Changes in baseball batters' brain activity with increased pitch choice.

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Sports Science
• Cognitive Psychology

Background:

• Batters' decision-making in baseball is influenced by pitch type.
• Increased pitch variety generally makes decisions harder for batters.
• Limited research exists on the psychophysiology of batter decision-making.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate how brain activation changes with an increasing number of alternatives (NA) for batters.
• To explore the neural correlates of decision-making under varying pitch uncertainty.

Main Methods:

• 15 male college baseball players participated.
• fMRI scans were used to measure brain activity.
• Participants viewed video clips of fastballs, curves, and sliders, and responded to target pitches.

Main Results:

• Activation observed in the right precentral gyrus, left medial frontal gyrus, and right fusiform gyrus for one alternative.
• Supplementary motor areas (SMA) and primary motor cortex activated with two alternatives.
• Inferior orbitofrontal gyrus specifically activated with three alternatives.
• Number of alternatives did not critically influence activation when compared directly.

Conclusions:

• Specific brain regions involved in decision-making show increased activation as the number of alternatives rises.
• The study provides insights into the neural basis of complex motor decision-making in sports.