Dead Finger Tech: MLB At Bat + MLB iPhone App = Summer Bliss

If you've been reading ZDNET blogs much this week, you'll notice that there are a lot of a lot of them that are called "Dead Finger Tech" and then there is some piece of technology that follows.  Us'n ZDNET bloggers have been asked to name that one piece of technology that we can't do without; that we love as we love our family and friends; that we wil take to the proverbial desert island.  One that I liked in particular was Matthew Miller, our Mobile Gadgeteer's Kindle. (a man after my own heart)

But i gots my own Dead Finger Tech too. And, being a New Yorker, which means talking and at least aspiring to live large, I needed a two pack combo to make my Dead Finger Tech work. Its not hardware either though there is hardware necessary.   Of course, I would complicate it.  Its that livin' large thingee.

What is it, Paul? I know that you're just dying to know.

Its the combination of MLB At Bat including MLB.TV Premium and the MLB At Bat iPhone app.

Here's the picture:

You probably know by now that I love the New York Yankees. If you didn't, I will now yell it to the rooftops. I LOVE THE NEW YORK YANKEES! - and have for at least 53  years which is as far as I can remember. I have no doubt its encoded into my genetic makeup, though.

I also love the game of baseball and even love Kevin Kostner for making the greatest sports movie of all time with Field of Dreams. There actually is crying in baseball, Tom Hanks, if you watch the scene where Kostner has "the catch" with his Dad in the movie; I cry every single time that scene is up. I admit it. Okay, c'mon all you big tough studs out there, admit it man up, you cry too.

I've gone as far as to find out who some of the best Yankees fans are in the world of CRM and related areas. We're plotting to take over the business world, BTW.  Among them are Joe Pine 2, the author of business classic, The Experience Economy and the 2007 best seller Authenticity; Ken Juster, Executive Vice President of Law, Policy, and Corporate Strategy at salesforce.com; and Tien Tzuo, Founder & CEO of Zuora (former salesforce CSO) and brand new daddy (Congrats to Tien!!!);  That is among an incredibly large number of others. Carly Cooper of the SAP Business Influencers Group is more of a Yankees fan than I am, which I didn't think was humanly possible. We rule in CRM baseball fandom!!

So I cannot, repeat, cannot live without my MLB At Bat Premium TV subscription - which gives me Internet connectivity to watch all 162 Yankees games (minus those that fall under the horrible blackout rules)  and of course, other than last year's aberration, the playoff games that we're going to rightfully earn.  Combine that with the $9.99 annual iPhone app and we have a winner.

I won't show  you the MLB.com subscription but take a look at what this iPhone app provides.

It shows the schedule with games in progress and the scores live:

It shows the scoring plays game by game or the play by play after its occurred:

But its so much cooler than that. It also sends video highlights to the iPhone about 10 minutes after they occur in game for every single game playing that night. You access them inside the individual game that you're watching or tracking or listening to.  I'm drooling, in case you can't see me.

Even better, you now can get either selected games or, if you're a subscriber to MLB.TV Premium, all games shown live video streaming on the iPhone.  BTW, this is Robinson Cano's two run homer off the Orioles last week.  I saw it live on the iPhone but of course, through the clever use of the video highlights am able to show it to you as if I actually captured it that way too.

I'm only showing you some of what this app does. It also carries every single radio broadcast of every single game every single day or night.  That means if the Yankees are playing the Oakland A's, I can listen to the Yankees broadcasters audio or the A's broadcasters audio - live.

It also carries Gameday  which is the pitch by pitch graphical representation of the game that tracks the batter pitcher interplay to the point of insane description - e.g.  Polanco strike (Curve 83.2 mph).   That granular. Oooh. I'm shivering.

Think about this. You get EVERY SINGLE MAJOR LEAGUE GAME pitch by pitch graphically, or listening to your live audio broadcasters of choice, or watching the games live video streaming - all of them if you're already an MLB.TV subscriber or a few if you have nothing but the app.  The audio and video are glitchless on Wi-Fi and nearly so on 3G.  You get video highlights in game about 10 minutes after they occur so you don't have to miss anything. It also has the standings broken down by league and wild card and a whole other set of MLB videos - like a compendium of the day's highlights etc.

To add to the unadulterated bliss, they are going to add a condensed game video - condensed like cream of mushroom soup, I imagine.  That means a shortened maybe 20-30 minute version of the game.

Now, all of this isn't a great substitute for being at a game or even watching it on TV - and I have the DirecTV Extra Innings (Extra $$$$) package too.

Tell you what, though, this is about as good as it gets. The price for a whole season is frigging 10 bucks. That's it. Ten bucks.  $9.99.  Less than 10 bucks. Oh, life can be grand sometimes.  I have the iPhone App and Internet connectivity to prove it.  Now the Yankees have to win this year.  Again.

Got any favorite Dead Finger Tech you want to blab about?  Or fight me on the Yankees?  Or agree with me on everything?  This is probably the only time on ZDNET you're going to be able to talk sports or gab with me about gadgets. So go at it.  Talkbacks a.k.a. comments are a lot easier now.

Okay, everyone, bring it.