The mystery of the ball on Miller Park scoreboard

There is an ongoing debate regarding the scoreboard at Miller Park. The topic of the discussion is all about whether the ball that appeared on the scoreboard was hit and stuck or deliberately placed there.

It seems the time in question also surrounds Matt Kemp, famed hitter of the Los Angeles Dodgers. During a game, Kemp made a hit from a ball thrown by Dave Bush that scored a homerun. The estimating of the ball distance was around 447 feet. While that alone should have caught everyone’s attention, the real star of the show was the fact that the placement of the ball was near the stadium scoreboard and, it seems there was a ball stuck in position, on the board, right under the number six. Kemps ball hit the scoreboard but even it didn’t stay on the board.
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Disney introduces electronic scoreboard in Sports Central

I lived so close to Disneyland in Anaheim California that we would see and hear the fireworks every night. We spent a number of years watching the technology evolve as new shows came on board. Disney became known as one of the top innovators in technology, and this was never more obvious than our move to Florida where DisneyWorld became the artist’s pallet for the latest in high tech. When Disney built their now famous ‘Boardwalk’ – we didn’t know what we were in for. Their thirteen thousand square foot facility for sports had an added benefit with real time scoreboards.

The first time I ever saw the famous Disney ‘Boardwalk’ it wasn’t totally completed. Even then, you could walk along and see the restaurants, stores and condo-style living areas. For sports enthusiasts, they have added the ESPN Club, consisting of three areas: “Sports Central, The Sidelines, and The Yard”. The enclave includes an interactive media center, television and radio broadcasts. “Sports Central” which goes over-the-top for all of the fans. There are around ninety television monitors so that no matter where you go, you will be kept up-to-the-minute on the action. (Even, in the bathrooms). Real time feeds and live presentations cover every sports topic including billiards and golf. Fans can participate in meeting and interviews with well-known sports figures in a radio booth or even at the sports desk itself. The huge high tech scoreboard maintains an up to the minute list of the major game of the day. The entire area has a design around the basketball game look, including the real hardwood floors.
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Electronic Scoreboard Co-Op Advertising: Don’t leave money on the table

Co-Op advertising is probably the most powerful marketing tool and yet the least understood. Most people don’t even know that there are millions of co-op advertising dollars available and they go unused each year. This is leaving money on the table that could help your school. Taking advantage of co-op advertising in conjunction with your electronic scoreboard may be one of the best decisions you will make.

Co-Op (co-operative) advertising is basically a method for a manufacturer to have their brand on a retailers advertising. The manufacturer then reimburses the retailer, based on the percentage of exposure and the individual manufacturer co-op policy. As an example, it you have a 5’x5’ screen on your electronic scoreboard for an ad or video, and the manufacturers logo takes up one fourth of the display, the manufacturer will reimburse the retailer for 25% of the cost of the ad itself.
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Creative Sponsor Ideas for your electronic scoreboard

Creative Sponsor Ideas The investment into a high tech electronic scoreboard opens up many opportunities for your school. Today’s scoreboards offer an incredible array of displays, including easily changed logos, static and alternating screen shots and streaming video. Connecting to the internet can push your sponsorship to websites and social media pages, so anything that you place on your electronic scoreboard can go viral.

Historically, the typical sponsorship of an electronic keyboard has been via local businesses. Teams of volunteers hit the streets and convince a local business to invest their advertising dollars for a logo or catch line phrase. Since every company has a set budget, you might want to think about varying ‘levels’ of sponsorship. Logo placement with slogan, logo and slogan on school programs and flyers, video, video with feed to website and social media pages. Each level would be associated with an incremental pricing increase. You will want to be prepared with the potential number of anticipated ‘hits’ on the website that the sponsor may receive. You can sign your website up with the google analytics to gauge what readership the site has before, during and after a game.
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Marketing and your electronic scoreboard

So you have purchased your new electronic scoreboard. The teams are ecstatic, the school is proud and the fans are looking forward to seeing your new board. If you are going to take full advantage of the benefits and potential added revenue of the scoreboard, you must now dig your head into the concept of marketing.

Marketing is a unique talent. It’s a combination of knowledge, experience and knowing what works. Your electronic scoreboard can be an incredible resource, but you have to use it wisely. If you don’t have the budget to hire a marketing company, then you will be faced with starting the project yourself.

There is a wealth of information on the internet, but you probably don’t have the time to plow through all of the articles and newsfeeds to get yourself up-to-speed on this topic. You may, however, be able to locate a few companies that specialize in marketing for your particular venue and, for a simple fee, get the highlighted tips on the protocols. This will mean you still have to do the footwork, but you will be on the right path.
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21st Century Scoreboards: The full experience

Technology is moving at lightning speed and we are in a constant run to keep up with it. Beyond just the latest gadgets, we are a society that is eager to ‘connect’ in every way possible. Some psychologists have offered views that our constant state of knowing has placed an added stress never before seen in our society. They recommend that we allow ourselves some down time. One of the most popular stress relievers remains attending a favorite sport competition. This is a time we can have a more personal connectivity and enjoy our favorite teams. The role of the electronic scoreboard has surpassed all expectations as a zone of attention and the 21st century is bringing the scoreboard to the fans as a personal experience.

Most of us take the scoreboard for granted. As the years have passed, we have seen it evolve from a hand held device to keep us updated on the teams score to a colorful LED display with automatic updates and commercials. The electronic scoreboard has entered into this century with a roar – adding visual effects, real time video, and music and offering the marketing groups a pure branding environment. The demand by our society for more continues the challenge for electronic scoreboard manufacturers. Larger sized scoreboards, coupled with high quality sound has given us an almost real-time, on the field experience. Mechanics have been replaced with programmers and graphic designers. So what do we have to look forward to in the next twenty years?
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Electronic Scoreboards: They’re everywhere

Electronic ScoreboardsYou don’t have to go to Vegas to see everything in lights anymore. The truth is, the lowly electronic scoreboard has surpassed even the manufacturer’s anticipated results. We are delightfully bombarded with the latest technology in scoreboards at every turn, and the promise of the future looks like this trend will continue.

If you drive down the street of any mid-sized town or city, you are bound to see electronic scoreboards. Oh, you may not recognize them as such, but they are there. Electronic scoreboards have made a splash in the stadiums and arenas, but they have been taken into our daily lives as well. The local church has a streaming feed of congratulations to the home town high school team with their winning score of last night’s game. The stadium is lit, even in the dead of night, with the concert announcements and video of excitement to come. Sponsors of a larger sports game will have their ads beautifully lit at their location, announcing an anticipated contest for attendees.
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Are Electronic Scoreboards Replacing the Game?

Electronic ScoreboardsThere are some fans that seem to begrudge the newer technology, high quality scoreboards; indicating that they feel they are taking over the game. You probably know some of these people, they do not buy-into new tech very quickly (if at all) and seem to always be longing for ‘the good ol’ days’. If they are homesick for times gone by and were an avid fan of any sports team or concert event, they were also probably one of those people that were lucky enough to have seats in the first twenty rows. As one of those that often sat in the ‘nose bleed’ areas, I can tell you that the good ol’ days, were not that good. Thanks to the electronic scoreboards, all of us can now not only see a game or concert, but feel like we are actually participating in the moment.
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Electronic Video Scoreboards on Steroids

Our demand for the best technology is insatiable, and sports fans seem to be on the top of that food chain. Big isn’t big enough, it now has to be gigantic, in full blazing HD color and in our face. Some of the nation’s largest scoreboards give a view of such excellence that the people in the nosebleed area think they are on the field. This is the era of electronic scoreboard-a-rama.

In 2009, the Dallas Stadium premiered their 160’ HD display. This goes beyond a scoreboard: weighing in at 1.2 million pounds, it requires a team of technology experts to operate it and the cost was twice that of the old stadium used by the Cowboys. The screen was an extravaganza of brilliance. The color was crisp and every fan was aglow with the view. There was only one problem with something so large – when an opposing team’s backup punter made a rather non-descript kick, the football bounced and ricocheted off the screen. It turns out the entire thing was too low.
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Designing the best electronic scoreboard ads

There’s no denying that we are surrounded by advertising and marketing via more venues than ever before. In the old days, we were limited to television, radio and billboard. The technology stream has opened up the worlds of the internet websites, social media and now even our smartphones. With the entire marketing buzz, it is often a conundrum when you are trying to design creative and imaginative advertising for your electronic scoreboards.

The general public is fairly savvy when judging the difference between a good ad and a bad one. One example of the demand for good ads is the incredible popularity of Super Bowl ads. There are people that may not be football fans, but they will go online just to view that year’s ingenuity in advertising.
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Electronic Scoreboard: Major item on every team’s wish list

Electronic ScoreboardEach new school year the Director of the Sports Department has a meeting to review the needs of the various teams. Everything is examined: from uniforms to the condition of the field or stadium. As each sports team regroups for the season, they will also add their input for what they feel is needed for the success of the year. On the top of the list is the electronic scoreboard.

It is now common place to attend any game and see a scoreboard. Every team, whether indoor, outdoor, home or away is very aware of the affect a scoreboard can have on the game. In today’s competitive arena, a sports team has to market themselves in the same branding of excellence as any other product. There are too many high quality media sources to offer alternatives to attendance and support, and the team needs a good electronic scoreboard to bring the fans in.
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Electronic Scoreboards: A YouTube hit and viral

It is hard to believe that in the last five years, there has been so much of a technology jump. As a world society, we have made a leap from the net as an information source, to an entertainment resource. The universe of electronic scoreboards has been one of the top changes, morphing from a method to view a team’s score to hit videos on such sites as YouTube.

Sports fans have always pushed technology to move forward. Some of the first computer graphic commercials were designed for the Super Bowl. When the fans got a taste of those, they simply wanted more. With the advent of the net as a social media forum and the commonality of smartphones, the evolution of electronic scoreboards has kept up with the demand. The scoreboards are at a level of technology that they will often contain streaming video, sponsorship announcements and replays. These are both sent to a direct feed to the net as well as personally filmed on video with our cameras.
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The Changing Face of Electronic Scoreboards: From Manual to High-Tech

The changing face of electronic scoreboards: From manual to high techThere is an entire generation that has grown up not knowing what life was like without the internet, phone apps and high tech electronics. As a society, we have sped with lightning evolution into an age where everything can be viewed, communicated and shared, in an instant. In the U.S., the supply and demand channel for high tech has been backed by the hungry fans of our sports teams. We have progressed from a nation attending a hometown game with the old fashioned manual scoreboard to an expectation level of streaming, moment-by-moment updates on electronic scoreboards.
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Portable electronic scoreboards: Taking the scores to your fans

Hometown teams that don’t have a good field know all too well the uphill battle of getting and maintaining their fan following. The success of any team relies completely on the fans and the sponsors. Every team needs to know they are supported and the easiest way to get those fans is to have a portable electronic scoreboard at every game.

The old portable scoreboards were bulky, unpredictable and difficult to set up at an away game. The improvement in technology has offered a team the chance to have a higher tech portable scoreboard with some of the bells and whistles that you might only find at the stadiums. Gone are the days of the massive electric requirements. The wireless age now offers excellence of quality without so many plugs. Audio special effects can now be found on the portable scoreboards as MP3 plug ins can create a music sensation that spurs both fans and team members alike. Bright, sharp LED displays have the option of color change, so that you can match the team colors and entice more team spirit at the game.
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Little league scoreboards

Little League Scoreboards_1

Little league scoreboards have a big impact on the game, the teams playing, and the fans watching. That is why it is important to consider your scoreboard options carefully before you make a purchase. You will need to look at the size and space you have available for this equipment, how many windows and spaces you want on the scoreboard, and even the colors and designs you will want to include. There is an amazing variety of types and models that you can choose, so you will have no problem finding the perfect scoreboard for your field or facility. You can custom create little league scoreboards that really improve the look and feel of your sports program, and draw in fans from much farther away.
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How to buy scoreboards wisely?

How To Buy Scoreboards Wisely?Modern and upgraded scoreboards can add a lot to your facility or school, and draw in many more fans to the games which can also boost your event revenue. If you are thinking about buying scoreboards then there are some factors that you need to consider, so that you choose wisely and do not end up making a big mistake. A scoreboard can be a big investment, one that you hope to use for many years to come. The smartest way to buy scoreboards is to do your homework, and choose a company that has a solid business history, extensive experience in the industry, and excellent customer service and support. Electro-Mech offers all of these benefits, and is a company known for quality and a commitment to customer service and support.
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Wrestling scoreboard for your team

Wrestling Scoreboard For Your TeamWrestling is an indoor sport that has been gaining in popularity over the last number of years. As part of the team sports for your school, it needs to be included for consideration when you are making the purchase decision for an indoor scoreboard. As a school fan, I need to be reassured that my team will be displayed, no matter what the sport. The audio and visuals need to be incredible and part of the game and show experience.
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Sports timing systems

Sports timing systems can include many different components and accessories, and these systems can range from very simple and small to very extensive and enormous. Scoreboards, start and stop clocks, wired and wireless controllers, and many other accessories and items can be combined to create sports timing systems which are ideal for your school or facility. No matter what sport you are playing, you can find the right equipment and supplies at Electro-Mech. Scoreboards are available in many different sizes, styles, and types, and this is normally the centerpiece of your entire timing and scoring system. You can also add many different accessories, such as shot clocks, tabletop timers and scoreboards, and many other pieces. This will let you create sports timing systems which are the best fit with your specific facility and sports program.
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Track and field timing systems

Track and field timing systems can include many different components, and if your school or facility holds events for track and field then these systems are needed to keep track of the times and results achieved by the participants. You will find scoreboards and monitors which can display hours, minutes, seconds, and even smaller increments, to keep track of every relevant factor during the events. The track and field timing systems you choose for your field can determine the number of fans who attend, and even the amount of revenue that you can generate when track and field events are held. When you evaluate the system you will need for your track and field program there are a number of considerations to look at, and one of the biggest factors is quality.
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Led moving message board

An LED moving message board can add many benefits to any scoring system, whether you are looking for new scoring equipment for a high school or another type of facility. These boards can help improve the appeal of your facilities for sports fans who attend, while also improving the revenue that you will see from sporting events. An LED moving message board can be programmed in just minutes, so you can change the messages being displayed with very little time or effort required. Unlike traditional boards there is need to have individuals physically remove one ad or message and replace it with another. Instead all that is needed is to use a controller and change the message you want to display on the message board.
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