and Performance | Daniel Laby | TEDxBeaconStreetSalon

Summary

Dr. Daniel Abbey, a sports vision specialist, explains the critical role of vision in baseball, highlighting how legendary players like Ted Williams and Manny Ramirez used their exceptional vision to excel. Abbey delves into the science behind predicting a baseball's trajectory, the limitations of traditional vision tests, and the development of advanced methods to enhance players' visual and motor skills. He shares anecdotes of how vision training and interventions, like contact lenses and hand-eye coordination drills, have significantly improved player performance, even influencing World Series outcomes.

Takeaways

• 🏟️ The script discusses the significance of Fenway Park's unique features like Pesky's Pole and the Green Monster, and how they impact the game.
• 🌟 It highlights the exceptional vision of baseball players, particularly Ted Williams, and how it contributed to his ability to hit a 502-foot home run.
• 🔍 Dr. Daniel Abbey, a sports vision specialist, explains the importance of prediction in baseball and the rapid processing required for a batter to hit the ball.
• ⚾ The challenge of hitting a baseball is underscored, emphasizing the small window of time available for a batter to react to a pitch.
• 👀 Vision is critical in sports, not just for seeing the ball but also for processing visual information quickly enough to make a successful play.
• 🎾 Sports vision is applicable beyond baseball, with implications for basketball, soccer, football, and other sports requiring quick reactions and decisions.
• 📊 The average vision of Major League Baseball players is 20/12, which is better than the normal vision of 20/20, giving them an advantage in seeing the ball clearly from a distance.
• 📚 The traditional Snellen eye chart is critiqued for its inadequacy in testing vision for sports and driving, where quick reaction times are necessary.
• 📱 A new vision test using iPads has been developed to better assess the vision needed for sports, presenting targets for a brief time to simulate real-world conditions.
• 🕊️ Stephen Drew's vision was improved with contact lenses during the 2013 World Series, leading to a significant upturn in his performance at the bat.
• 🤹‍♂️ Manny Ramirez's hand-eye coordination was fine-tuned using a specially designed ring with balls representing different pitches, enhancing his batting skills.

Q & A

What is the main focus of Dr. Daniel Abbey's talk at Fenway Park?

Dr. Daniel Abbey's talk focuses on the importance of vision in sports, particularly baseball, and how it enables players like Ted Williams to make accurate predictions and decisions in the split-second moments required to hit a baseball.

Why is prediction so crucial for a baseball player, according to Dr. Abbey?

Prediction is crucial for a baseball player because it allows them to anticipate where the ball will be and when to swing the bat. This involves processing visual information rapidly and accurately, which is essential for making contact with a fast-moving baseball.

How does the time it takes for a baseball to reach home plate impact a batter's decision-making process?

A 90 mph baseball takes 400 milliseconds to reach home plate, but the batter has less time to see and react due to the 150 milliseconds required to swing the bat and another 150 milliseconds to initiate the swing. This leaves only about 100 milliseconds to visually process and decide on the swing.

What is the significance of Ted Williams' 502-foot home run at Fenway Park?

Ted Williams' 502-foot home run at Fenway Park is highlighted as an example of exceptional vision and prediction ability. His ability to accurately judge the pitch and make contact with the ball was a result of his superior vision, which Dr. Abbey discusses in the context of sports vision.

How does Dr. Abbey's approach to testing vision differ from traditional methods?

Dr. Abbey's approach to testing vision involves using modern technology like iPads to present dynamic and challenging visual tasks that mimic real-life scenarios, unlike traditional Snellen charts, which are static and less applicable to situations like hitting a baseball.

What role did vision testing play in Stephen Drew's performance during the 2013 World Series?

Vision testing revealed that Stephen Drew needed contact lenses to improve his vision. After receiving the lenses, his batting performance improved significantly, contributing to the Red Sox's victory in the 2013 World Series.

What innovative method did Dr. Abbey use to help Manny Ramirez with his hand-eye coordination?

Dr. Abbey used specially designed rings with rotating balls that mimicked the spin and movement of different pitches. Manny Ramirez practiced catching these balls to improve his hand-eye coordination, which contributed to his success as a batter.

Why is the traditional Snellen chart deemed insufficient for sports vision testing?

The Snellen chart is deemed insufficient for sports vision testing because it does not replicate the fast-paced, high-stress environments athletes face. It also tests static vision rather than the dynamic vision required to react to fast-moving objects like baseballs.

How does the brain process visual information during a baseball game?

During a baseball game, visual information is processed by the eyes and transmitted to the brain's visual cortex, which then sends it to the decision-making areas and motor areas. This rapid processing allows a player to make quick decisions and execute precise motor actions, like swinging a bat.

What does Dr. Abbey suggest could have changed the outcome of 'Casey at the Bat'?

Dr. Abbey humorously suggests that if Casey from the poem 'Casey at the Bat' had worked with a sports vision specialist, he might have improved his visual and motor skills enough to avoid striking out, potentially leading to a happier ending for Mudville.

Outlines

00:00

🏟️ The Science of Baseball Vision

This paragraph introduces Dr. Daniel Abbey, a sports vision specialist, who discusses the critical role of vision in baseball. He explains how players like Ted Williams were able to predict and hit long home runs, emphasizing the importance of quick and accurate vision in the sport. The summary touches on the physical limitations of human reaction times and the technical aspects of baseball, such as the speed of pitches and the size of the ball and bat. Dr. Abbey highlights the complexity of the task, comparing it to the time it takes to blink, and introduces the concept of sports vision as it applies to various sports beyond baseball.

05:02

📊 Vision Testing in Sports

The second paragraph delves into the specifics of vision testing for athletes, contrasting traditional Snellen charts with the dynamic and challenging conditions faced by players on the field. Dr. Abbey critiques the effectiveness of the Snellen chart for assessing sports vision and introduces a new testing method using iPads. This method presents targets for a brief time to simulate real-world sports conditions. The summary outlines a case study of a player named Stephen Drew, whose performance improved dramatically after being fitted with contact lenses following the new vision test, illustrating the impact of proper vision correction on sports performance.

10:03

🤹‍♂️ Enhancing Hand-Eye Coordination

In the final paragraph, Dr. Abbey recounts his experience working with Manny Ramirez to improve his hand-eye coordination despite having good vision. He describes the creation and use of various training tools, including rings with balls of different colors and patterns representing different pitches. The summary explains how these tools were used to help Ramirez identify and react to pitches, ultimately contributing to his success as a player. The paragraph concludes with a humorous reference to the poem 'Casey at the Bat,' suggesting that sports vision training could have altered its outcome.

Keywords

💡Sports Vision

Sports Vision refers to the specialized study and enhancement of athletes' visual abilities to improve performance in their respective sports. In the video, Dr. Daniel Abbey discusses how understanding and optimizing visual processing can significantly impact an athlete's ability to perform tasks such as hitting a baseball. This concept is central to the video as it explores the visual factors that contributed to Ted Williams' success and how sports vision techniques are applied to improve players' reactions and decisions on the field.

💡Prediction

Prediction in the context of baseball refers to a player's ability to anticipate the trajectory and speed of the ball in order to make contact with it. The video emphasizes that a batter must predict where the ball will be at any given moment to successfully hit it. This concept is critical because hitting a baseball requires not just visual acuity but also the ability to forecast the ball's path in a fraction of a second, highlighting the importance of quick decision-making in sports.

💡Ted Williams

Ted Williams was a legendary baseball player known for his extraordinary hitting abilities, including his record-setting 502-foot home run at Fenway Park. The video uses Williams as an example to illustrate the importance of exceptional vision in baseball. His ability to predict and make contact with the ball was attributed to his superior vision, which is explored in the context of sports vision and its role in athletic performance.

💡Snellen Chart

The Snellen Chart is a standard tool used to measure visual acuity, typically consisting of a series of letters in decreasing size. In the video, Dr. Abbey criticizes the Snellen Chart as inadequate for assessing the type of vision required in sports, as it doesn't account for the rapid, dynamic visual processing needed to perform tasks like hitting a baseball. The video argues that more advanced and context-specific tests are necessary to evaluate and enhance athletes' vision effectively.

💡Reaction Time

Reaction time is the period it takes for an athlete to respond to a visual stimulus, such as a baseball being pitched. In the video, Dr. Abbey explains that a batter has only about 100-250 milliseconds to see the ball and decide whether to swing. This short reaction time is crucial in sports and is a key focus of sports vision training, as improving reaction time can lead to better performance on the field.

💡Hand-Eye Coordination

Hand-eye coordination is the ability to synchronize visual input with hand movements, a skill crucial in sports like baseball. The video discusses how athletes like Manny Ramirez rely on exceptional hand-eye coordination to hit a baseball effectively. Dr. Abbey explains how training and exercises can enhance this coordination, allowing players to react more quickly and accurately to visual stimuli during a game.

💡Visual Acuity

Visual acuity refers to the sharpness or clarity of vision, often measured by the ability to discern letters or numbers at a specific distance. In the video, Dr. Abbey mentions that many Major League Baseball players have a visual acuity of 20/12, meaning they can see at 20 feet what an average person can see at 12 feet. This heightened visual acuity gives players an advantage in sports where precise vision is critical for success.

💡Manny Ramirez

Manny Ramirez is a former Major League Baseball player known for his powerful hitting and unique personality. The video highlights how Dr. Abbey helped Ramirez improve his performance through sports vision training, specifically exercises that enhanced his hand-eye coordination. Ramirez's story is used to demonstrate how tailored vision training can address specific issues athletes face, leading to improved results on the field.

💡Visual Processing

Visual processing is the brain's ability to interpret and make sense of visual information received from the eyes. The video discusses how, in baseball, the brain must process visual cues like the speed, spin, and trajectory of a pitched ball almost instantaneously. This processing is crucial for making split-second decisions, such as when to swing the bat. Improving visual processing is a key goal of sports vision training.

💡Fenway Park

Fenway Park is a historic baseball stadium in Boston, home to the Boston Red Sox. The video uses Fenway Park as the setting to discuss the history of great baseball players and the importance of vision in hitting home runs. Ted Williams' legendary 502-foot home run at Fenway is a focal point in the discussion of how sports vision contributes to extraordinary athletic achievements.

Highlights

Introduction of Fenway Park's history, including the longest home run ever hit at the park by Ted Williams.

Introduction of Dr. Daniel Abbey, a sports vision specialist with 27 years of experience, discussing the importance of prediction in baseball.

Explanation of how a baseball player's ability to predict the ball's trajectory is crucial for making contact with the ball.

Discussion on the time constraints in hitting a baseball, including the breakdown of milliseconds required to see, decide, and swing at a 90 mph pitch.

The challenge of hitting a baseball is emphasized, noting that the entire process takes less time than a blink, making it one of the most difficult tasks in sports.

Insight into how vision and reaction time are critical for athletes, not just in baseball but across various sports.

Example of Manny Ramirez, a former Red Sox player, and how his vision and reaction time played a crucial role in his performance.

Explanation of how the Snellen chart, a traditional vision test, is inadequate for testing the vision needed in sports or real-life scenarios.

Introduction of a new vision test developed using modern technology that better simulates the conditions athletes face on the field.

Example of Stephen Drew, a player who improved his performance in the 2013 World Series after receiving contact lenses based on the new vision test.

Discussion of how vision alone isn't enough; hand-eye coordination and reaction time are also vital for athletes like Manny Ramirez.

Development of a training tool involving rings and balls to help Manny Ramirez improve his hand-eye coordination.

Manny Ramirez's use of the training tool before every game, contributing to his successful performance, including being named the MVP of the 2014 World Series.

Overview of the various skills tested and trained for athletes, including vision, reaction time, anticipation, and concentration.

Reference to the classic poem 'Casey at the Bat,' suggesting that with sports vision training, Casey might not have struck out.

Transcripts

thank you and welcome everybody look at

this ball park you spin around the block

a few times from the Green Monster over

it's a Pesky's Pole to that little red

seat way out there in right field 502

feet away the longest home run ever hit

at Fenway Park great people have played

here call your MC Bobby do or Joe Cronan

Babe Ruth as we heard have all been on

this field here but what was it that

made the special major vision of Ted

Williams special how was he able to hit

that 502 foot homerun well my name is

dr. Daniel Abbey I'm not phonologists

I'm a sports division specialist I've

been working in sports division for the

past 27 years I want to share with you

this afternoon some of what I've learned

and some of what we've been able to use

to help ballplayers perform on this

field as well as others at a higher

level to do that we have to think about

what's the underlying main point for a

baseball player and that's the word

prediction a baseball player has to

predict the batter especially has to

predict where the ball is going to be

any moment in time if he can predict

that accurately he's gonna be able to

hit the ball make contact with it and

the balls not that big we're talking

about a three inch ball a two and a

quarter inch bat you got to make contact

with that to drive that ball 502 feet

like Ted Williams did what was there

about his vision they'll let him predict

exactly when the ball was gonna Strasse

the plate and when he was gonna put the

bat on the ball to drive it and that's

really what comes down to the vision the

need for vision of baseball

how much would take for a baseball pitch

90 miles an hour to reach home plate it

takes 400 milliseconds that's less than

half a second well you don't have 400

milliseconds to hit it or to see it

because it takes about 150 milliseconds

to actually swing the bat from your

shoulder back around to the front where

the ball is 400 minus 150 leaves a

quarter of a second 250 milliseconds

well you know we can't just thinking

that the bat moves we have to think

about it decide to swing we have to send

a neural signal down through the nerves

the muscles to get them to contract to

make that bat move well that takes time

too that's about 150 milliseconds to do

that so we do the math you're left only

with about a hundred 250 milliseconds of

seeing this ball from maybe 50 feet away

60 feet away to know what the spin is to

decide what pitch it is to start that

decision process to swing that's not

very easy you know how long it takes to

blink it takes 300 milliseconds to blink

that's twice as long as you have to look

at the ball before you have a chance to

decide to swing or not this is a tough

thing to do

hitting a baseball has been turned one

the most difficult things to do in all

of baseball and all of sports in general

right well we're interested in sports

division how that happens how is it that

a batter can actually make that visual

information relevant and swing and hit

the ball we're interested in not only

what the eyes are doing we're interested

in all the way the process of that

information through the eyes through the

brain to the vision part of the brain

which is back here then how that visual

information moves forwards the decision

areas to the motor areas to connect with

an action that's gonna be successful as

we saw with Ted Williams that's what

sports vision is about and it's not just

relevant to baseball it's relevant to

any sport think about a basketball

player a soccer player a football player

a quarterback Tom Brady's got a look at

the whole field he's got to react he's

got a C he's got to make decisions he's

got to move this isn't just trivial this

is based on ability and skill and talent

hopefully a little bit of magic

from us for sports vision specialists

one great example of that is when we

look at a picture here of a player of

the graceless field Manny Ramirez back

several years ago and what I want you to

look at in this picture is where the

ball is and where his bat is and where

his eyes are you see the ball is about

to hit the bat but his eyes are far off

in the distance his eyes are looking to

the last piece of point of information

after 100 milliseconds of the ball being

thrown that he can still get information

at that point it doesn't matter anymore

after that because he can't react to

that can't think about it can't make a

muscle movement fast enough to make any

difference in where the bass gonna be

placed so he knows and he's probably one

of the best hitters as ever sat in this

field and I said sat on purpose he's one

of the one of the people that knows that

by looking at the distance that's all

the information eat in fact he gonna

close his eyes and he could you imagine

if manny has closed his eyes when he was

swinging what people would have said he

would have heard Maddie being Manny all

day he would have been ridiculed but the

truth is he didn't even have his eyes

open because there's no more

formation with the real fact is he

couldn't even have time to close his

eyes because it takes 300 milliseconds

to blink so he had no chance to do that

so who knows maybe they close his eyes

but Manny Ramirez his vision is critical

Ted Williams his vision was critical in

fact in 20 in 1996 we published a paper

about the basic visual abilities of

baseball players and we demonstrated we

showed through hundreds of players that

we did in Major League Baseball that the

average vision is 20 over 12 now normal

vision is called 20 over 8 the best

vision humanly possible is 20 I'm sorry

no vision is 20/20 the best vision

possible is 20 over 8 well 20 over 12

means that these ballplayers can see

from 20 feet what US average people had

to be 12 feet away from to see so they

can see things farther away and that's

one of the keys when the difference is

in vision of these athletes ability to

hit the ball now we measured that vision

using a chart just like this you've

probably seen this in doctors office

this is called a Snellen chart and this

chart spin around for quite a while

we'll talk about that in a minute

but it starts with the Big E and works

its way down and remember that each of

these letters is black on white and you

have as long as you need to look at it

to try to figure out what the answer is

you've probably sat in the office and

said well I think it might be an F no

maybe it's an e an O or Q who knows what

you go back and forth until you finally

get it right doctor says great and you

got 20/20 vision and you're out the door

well that doesn't work over here at

Fenway Park doesn't work at any major

league ballpark because this isn't what

vision is like this is a chart that was

actually developed invented in 1862

that's 150 years ago there was no

electricity there were no telephones and

this test was black on white you can

look at it for as long as you wanted to

and give an answer well that's not what

goes on in the field on the field what

goes on is you have a split second as we

mentioned to see something you got to

react quickly it's small it's not black

on white it's red on red on white it may

be a little bit dusty and maybe fingers

are necessary black and white or white

on white contrast is an issue it's much

harder than the selling chart in truth

this selling chart is not very useful

it's not useful for baseball it's not

useful for driving and the truth is this

is what we should do with this melon

chart it's not necessary it's not the

way to test people's vision on everyday

lives whether that has to do is hitting

a baseball whether it has to be driving

a car how many of you have driven on a

foggy day near dusk where the lighting

is not so good

in a place you don't know where you have

to try to read the sign look at all

those hands go up we have to read the

sign and you have a split second to do

it because you're driving you have to

decide what to do and it's not easy it's

not like doctor's office where you have

forever look the chart so we recognize

that in driving in sports in life that's

not the best way to test vision so we

developed a test that's based on

technology currently it's based on iPads

it's based on computing ability of these

devices to present targets that are very

different than that our targets that we

present our circles that have some bars

around them and they're open at the

bottom so the only difference in one

circle to the next is where the opening

is is it the bottom open is a top open

left open or right open and this is a

big one this is easy this is for us

folks well we give the ball players is

one that's much smaller it's much gray

or it's grey I'm white it's not black on

white like this and we only show it for

we only show it for 100 milliseconds or

200 milliseconds a very short time and

by using math based on the ACE SATs the

a CT a CT s we can calculate a score and

that score is what we use to decide

whether a baseball player has a vision

they need to hit this baseball let me

give you an example that I'm going to

talk to you about two players and all

this information has been in the public

domain already so you're not hearing any

big secrets but hopefully you're putting

in context that makes it more

interesting 2013 World Series if you

remember that against the Cardinals team

was away they came back one afternoon

and I got a phone call the phone call

was from the the head trainer there's a

player who was playing for the

postseason he was batting for 440 that's

not so hot that's about a 100 batting

average in the World Series he's batting

one for 15 that's even worse he was

great in the field so they won that they

wanted on the field they don't take him

off the field but they wanted not to

have an out they wanted to score his

name was Stephen Drew and Stephen Drew

came to my office we took a look at them

we gave him that test there and we found

that he needed contact lenses him

contact lenses that next day we apply

contact lenses the next day he came to

the dugout over here and actually

between he didn't want to play in the

field with them because he wasn't sure

how that was gonna be but he wants to

bat with them so he ran off onto the

into the dugout in this little tunnel

there they put the contact lenses on his

eyes he came back down the field and in

that game where he had been for for

forty and one for fifteen that game he

went two for four

when was a home run that basically

sealed the 2013 series for the Red Sox

if you remember and he would have been

three for four but the first base when

the Cardinals made an amazing catch and

took away that third hit but two for

four five hundred is a whole lot better

than one for 15 so that made a

difference for Steven he talked about it

in the press after that but the testing

him on a test that's critical that's not

easy like that selling shark that we

disposed of a test that shows a

difference it shows a deficiency and

then intervening is what sports vision

is all about let me give you another

example this one's a fun example because

it's not just about how sharp your

vision is it's a matter of what you do

with that information you don't have to

just see it you have to be able to react

to it you have to have the hand-eye

coordination to make the move the bat in

the right place at the right time I got

a call in I guess it was probably mayor

June 2014

about another player you've already seen

the picture of him over here Manny

Ramirez I got a call from Jim Roe who at

that point was the head trainer for the

Red Sox and said you know Manny's not

seeing the ball and I said I'm sure Jim

he's seen the ball I just saw him a

month ago six weeks ago went for Meyers

he's seen the ball really good no no

Daniel understands he's not seen seeing

the ball okay what are you talking about

ends up being that the problem was he

wasn't reacting to it didn't feel

comfortable and this is Manny Manny had

great hands Manny was a wonderful batter

he could use a shower once in a while

when he hugged me on his sweaty but he's

a great guy and he just wasn't feeling

comfortable so the gym said you got to

do something here because we need this

guy to perform so what we did was try to

figure out how can we help Manny well

how can i he was seeing fine but he

wasn't reacting and the hand-eye

coordination wasn't good so I knew about

these rings these this is a ring that

had been out in the in available

commercially prior to it but I thought

about this this task and this task is

the wiffle ball on the ring and we throw

this ball this ring and the ball rotates

and you have to catch the ball now any

of you think this is easy I can

guarantee you it's really hard but they

say you know Manny is Manny Manny is

pretty good so one ball is probably not

gonna be good enough so let me make

another ring where we had four balls so

we had four were footballs four

different colors I threw that and we

could tell you what happened on that in

a minute but then I say you know Manny

still Manny he's pretty good I better

another ring so then we invented

actually a new ring and that's this ring

and this ring is a little different as

you can tell this ring has four

baseball's on it that are painted kind

of strange well this painting is

specific because these these patterns of

paint represent different pitches when

the baseball is thrown at 90 miles an

hour their spin the spin and the effect

of the seams on the surface of the ball

is what creates air currents basically

like a wing of an airplane to make the

ball move in different directions and

depending how you throw that spin it

moves one way or you throw it's been

different weight goes a different light

and those spit those seams look

different depending on how they're

thrown so each of these different

stripes these different red dots on here

represent a different pitch so now what

I figured I would do is I go to Manning

I say I'll throw you this and I'm going

to call it the word fastball when the

thing is halfway to you and you got to

identify which one's the fastball you

got to catch it so now we got to do is

identify the pitch make a motor movement

to intercept the pitch just like he does

with his bat to hit the ball well I went

to Fenway Park over here went down to

the clubhouse in in 20 in 2014 and

remember 2013 was it was a tough season

right they lost in New York at the end

of the end of the series against the

Yankees and it was pretty it was pretty

charged in 2014 that we got to do better

there's a manager in town we got to do

better so I went down there with these

my three rings and we a couple of guys

were down the clubhouse couple other

players a couple of old-timers threw him

this first ring over here no one could

catch it at all no one caught not even

the easy one so then Jim Annie comes

over Manny used to like to play hide and

seek in the in the in the in the

clubhouse and I had to try to find him

but we finally found him he came over

and I threw this to him and he every

single time first time he caught it

the single ball nailed it every time he

said doc this is too easy this is not

what I want to do I said okay Manny luck

they got choice number two I pulled out

the ring with the four balls through

that to him doc - easy got it every time

what else he got doc very short on the

patient's part so I brought up my ring

over here and I threw this ring and this

actually was challenging because I

called out the pitch I called out the

ball halfway to him and he had to make

that that catch to catch it and he did

this is every game prior to every game

for the rest of the season the rest of

his career he taught it to some other

players if you read Terry Francona's

book about that season he'll

a section that talks about the Rings in

there as well and this seemed to help

Mattie kind of fine-tune his hand-eye

coordination he had great vision but

fine-tune the hand-eye coordination in

order to hit the ball well end up being

if remember the MVP of the World Series

that year in 2014 and Manny was Manny

and is a great he's a great guy

I think he's misunderstood B's a great

guy so that that's kind of there you

have it you know we have this we have

these these skills not just a vision not

just hand-eye coordination which is

reaction time there's there's

anticipation ability there's a whole

series of concentration tests that we

perform on these - on these players here

to try to make sure they have what they

need in terms of their visual function

their visual motor function to perform

on the field and hit those home runs at

502 feet remember seven out of ten times

if you make it mistake you're an

all-star right that's pretty good well

there's one person that may have may

have been able to benefit from what we

do if you think back on the classic

American poem Casey at the bat and you

know potentially if Casey had spent some

time with sports business specialist

they may not have been any any they may

have been actually joined Mudville that

day and Casey may not have struck out

thank you for your attention

[Applause]