MLB All-Star Roundup, Part : Cameras, Graphics, and Studio Sets

The MLB All-Star Game show is always a showcase for cutting-edge production tools and tech toys. Tech vendors turned out in droves to Cincinnati's Great American Ballpark, providing specialty cameras, virtual graphics, unique studio set designs, High Dynamic Range demos, and much more to Fox Sports, ESPN, MLB Network, and other broadcasters covering the festivities. Here is a brief look at some of the tech highlights at MLB All-Star 2015.

3g Wireless Takes Viewers Inside the Derby With CatcherCam

ESPN teamed with 3g Wireless to launch UmpireCam during ESPN's College World Series coverage last month and brought the technology to Sunday's Celebrity Softball and Monday's Home Run Derby telecasts, this time worn by the catcher. The minuscule camera, which weighs under a pound, is mounted at the top center of the catcher's mask; the battery (two-hour lifespan) and transmitter are on each side of the mask.

3g Wireless tech Neil Lague works on the CatcherCam worn during ESPN's Home Run Derby coverage.

It's something we believe is a very important shot for baseball, says ESPN MLB Coordinating Producer Phil Orlins. Your cameras are not as close for baseball as they are [for sports like] football and basketball, with sidelines. [With] baseball, you [have] sort of a 60-ft.-radius moat around the action. But this offers an optimum view of the most important aspect of the game, so we view it as a priority. 3g has been extremely responsive to our needs and various requests, and I think it's a perfect addition to Home Run Derby.

ChyronHego Powers MLBAM Statcast

ChyronHego was on hand supporting MLB Advanced Media's Statcast system, which was used by Fox Sports during the All-Star Game and MLB Network's MLB Tonight: All-Star Batting Practice coverage (it was slated to be used during ESPN's Home Run Derby coverage as well but wasn't because of a last-minute technical glitch).

ChyronHego plays a key role in MLBAM's Statcast operation.

MLBAM deployed two Statcast systems for the Fox telecast, instead of just the single system traditionally used on MLB on Fox productions. This required additional ChyronHego hardware in the rack room at Great American Ballpark and an additional Replay Builder system in the Statcast production room. Traditionally for MLB on Fox telecasts, Statcast has access to high-home, third-base, and high-third cameras but added high home, a fixed high-home ultra-wide shot, and centerfield angles for All-Star.

We're going to be sort of experimenting with more camera angles, said Kevin Prince on Monday. And we will have an additional operator on the replay system so that we can get more camera angles and present those to the producer/director.

Statcast has now played a role in dozens of live MLB telecasts with Fox, MLB Network, and, beginning last weekend, TBS. With that in mind, Prince notes that the system and how broadcasters use it continue to evolve.

Fox started out very tentatively, and, as they've begun to understand the enhancement and storytelling, they now are adding more Statcasts every week, says Prince. We had more than 20 Statcast events on-air [on MLB on TBS] over the weekend, so we are very pleased with that. It's coming along very nicely.

CP Communications Orchestrates Massive RF Effort

CP Communications provided a variety of wireless RF cameras to networks onsite: two handhelds and a Steadicam for ESPN, two handhelds to Fox Sports, two for MLB Network (a handheld and a HatCam worn by talent while they walked around batting practice), and a handheld for Japanese broadcaster NHK. MLB Networks' HatCam also provided a unique challenge and opportunity for CP.

CP Communications President Michael Mason (right) and Senior Engineer Frank Rafka

The camera is a lot smaller, the transmitter is a lot smaller, the batteries are a lot smaller, everything is smaller, notes CP Communications President Michael Mason. The challenge is making sure that we've got the ability of getting back the signals because you have to hide the antennas in the helmet so they don't show.

In addition, CP handled all the RF coordination for MLB and the broadcasters at Great American Ballpark - no easy task at an event the size of MLB All-Star.

Before we even got to town, we had 275 frequencies in the database, Mason explains. So frequencies are slim pickings here. You would think that, in Cincinnati, the TV market is not that large, but it really is. It's pretty congested in squeezing everybody in and getting everybody to use their wireless [appropriately]. With all the ENG crews that show up to a worldwide event, it really is a little bit of a challenge but one that we are up to.

On the audio side, CP deployed an army of wired and wireless effects mics for all three networks and the world feed. In addition, player mics played a significant role in ESPN's Home Run Derby and All-Star Legends & Celebrity Softball Game coverage.

Filmwerks Gets Creative With Fox, MLB Network Sets

Fox worked with Filmwerks (which recently acquired Fox's longtime studio-set constructor, Kernwer) to create its All-Star Game set in the centerfield stands. Centered between the PNC Power Stacks (steamboat-style smokestacks that blow out pyrotechnics and fireworks after big plays and Reds victories), the set was built into the ballpark structure using ModTruss. The base was 20 x 24 ft., the roof overhanging at 30 x 20 ft. (which came in handy during the torrential downpours Monday afternoon).

Filmwerks built Fox Sports' set directly into the ballpark's Power Stacks in centerfield.

This is a special structure that not many other people could have done, because we had to actually build the ModTruss around the existing structure, says Filmwerks Project Manager Bill Talaska. It's a very specialized pr

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