People that have driven by Provo’s Miller Park within the last couple of years haven't likely noticed the major construction project down the third-base line.
What was once a dirt pit has grown into a concrete structure and now houses the BYU baseball and softball programs’ brand new indoor hitting and pitching facility.
But there’s so much more to this building than simply the steel beams and concrete that compose it: for BYU baseball, it stands as a symbol of a new era.
Speaking on what it means for the program, coach Trent Pratt said, “It will enhance recruiting, the student-athlete experience and the development of our players.”
According to BYU Athletics, the new facility is 6,000 square feet and includes four batting/pitching cages. Previously, there were two indoor cages connected to the home baseball dugout. Those will now primarily serve the softball program.
This has been a multi-year project, begun under the direction of former athletic director Tom Holmoe and finished under new athletic director Brian Santiago.
As it was nearing its end, Holmoe said, “This facility will enhance both programs and provide new opportunities for our student-athletes to improve and be successful.”
Now that construction has been completed, Santiago echoed Holmoe’s comments when he said, “It’s one of many ways we are investing resources to further develop our student-athletes and compete for Big 12 championships.”
Not only does it provide more space for both programs to get indoor reps (a necessary commodity to combat the winters along the Wasatch Front), but it comes equipped with some of baseball’s most advanced technology.
Inside look at the new hitting & pitching facility 👀 pic.twitter.com/oEij4MS6Fk
— BYU Baseball (@BYUBaseball) April 16, 2026
As detailed in a video released on the team’s social media account, advanced HitTrax cameras and iPitch pitching machines help batters track data such as where the ball would land, their bat speed and the velocity of the ball coming off of the bat.
For senior right fielder Bryker Hurdsman, just the presence of more indoor cages in general has been the biggest boost.
“It’s the coolest thing ever because you get to show up and anytime you want it, you get after it," Hurdsman said. "As a team, it’s been able to challenge us as hitters to get better and tougher."
In direct reference to the new technology, Hurdsman joked, “All the different machines and different stuff in there, I don’t even understand it.”
As with any new technology, it will take time to adjust and learn to utilize it to its fullest potential. For guys like Hurdsman, more time in the cage getting familiar with “all the different machines and stuff” has the potential to take their swing to the next level.
But what about the pitchers? What does all of this innovation do for them?
The TrackMan pitching tracker in the cages gives pitchers every piece of information they could possibly ask for — at times even more. The company advertises its product as able to “measure full ball trajectory and spin, including metrics such as Vertical Release Angle, Horizontal Movement, Plate Side and more — all with unmatched accuracy.”
When combined with the speed pro cam installed, pitchers can break down every pitch they throw and how they throw it down to the centimeter.
Junior starter and current Big 12 wins leader Nate Gray said, “It slows down your hand positioning, your grips, your release points, and how the ball is coming out of your hand. It’s absolutely absurd the amount of science behind this.”
The new facilities, together with a new pitching coach, have helped Gray progress from what he described as just a thrower into a pitcher.
“It really helps you understand how to pitch and not just throw … it helps dial in pitches, dial in grips, and make you that much better on the mound,” he said.
His teammate and fellow rotation mainstay Garrison Sumner shared similar sentiments.
“It’s nice to see if you’re throwing strikes, if you have the right shape [to your pitches] … it’s tracking feel and shape, giving you all sorts of good information,” he said.
But for these two Cougar aces, there comes a point where the information becomes too much. When bombarded with every number anyone could ever imagine, sometimes a pitcher simply needs to go out and execute.
“It’s good as long as you allow it to be good,” Sumner said, “but sometimes it’s just about getting out there and throwing a strike … Sometimes it's like, ‘Hey, man, your data's good. Don't look at it. Just go out there and compete and throw strikes.’”
“I always have the question in my head of what is the actual importance of these numbers if I can't throw the ball in the zone?" Gray said.
“I can throw the nastiest breaking ball on the planet, but if it's not near the zone, it's not going to be a good pitch," he added. "There's days where you're out there like, ‘Oh man, I really wish my heater had 18 inches of vert instead of 14.’ I don't really care what my pitch is doing if I can throw it past the dude.”
In a game that is so mental — especially for pitchers — Gray and Sumner understand that there comes a point when the data just needs to be set aside. If you can’t throw a strike, no combination of “Vertical Release Angle” or “Horizontal Movement” can really help you.
But as the Cougar pitchers continue to dial their pitches to being just a few tweaks away from greatness, this new facility will be a weapon for the Bat Cats in reaching new heights.