NEW YORK -- I was standing in the Yankees' bullpen as the sun began to set over the South Bronx on Friday evening, watching Cam Schlittler go through his warm-up routine prior to his start against the Red Sox. Pitching coach Matt Blake and assistant pitching coach Preston Claiborne were next to me.
At one point, Schlittler approached Blake to flash the grip of his cutter in his right hand, saying that he was going to try to hit the outside corner with his next pitch. I saw Blake nod, and Schlittler returned to the rubber, going through his motion to throw a perfect strike.
Except I wasn’t really in the Yankees bullpen.
I was sitting in a truck beyond Yankee Stadium’s left-field loading dock, wearing an Apple Vision Pro headset, experiencing the first live broadcast of Friday Night Baseball in Apple Immersive.
I walked out of that truck with one thought: I’d just seen the future.
That borrowed piece of wearable tech placed me in the home dugout as Aaron Judge led his teammates out for the national anthem. Then I was in the Boston on-deck circle for the game’s first pitch, feeling as though I needed to be careful -- Ceddanne Rafaela was right there, seemingly swinging a bat inches from my face.
When Boston starter Patrick Sandoval began working against the top of the Yankees lineup, someone in pinstripes flicked a sunflower seed through my line of vision. When Paul Goldschmidt fouled a pitch off, I instinctively turned my neck, watching the ball fly into the seats. Later, there was spit flying from the Boston dugout.
During a break in the action, I watched the 4 train rumble past beyond right field. By the end of the second inning, I was convinced -- this is as close to the experience of attending a game in person as you can get without actually doing so. All that’s missing are the hot dogs and beer vendors.
Apple uses numerous 8K cameras to capture 3D video with a 180-degree field of view, delivering an immersive stadium experience that looks and sounds like the ballpark. The broadcast carried commentary from Paul Severino (play-by-play), Xavier Scruggs (analyst) and Michelle Margaux (sideline reporter).
Up in the broadcast booth before Friday’s game, Severino said his first experience with the technology was a lot like mine -- he was immediately lost in it.
“It takes no time whatsoever to feel like you’re there, and in a really healthy way, be overwhelmed by all of it,” Severino said. “Especially some of the camera angles -- somebody hits a home run, walks down the top step, and you’re right in the action. All the high-fives, the sunflower seeds, the cheering. You’re right there.”
It’s one thing to impress a media member, but Scruggs spent a dozen years in professional dugouts, including three in the Majors. He said his first time putting on the Vision Pro was like being back in uniform.
“It was unreal,” Scruggs said. “My heartbeat started going again, because it felt like I was in competition. They showed me a Dodgers game [from 2025] and I’m literally standing next to Shohei Ohtani, seeing all of his movements up there in 8K. I felt like I was part of it, like I was going to be dapping up one of the guys.”
Friday’s game was the first of four this season to be carried live in Apple Immersive on Apple Vision Pro.
The other three: Angels at Pirates on Sept. 4, Padres at Giants on Sept. 11, and Giants at Dodgers on Sept. 18.
“There’s nothing better than going to a game, but this is the second-best thing,” Severino said. “If you’re out of town, I think this is a great way to experience Pittsburgh, San Francisco or Los Angeles. I think it’s going to be incredible.”