CEDAR FALLS - What you see isn't always what you get in baseball.

As hard as college and high school programs try in practice to simulate the variety of pitches, velocities and deliveries they will face during their seasons, there is no substitute for the real thing.

Until now.

Northern Iowa has gone high-tech, and it's a development head coach Rick Heller believes will give his team a decided edge when the Panthers dig in at the plate during the 2005 season.

Thanks to Joyner Technologies of Georgia, UNI has purchased a programmable pitching machine that is synchronized with video footage of pitchers for an interactive batting practice experience that until now only professional teams have been able to afford.

Whether it's an over-the-top righthanded fireballer or a soft-tossing lefty sidearmer, Heller can give his players an accurate look in the cage. The unit can be programmed to deliver different pitches at different velocities in any sequence the coaching staff desires.

But the value extends far beyond the obvious.

"Being a hitting guy, anyway, the value of this system is immeasurable," said Heller, already regarded as an outstanding hitting instructor. His UNI teams have batted .300 or better in five of his six seasons.

"The one thing during the offseason and during practice every day that you can't simulate is live pitching. Before, we felt like we could do a great job of teaching mechanics through the offseason.

"One of our big points of emphasis is pitch selection. You can have great mechanics and a good swing, but the bottom line is that if you are going up there swinging at pitcher's-type pitches early in the count, you are going to get yourself out all the time.

"We want to work pitch counts and only swing at pitches early in the count that we can put our best swings on."

Heller said there is no limit to the situational teaching possibilities with his new equipment.

"I can say, 'Today we're working on a 0-0 count and looking for a fastball middle-in. I can sequence pitches to help guys get used to taking pitcher's pitches. We can set it up to work on two-strike pitches, like sliders on the outside part of the plate or fastballs four or five inches off the plate.

"We should become better two-strike hitters, and we should be able to get our best swings off early in the count a lot better."

Interactive video training systems aren't new. Jim Joyner, who developed UNI's system, said they've been around since the early 1990s. However, the $80,000-$100,000 cost and the maintenance requirements were prohibitive for most teams and programs.

"Our goal was to make it affordable for everybody," said Joyner. "I wanted a system that was user-friendly and very easy to operate."

So did Heller.

"I saw this at an ABCA (American Baseball Coaches Association) convention four or five years ago," he recalled. "It was probably the most popular booth in the exhibit hall, but nobody could afford it. I always said that when somebody developed a system that was as good at a price we could afford, we were going to get one right away."

Late last summer, Joyner e-mailed hundreds of college coaches with news of his programmable, interactive video system, which can be adapted to most brands and styles of pitching machines for baseball and fastpitch softball. It retails for $9,995 with price breaks offered to college programs.

"I jumped right on it," said Heller. "I basically trusted him blindly that his machine was what he said it was going to be."

In fact, it was even more. In addition to the batting training it can provide, the unit is programmed with pickoff moves, as well. Now, UNI's players can work on reading pitchers and baserunning skills at full speed throughout the offseason.

"That was kind of a secret we'd been working on," said Joyner. "It had never been done before."

Joyner made the trip to Iowa to set up the equipment last week.

"It's pretty exciting to me," said Heller. "When I saw it, my eyes lit up. I really feel like after we've had it for awhile and learn all the ways we can use it, our guys are really going to benefit. Plus, it should be a lot more fun for them, too.

"One of the biggest complaints you hear from players is that they never get enough live looks. This should help eliminate that. We can load 80 balls at a time, so at 10 to 12 seconds between pitches, we can run 25 guys through batting practice pretty quickly."

Joyner said the system consists of top-quality equipment, from a virtually indestructable video screen to the DVD player and projector.

"As far as maintenance, what I tell people is that you turn it on, and when you get done, you turn it off," said Joyner. "There is no scheduled maintenance. It should last for years and years with some basic inspection and cleaning now and then."

UNI's players are due to report for meetings Jan. 10. The following day, many of them will step into the cage with a new player.

"Our goal is to provide the next great player on everyone's team," said Joyner.

Heller's goal is to provide his Panthers with the tools they need to succeed in the Missouri Valley Conference.

"One of our goals is always to make practice harder than the games, and this machine will be another tool to allow us to do that," he said. "

For more information about Joyner Technologies, visit www.allstar5000.com or call (770) 497-3742.