As a huge baseball fan, my favorite time of the year has finally arrived: Spring Training. Almost all teams have reported to camp and baseball is finally starting up again. Usually when this happens, it means a new app and 2013 is no different. MLB announced on Thursday that its renowned At Bat app has been updated for Spring Training 2013. The update is now available for the iPhone and iPad, but most importantly, Android. Of note, a BlackBerry 10 version is expected to be available by Opening Day.
The app is loaded with all sorts fo new features. For one, you can now port all access to radio broadcasts of MLB games to your Mac or PC. Sortable stats are also new in the Spring Training edition, though are only available on tablets. Smartphone-specific features include updated individual team pages and news views, expanded video highlights and a library of classic video. The expanded classic video library is huge for us baseball fanatics. It allows you to relive all sorts of famous (and infamous) events for the past 60+ years.
Users of select Android phones will also be able to stream 200 Spring Training games directly to their device with an MLB.TV subscription.
The full list of new features in the Spring Training update follows:
- Multi-platform live audio access for At Bat 13 subscribers, offering account portability to listen to live games on Mac/PC desktops and laptops
- Universal iOS and Android support for At Bat 13 subscribers, full feature accessibility across all supported smartphones and tablets
- Sortable batting, pitching and fielding statistics (iPad and Android tablets)
- Re-designed individual team pages (iPhone and Android phones)
- Updated news section interface (iPhone and Android phones)
- Expanded video highlight integration (iPhone and Android phones)
- Classic games video library archive (all devices)
- Re-architected app navigation (all devices)
- Additional push notification options (iPhone)
- Favorite team enhancements (iPad and Android tablets)
- Searchable video highlight library expansion to include access to complete video archives (all devices)
- In-app annual subscription purchase (Google Play)
MLB has definitely been at the forefront of bringing technology into the sports world. It offers one of the best, if not the best, second screen experiences when watching a game. Of course, it can also provide on of the best first-screen experiences with an MLB.TV subsciption.
The update is available now on the Play Store.