The BatAction Blog presents baseball batting training tips, baseball hitting drills, and other information to help Bat Action owners produce unbelievable results from working out on the BatAction Baseball Trainer. Baseball coaches, players and parents will find this information very interesting and extremely useful. The Regular posts include new and innovative training drills and techniques to increase bat speed, improve power, improve hitting skill, and increase batter confidence.
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Baseball Drills - The Hitting Tee and a Cup of Coffee By guest author: Nate Barnett
I remember giving my players a choice of what baseball drills to begin with during batting practice a few years back. The options were: front toss, short toss in the batting cage, live batting practice, and tee work. Guess which one of the baseball drills was chosen last. That's right. The exciting tee drill (yes, that was sarcasm).
I would like to offer up the comparison of coffee to the basic hitting tee for your learning enjoyment. You'll find both are an acquired taste to be sure. But, the rewards are so enjoyable! Of course, you'll permit me to explain my analogy.
Similarities between the hitting tee and coffee:
* Both coffee and the hitting tee take some time to get used to.
* Once you have "acquired the taste", you'll find it hard to quit.
* There are so many "specialty" brands on the market today, but the basic version is just fine.
* Imagine the world without either, how would we be able to function? (Again, a bit dramatic, but you get the point)
So now that you fully understand that the hitting tee should be an integral part of your baseball drills, here is how to spice it up a bit in practice.
1. Make sure it's in the right position. If you place the hitting in the middle of the plate, make sure that the ball on the tee is across from the inside of the front thigh as a hitter sets up. Having the tee back in the zone will force the hitter to keep his weight back while he swings. Placing the tee too far out in front (unless you're working on the inside pitch of course) will allow the hitter to get away with a sloppy swing by having his hips slide toward the pitcher during the swing.
2. Set up some games to play. While working on hitting the inside and outside pitches off of a tee, put a couple screens out on the right and left side gaps and have the hitter try to hit the screens. The more correct swings are done on the tee (measured by hitting the screens), the more swings they earn in the live batting practice station.
Have fun, now go make yourself a cup of coffee.
Nate Barnett helps improve the mental game of baseball in athletes. Improve your pitching today.
Great Baseball Hitting Drills - Using Release Zones, Picking Up Pitcher Release By guest author: Joe Brockoff
Coaches frequently ask how do we improve a player's ability to pick up the ball immediately at release point. To better understand how to do this, we first need to understand release zones. There are three pitching release zones:
1.Three-quarter release (most common): right hander-10 o'clock, lefthander-2 o'clock. 2.Overhand release: right hander-11 o'clock, left hander-1 o'clock. 3.Side arm release: right-hander-9 o'clock, left hander-3 o'clock.
After release, the ball enters trajectory, which is diagonally down. It is at this time that the hitter is completing his stride and deciding the projected location of the pitch in contact. When he is striding, he is deciding. Therefore, we need to separate the time of release from the time of trajectory, in order to give this the batter's full concentration.
Try these proven drills (we call "skull sessions") to improve a hitter's ability to pick up the ball at release point:
Needed: pitcher, batter, and netting.
1.Pitcher stands three feet in front of a net (could be the net of a batting cage). 2.Batter is on the other side of the net facing the pitcher, as if in his stance at home plate. 3.He will not take a swing. 4.Several batters can observe at the same time.
Drill:
1.Pitcher winds up and pitches the ball. 2.Ball will hit the net immediately. 3.Batter, protected by the net, concentrating solely on release, draws an imaginary circle around the release zone, and expects the ball to come out of that zone each time (zone is different for each type of pitcher).
Pitcher throws the following:
1.10 fast balls. - Batter observes release zone. - Ball will dive down after release. 2.10 breaking balls. - Batter observes release zone. - Balls will have a little hump after release. 3.10 mix of both fastballs and breaking balls. - Batter identifies each from release.
After the pitcher throws from three feet, he can vary the distance up to six feet.
Hitters will be amazed at how much better they will see release with just one session. Do this drill frequently to continue to emphasize this process, and with a variety of different pitchers.
Coach Joe Brockoff, a Division I Head Baseball Coach for Tulane University for more than 19 years, and former minor league player for the New York Yankees, has sent 45 baseball players to the pros and coached thousands of college level and youth players using his proven Super 8 Baseball Hitting System. Coach Brockoff's unique drills, tips, and techniques have increased many players' batting average by more than 200 points.
As a coach committed to continuous improvement, Coach shares his proven baseball drills, tips, and techniques here so that you will, in turn, inspire and motivate young players to improve their game. To learn more about Coach's techniques, and to watch his free instructional videos, visit the Super 8 Baseball Hitting System at http://www.learnbaseballhitting.com or check out some of his videos at http://www.5min.com/Video/How-to-Learn-Rotational-Hitting-323080216
Baseball Drills to Increase Bat Speed and Hitting Power By guest author: Dustin Peek
Baseball drills that create head-turning power at the plate are something that every baseball player can benefit from. Sure, good hitters are known for making consistent contact with the baseball, but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to realize that the harder the ball is hit, the more likely it is to find a hole or a gap. This power at the plate is the difference in being a good hitter and a great hitter, and great hitters get noticed. Just one single extra base hit for every ten at-bats can mean the difference in a 0.200 batting average and a 0.300 batting average, and that little extra "pop" on the ball is the easiest way to get those extra hits. Power is everything, and it is well known that hitting power is created with bat speed. Luckily, there are some great hitting drills and techniques that can be used to harness this power in any player. There are two specific baseball drills that are very good at increasing bat speed and hitting power.
Before discussing these specific hitting drills, it is first important to understand how a hitter creates power. A hitter creates power through bat speed, and a hitter's bat speed is created through the efficient transfer of energy from the batter's body to the bat. Many people believe that this energy is created with the batter's arms, but in fact, this energy is created through efficiently transferring a hitter's body weight from his back foot to his front foot during the swing. The important term to remember is "efficient." Every batter that swings a baseball bat shifts his weight when swinging, but power hitters have strong cores and excellent balance. This keeps their bodies compact so that almost all of the energy created though the weight-shift is transferred directly to the bat. So the two keys to increasing bat speed and hitting power are balance and having a compact swing.
Hitting Power and Bat Speed Drill #1
This first hitting drill addresses one of the biggest problems that many hitters have when trying to hit for power. They simply do not have a compact swing. What do I mean? Weak hitters do not keep their elbows close to their bodies, and they over-stride when stepping toward the ball. This "flailing" of limbs results in a very weak swing because so much energy is being lost in the additional motion instead of being transferred directly to the bat. To transfer the maximum amount of energy to the bat, a hitter must keep his elbows close to his body and he must take a short, balanced stride. This allows the energy from the weight-shift to be efficiently transferred from the legs, up through the core, and finally to the arms. This creates the greatest amount of bat speed and hitting power.
An excellent drill for keeping a compact swing is to place small objects under the hitter's arms and between his knees while practicing hitting from a tee or during soft-toss. The objects under the arms can be anything small and soft that the hitter can hold against his body with his elbows while not interrupting his swing. Rags or towels rolled up into tubes and taped work great for this drill. The object between the knees should be a light and soft spherical-shaped object. For older players, a volleyball works great. For younger players, you might need to find some other small ball-shaped object. The idea is for the player to hold these objects under his arms and between his knees during soft-toss or while hitting from a tee to practice keeping his limbs close to his body. This drill forces the batter to have a compact swing and an efficient transfer of energy from his body to the bat.
Hitting Power and Bat Speed Drill #2
The second baseball drill to improve hitting power at the plate addresses a hitter's balance. Similar to having a compact swing, balance is critical because having bad balance also causes a batter to have poor energy transfer to the bat during the swing. We've all seen the young batter that tries to swing too hard and actually loses his balance while stepping back away from the plate. While this is a very common problem for young hitters as they try to hit the ball farther, this poor-balance approach actually prevents the batter from hitting the baseball as far as he could.
A great drill for practicing good balance is to have the hitter stand on a flat 2 x 12 inch board while hitting from a tee or while taking soft toss. This board should be about six feet in length and can be purchased at any lumber yard or most home improvement stores. The idea is for the hitter to stride directly forward toward the ball without falling off the board. Over time, this baseball drill teaches the hitter to have good balance, and it prevents stepping backward. This improved balance will absolutely improve a hitter's bad speed and hitting power.
To summarize, to improve a hitter's bat speed and hitting power, one must focus on having a compact swing and good balance. The above two baseball drills focus on these two factors, and over time, they will ultimately help a hitter improve his power. However, this only scratches the surface of improving bat speed and creating power at the plate. If you are interested in further improvements, I encourage you to keep learning about this incredibly important baseball skill!
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The Physical Demands of Baseball By guest author: Dana Cavalea
As we spend time analyzing sports, every sport has its own set of physical, mental, and skill demands. For years and years now, football has been the gold standard when comparisons start taking place in regards to overall athleticism need to play, as well as the overall physical demand. For this very reason there are so many young athletes, as well as older athletes that are integrating football lifting techniques, as well as conditioning techniques into sports such as baseball.
In the past when I would hear and see this taking place, the excessive grunting, yelling, and weight handling I would cringe. But, after taking a deeper look at what is actually going on, it turns out that there is a lot of hard work and internal drive and personal limit pushing taking place. Putting exercise selection and form aside, this type of increased intensity training is achieving a quality that is often times overlooked, fitness.
Because baseball is a sport that has very low metabolic and physical demands, athletes learn to adapt to their sport. Some athletes even play baseball because it has such low physical demand. Over time, this will lead to athletes that become very proficient and sport-specific skills, such as hitting and throwing, but often health and fitness levels are severely lacking. When these fitness levels start to lack, injuries often result due to the high velocities and torques that are needed to execute the sport-specific skills. Throwing a baseball is one of the most explosive, total body actions in all of sports, yet many pitchers are overweight and inherently lazy.
If as coaches and athletes we really stop and analyze this situation, can you say that you and your team are honestly doing enough in regards to stay lean? Over the years I have heard about Coaches running their athletes with excessive distance running, and again I would get sick to my stomach. Although distance running isn't a specific protocol to baseball, it will without a doubt work to increase caloric burn, which will lead to the shedding of excessive body mass. I still wouldn't recommend excessive running everyday, but I would require some type of conditioning everyday. I would also recommend that these circuits are primarily cardiovascular based rather than being strictly weight lifting oriented. These circuits could include medicine balls, body weight training, form running, jump rope, plyometrics, band work, core work, etc.
The great advantage to a circuit is that they work great for teams. Circuit training allows you to create multiple stations, each station containing a different exercise, and accommodates multiple athletes, as well as providing a good amount of variety. Circuits can be done for reps, or for time. After that athlete achieves the specified reps, or the allotted time, he would then move to the next station. When choosing stations, just like when designing and overall program, you must have a goal. If your goal is strength, then your circuit would be primarily weight training oriented. If your goal is cardiovascular fitness/ endurance and strength, you would select a variety of exercises that contain either cardio fitness, strength, or both.
I have become a huge advocate of circuits in-season because they are time efficient, will work to maintain and hopefully increase work-capacity of the body, and are fun.
Although the physical demands of baseball are extremely low, athletes that spend time increasing their work capacity are at a tremendous advantage in regards to recovery time, as well as a decreased time on the disabled list. Increasing work capacity will allow pitchers to pitch deeper into games, while keeping position players strong throughout the rigors of playing everyday. The gold standard of workouts in the Major Leagues has been Roger Clemens and his legendary SEAL Program. This program is basically one giant circuit. This program is not extremely focused on weigh training in the circuit, but on increasing conditioning levels. This program is a combo of distance and sprint work, as well as lateral work with baseballs.
Take a lesson from the Rocket, don't be a typical lazy baseball player that just gets by because of the low demand of the sport, but learn to out-work the demands of the sport and you will be rewarded by health, efficiency, and most importantly increased performance.
Dana Cavalea is a Sports Performance Consultant specializing in baseball performance training. In addition he works with many professional sports teams, athletes, and colleges' educating on the importance of training, nutrition, and lifestyle for sport.In addition he is the owner of Major League Strength, http://www.mlstrength.com, a sports performance consulting company designed to educate and create awareness on advancements in the field of sports performance training for coaches and athletes.
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Rotational Hitting Mechanics - The Best Hitting Mechanics You Can Teach Your Players
By George Montoya
What are the best batting mechanics you can teach your players?
As a baseball coach, that's a question that I get all the time. If you look around you'll notice well meaning coaches doing the same stale drills, but never really improving their player's mechanics. In fact, these baseball coaches, most of the time, are enforcing poor hitting mechanics.
So what can you do?
The fact is that 95% of all Hall of Fame hitters are using rotational hitting mechanics. That's right; the Major League swing is rotational hitting.
I learned how to teach rotational hitting, and so can you.
Here are some key things to keep in mind about rotational hitting.
•It all starts with the grip - The knocking knuckles of the hand have to be lined up; this makes for a more accurate swing. Why do you think an axe handle is oval? It automatically lines up your knuckles for a reason - accuracy!
•The stance - You don't want to be too wide or to narrow. A good start is feet shoulder width apart, or about the length of their bat wide.
•Load - As the pitcher begins their motion, the batter turns their lead shoulder and front knee toward the plate slightly, always keeping both eyes on the pitchers release point.
•Stride and weight transfer - The batter shifts their weight from the back foot to the front foot on a tilted axis, NOT a straight up and down axis. You might even note that their back foot becomes light, sometimes even coming completely off of the ground a couple of inches.
•The Hips - Once the batter is going to take their swing, their front heel drops locking out the front leg, and the hips begin to rotate. The rotation of the hips is what pulls the hands around. This is when the batter turns around a fixed axis, their front leg.
Important! The key rotational hitting points above are what most Major League baseball players do during their swing. You CAN learn to teach the mechanics of the Major League swing.
Don't ignore these steps. Quit doing the same stale drills ever other coach out there is teaching. Do your players justice... YOU CAN!
Learn the rotational hitting drills that will show you how to improve your player's mechanics, and make you look like baseball genius.
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In our never ending quest to find new methods of teaching baseball, especially the hitting aspect, perhaps we should stop and look behind us instead of always looking forward.
Once upon a time a high .380% or .400% batting average was not all that uncommon, and of course there's been plenty of change to the game since then, but still... does change explain everything. I think not.
An old time baseball player, named Tony Pena, once performed the catching duties for the Pittsburg Pirates and although he won great notoriety for his unorthodox catching style, he'd literally catch and throw while sitting straddled in the dirt, he was especially known for his swing at nearly every pitch style of hitting.
For the pitchers in that era, walking Tony Pena was nearly as hard as throwing a no hitter, and in spite of his apparent wild swings at nearly anything resembling a baseball, he hit for a high average. How could a player, who seemed to totally abandon any self control and proper hitting mechanics while hitting, hit for a high average against major league pitchers?
Tony Pena grew up in a very poor Latin American community where baseball was the all time favorite sport of the neighborhood youngsters, but no family was able to afford bats, balls and gloves which we consider so critical to the game.
However, everyone drank soda, and since the aluminum can hadn't been introduced to soda, it came packaged in a glass bottle with a metal bottle cap. Metal bottle caps, carefully removed in order to not bend them, could be made to sail and a broken broom stick could be used as a bat to hit them with. This is where Tony Pena learned to hit.
Now, after some practice a bottle cap can be made to sail, dip, tail away and rise at will, and since this was the only activity available in the town, there was constant practice. In order to hit such a difficult target with a broom handle, took exceptional vision and timing, again the result of constant practice.
This is how and why Tony Pena apparently swung wildly, which we know now was actually an extremely controlled swing, yet hit for a high average. He'd spent his whole life swinging and hitting darting, jumping objects with a small stick.
Hitting coaches of today would require Tums, for their heartburn and Advil, for their headaches, attempting to coach a player like Tony Pena. It just wouldn't happen anymore and I'm not per se recommending the strategy of free swinging be revived.
However, I do think a good old fashion game of Whiffle ball, where the ball darts, soars and jumps, would be an excellent occasional substitute for the batting cages. Instead of attempting to perfect timing through mechanics, which is what perfecting hitting a ball traveling in essentially the same path dozens of time in a row consist of, we play contact ball.
Let's expose our eyes and reflexes to the split second darting and dipping of a moving object and learn to hit it. I can't see that hurting anything. Can you?
Jim Bain, former Minor league baseball player, who since retiring has dedicated his life to teaching baseball to youth, shares his advice on hitting baseball drills on his exciting info packed website: http://www.learn-youth-baseball-coaching.com
Its not just for coaches. We have thousands of parents that read the BASEBALL COACHING DIGEST every month to use the free drills and tips to help their future prospect or team improve. Click BaseballCoachingDigest.org now to join.
Little League Baseball Drills - Batting Practice
By guest author: Chris Campbell
I have heard it said by many an accomplished athlete, that one of the hardest things you can do in professional sports, is to hit a major league fastball. Or any major league pitch for that matter. Just ask Micheal Jordan. He may be a living legend in the world of professional basketball, but he only managed a 202 batting average for the Birmingham Barons (a farm team for the Chicago White Sox). The moral being, it's best to get your little leaguer started early, if they plan on challenging some of the MLB hitting records.
With that in mind, lets consider a few hitting drills that the kids can use to get their bats swinging true, and making contact as soon as possible. One of the best drills you can do with your kids, is simply to grab a bucket of balls, and pitch a few to them every day you can find the time to do so. It's practically impossible, for most kids to get enough batting practice with the team. There's a limited number of pitchers, catchers, and backstops for most little league coaches to work with. It's almost impossible for them to get more then a few minutes hitting each practice. A one on one practice with mom or dad every day or so will really help out.
Now just swinging for the sake of swinging will make you a better hitter, but there are a few simple points you should keep in mind, to maximize the time put in. Don't harp on these items too much, as they can be a bit technical and boring for kids. Try to make it fun for them at the same time.
Choosing The Right Bat
Picking a bat that's appropriate for your child's height and strength can make all the difference. It should feel comfortable for them to hold and swing the bat. If the bat is slowing down their swing too much, it's probably a little too heavy. There is a simple way to test a bat, even before you buy one. Simply have your son or daughter hold the bat by the handle, and hold it straight out to the side, so the bat is parallel to the ground. They should be able to hold the bat steady for at least fifteen seconds. If they can't, or their arms starts to shake, you should try a smaller bat.
Batter Positioning
It's important to know where the batters box is, where home plate is, and where the strike zone is. That way, even little league players, can put themselves in good position to reach any ball that is passing through the strike zone. Even if your in your back yard practicing, you can mock up a plate, and batters box. Just use a can of spray paint on the grass to mark out home plate and a made up batters box. Don't worry, it'll disappear the next time you cut the grass.
Little League Baseball Drills is a great resource for helping your little leaguer get the most out of his or hers favorite pastime. With a little good training, amateur or even professional ball players will see a dramatic improvement in the way they play.
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Young Youth Baseball Player Practicing on the BatAction Baseball Batting Trainer Uploaded by Coach2winVideos
Video shows a 7 Year Old Working Out on the BatAction Baseball Trainer. This youth baseball trainer has height and speed adjustments that make it suitable for all ages and ability. The Bat Action Machine is the perfect backyard batting trainer because it can be used alone, is fun to hit, and makes the batter learn to concentrate on the baseball. Visit the BatAction Baseball Training Blog at http://batactionbaseballtraining.blogspot.com/ Product Availabe at http://www.baseball2u.com/probamaforad.html for Just $119.95 while supplies last. http://www.Bataction.com
BatAction Baseball Batting Machine Coaching & Training Tips:
Tip #1 - The BatAction Hitting Machine operates best with two powerbands. Most advanced hitters in high school use the 2-band setting. With two bands the machine returns at a pace and rythmn that seems to allow the batter to be comfortable and to reset between swing. The BatAction Machine's ball speed is determined by the bat speed and power of the batter. The harder you hit the ball, the faster it will be traveling when it returns to the batter.
Tip #2 - The BatAction Baseball Trainer must be set up on level ground. If the ground is not level, there will be undue stress placed on one of the legs. So always make sure that all four legs are on the ground and level before inserting your groundpins. Indoor use is not a problem because the surgace is level. You should anchor your machine with snadbags when using it on concrete, floors, or other surfaces that do not allow the use of groundpins.
Tip #3 - If your batting machine returns slow or is not returning smoothly, follow the instructions for safely applying grease to the axle. You should raise the axle half way out of the unit, put a dab of grease on the axle and slide it back into the machine. Make sure you disconnect all powerbands before you raise the axle. Follow the safety instructions when you do any maintenance work on your machine.
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The first thing any baseball player should learn is the proper baseball hitting mechanics. The earlier a player learns these mechanics, the better they will do when they step up to bat. It's not necessary for new players to learn complicated advanced hitting techniques. That will come in time, so they should just focus on the basics until they feel completely comfortable to move on. There are several simple steps you should know for the basic hitting mechanics.
•How to stand in the batter's box •Where to look and the best way to position your head •How to position the rest of your body •How to hold the bat •How to swing the bat •When to swing the bat •What to do after you hit the ball
Anyone who loves playing baseball has a desire to be the best they can be, even at an early age. When I was young I asked my parents to buy me several baseball hitting books so I could learn how to be the best. I couldn't wait to crack them open and learn everything possible to improve my hitting.
If you are a parent of a young player, be willing to help your child advance and learn as much as the desire. Take it one step at a time, though, and don't rush them into anything. Some kids will ask a lot of questions, though, so be ready to move fast if necessary. Be prepared to answer any questions they have and help them both on and off the field.
It would be a good idea if you as the parent start studying before they even begin playing. Play to cover one hitting tip with them each week. Be sure they are comfortable before moving on to the next tip.
There are several tools you'll need to start helping a child learn the basic hitting mechanics. You'll need a bat, ball, helmet, tee and a field to practice on. You may want to also keep a notebook handy so you can document the progress of kids you're assisting, whether it's your child or a team of ballplayers.
If you stick to the basics of hitting, children will learn the proper steps necessary to hit a baseball. They must get plenty of practice and their skills are sure to develop. They will be excited as they seem self improvement. Even if a child seems to pick up the basics pretty quickly, they should never stop practicing these hitting mechanics. Even professional baseball players practice them on a regular basis.
Remember that the reason to practice baseball hitting mechanics is to give you skills and talent to become the baseball player you want to be. Download free hitting videos with tips and instructions you need to get started quickly by visiting Baseball Hitting and learn how to hit the baseball better.
Coaching Youth Baseball - Coaching Youth Softball - What Every Youth Coach Should Know By Steve Polk
If you are coaching youth baseball, coaching youth softball, or coaching youth basketball, there is one thing you need to know before you begin coaching youth sports no matter what the sport.
You Could Be Sued
Did you hear the story of the guy coaching kids baseball that was sued because of an injury that took place during a practice? Seems a 12 year old baseball player was injured during a drill to teach the kids how to catch a fly ball. The player couldn't find the ball due to the sun getting in his eyes and the ball hit him in the head.
Not only did the coach get sued but also the league the kid played in. In another story a softball coach who got sued when a player on his team slid into 3rd base and tore her meniscus. The parents claimed the coach didn't teach their daughter how to slide properly. The parents won the case and $125,000.
It really doesn't matter what youth sport you coach. You could be a soccer coach for youth, or any of the others mentioned here. You could be sued for the seemingly most innocent of things. An off the cuff remark or joke could be interpreted as being harassment or an innuendo of some kind. A kid not paying attention gets hits by a ball, or as kids sometimes do play practical jokes on one another and someone gets hurt. You end up getting sued.
Insurance Doesn't Solve The Problem
Your team or league may have insurance, but that doesn't stop a parent from filing a law suit against you. You could be totally not at fault and end up getting the case dismissed, but still have a bill from your attorney.
The Solution
There are a few companies that provide a low cost what is best referred to as a legal insurance plan. Such a plan will cover most if not all your legal expenses should you ever be sued. Such plans range from $17-$36 per month depending on what state you live in.
In The End It Doesn't Matter
In conclusion it really doesn't matter whether you are coaching youth baseball, softball, basketball, or soccer. If you are a coach you run the risk of being sued. It's becoming common place in this crazy world of ours. You just may want to look into a legal insurance plan.
Coaches You Run The Risk Of Getting Sued
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Tips For Correcting an Upper Cut Swing By guest author: Jim Bain
I have witnessed coaches, who I thought were going to have a cow, in their reaction to a player having an upper cut in their swing, but one must realize there are times an upper swing is quite appropriate and possibly the proper swing.
When a pitch is low in the strike zone, and the situation requires a fly ball, such as trading an out for a runner scoring from third, the hitter wants an upper cut in order to lift the ball into the air.
Historically, Left Handed Batters' Power Alley, ball location where the hitter can utilize his entire core strength when swinging, has been low and inside using an upper cut swing.
So just to set the record straight, there are times a hitter using an upper cut swing is beneficial. However, to have a permanent upper cut motion in every swing, regardless of ball location, will only lead to high strike out numbers and easy fly ball outs.
The reason for a high strike out ratio is simply, it's difficult enough to solidly strike a baseball when the bat is traveling on the same, level plane as the ball, much alone the bat traveling in an upward motion, which totally throws eye to bat to ball timing in the waste can.
Secondly of course, if the hitter is successful at making contact, the baseball comes off the bat with a back spin, which not only creates lift, but also restricts distance, as the ball is essentially Clawing its way back towards the plate, which normally results in a high fly ball to the shallow outfield.
More than likely, somewhere along the line, the batter developed a hitch in his hitting mechanics, which is producing the repetitive upper cuts. The batter is not consciously swinging upwards, but rather the muscle memory responsible for producing the swing is the culprit. These muscle memories must be re-programmed, which can be a tedious and time consuming project, or a change of one part of the mechanics may have near immediate results. Plan on a lengthy project and be overjoyed if it happens quickly. We are not concerned with creating power or bat speed or anything else other than flattening the swing and there's no substitute for taking hundreds of correct swings in order to achieve that purpose. That's exactly why the use of a batting tee is an excellent method in eliminating an upper cut.
Set the batting tee at slightly above belt height, anything higher will create a handcuff effect and will do more harm than good. Using a whiffle ball and bat, remember we're changing mechanics and actually the lighter weight of a whiffle ball bat allows more swings without fatigue than a regular wood or metal bat, a practice swinging Down on the ball.
The downward swing will produce ground balls, so the hitter is able to immediately know if the swing was proper, if it wasn't the ball will be hit into the air. When the batter can successfully drive ground balls off the tee, the next step is to hit a moving ball.
We then move to the batting cages and while using a regular bat and a moving baseball, see if we can continually hit ground balls. Should the batter fail to hit ground balls, it's back to the hitting tee for more practice.
Bear in mind, when hitting, whether off the tee or in the batting cage, you will hit an occasional fly ball, which doesn't mean you're failing. Set a goal of hitting 2 ground balls for every fly ball, then increase to 3 ground balls for every fly. Also, don't become frustrated if your ground balls are not hit with authority, that will correct itself as you become more efficient at hitting the ball on a level plane.
Jim Bain - Former Minor league baseball player, who since retiring has dedicated his life to teaching baseball to youth. Visit his exciting info packed website: http://www.Learn-Youth-Baseball-Coaching.com
Bat Speed Training For More Power By guest author: Alan Bryan
Using bat speed training can help you quickly gain an additional thirty to even one hundred feet in your power. The most common refrain in hitting is that it is not how hard you swing, rather, how quick your swing. Simply, it is the laws of physics that apply to hitting, as the velocity of the bat connecting with the ball determines the distance a ball will travel.
There are many bat speed training methods that can help you increase your velocity. However, despite all the great training out there, selecting the right bat is also a factor. Most bat speed drills should be done with a wooden bat. With the new, technologically advanced aluminum bats allowing for more error in your swing, many hitters have become dependent on technology rather than practice to hit for more power.
Simply, there are no soft hitting zones in the new aluminum bats. A wooden bat, however, has a very defined sweet spot, and when you miss that sweet spot, the wooden bat will let you know by either shattering or stinging your hands tremendously. Learn how to properly get the head of a wooden bat through the hitting plane, and you are one step closer to hitting for more power.
Effective bat speed training involves several components, some of which are not directly baseball related at all. In additional to practicing with wood bats, you should also strengthen your wrist and lower body using light weight resistance. Putting it all together can help you start hitting for more power in record time.
Effective bat speed training can take your game to the next level by increasing your power and average. When used correctly, bat speed training techniques are extremely effective. Learn the best training methods, recommended by professional scouts, by visiting www.batspeedtraining.info.
Youth Baseball Digest - Can You Name 10 Ways a Batter Can Safely Reach First Base? By guest author: Nick Dixon
Have you ever thought about how many ways a batter can safely reach first base? I have pondered the question and I have come up with 10 different ways for a batter to safely reach first base.
The ways that I thought of include the following:
1) Base Hit - Batter swings the bat and hits a base hit. In baseball statistics a base hit is credited to a batter when the batter safely reaches first base after hitting the ball into fair territory.
2) Walk or Base on Balls - A base on balls or walk is credited to a batter when the batter receives four pitches that the umpire calls balls. The walk can be intentional or not intentional.
3) Error - A batter reaches on an error when, in the judgment of the official score book keeper, a fielder misplays a ball hit by the batter allowing the batter to reach first base. The ball misplayed is one that the official scorer judges to be a play that should have been made with reasonable or ordinary effort. What this means is that the fielder misplayed a routine play.
4) Passed Ball on a Strike Out: The batter strikes out but the catcher misses the ball. The batter becomes a batter-runner and reaches first base safely. This play should be officially scored as a strikeout and passed ball, a strikeout and wild pitch or a strikeout and a fielders choice.
5) Catcher Commits Interference - Catchers interference is called when contact is made by the bat of the batter. With catcher interference, the result is the same as with all interference, The batter is awarded the results of the swing or first base. The manager of the offense may advise the plate umpire that he elects to decline the interference penalty and accept the play
6) Fielders choice - A fielder`s choice is a play made on a ground ball in which the fielder chooses to put out an advancing base runner, thus allowing the batter to reach first base safely.
7) Batter-Runner Interference - Once the batter hits the ball the batter becomes a base runner. The batter becomes a runner and is entitled to first base without interference by a defensive player. If interference occurs, the manager of the offense may advise the plate umpire that he elects to decline the interference penalty and accept the play.
8) A Sacrifice - The batter hits a sacrifice fly or executes a sacrifice bunt.
9) Double Play - The batter reaches first on a double play by the defense that did not involve a throw to first base.
10) Hit by a Pitch - The batter is hit by a pitch thrown by the batter. The batter must be in the batting box and in the judgment of the umpire did not "lean" into the pitch.
I am sure that you may think of one or two more. These are what came to my mine because they are the 10 ways that occur most often. I hope that you found this article to be informative. Thanks for taking the time to read it. I wish you and your team good luck in the coming season. Have a great day! Nick
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Nick Dixon is the President and founder of Nedco Sports, a sports training company established in 1999. Dixon is also an active and full time high school baseball coach with over 25 years experience. Coach Dixon is better known as the inventor of the BatAction Hitting Machine, the SKLZ Derek Jeter Hurricane Hitting Machine, the SKLZ Target Trainer, the SKLZ Derek Jeter ZipnHit Pro, and the SKLZ Strikeback Trainer. Dixon is also a contributing writer for BaseballCoachingDigest, the Youth Baseball Digest, the Baseball Parent Guide, the Baseball 2Day Coaches Journal, and Blog4Coaches.
Youth Baseball Training - Teaching Good Nutrition By guest author: Jake Wyatt
Eating the proper foods is a key element of youth baseball training. When coaching youth baseball, the coach should encourage players to bring water and snacks to practice (or better yet, make these available rather than relying on the kids). The coach should also explain to the players that proper nutrition while at home will help them play better baseball overall.
When kids are young, their food choices are mostly made for them. As they grow up and begin to make their own choices, they need to be taught about food and its impact on the body. This way they can make better choices for themselves, leading to stronger and healthier kids. Parents' nagging often falls on deaf ears. But most players listen to their coaches! A coach can be a great ally for parents in helping their sons eat better.
Here are some basic nutritional facts that should be taught to youth baseball players:
1. Protein provides the building blocks for muscle. Kids must eat protein to build up their strength.
2. Carbohydrates provide quick energy. Kids should understand the difference between simple and complex carbohydrates, and they should be instructed to choose complex carbohydrates that will give them longer and more consistent energy.
3. What types of food provide protein? It is surprising to find out that many kids don't know the answer to this question! The coach should make sure his players know this.
4. Explain to the players that the less processed food is, the healthier it is. Fresh fruits and vegetables and unprocessed meats should be their first choices.
5. It is becoming widely accepted that eating more, but smaller, meals is a healthier way to eat. Have kids try to plan to eat healthy six times a day. This may help cut down on bad snacking habits.
If kids understand some basic facts about nutrition, and these are emphasized by their coach, they will be more likely to follow a healthier diet. It may not be perfect, and given they are kids it won't be, but if they choose a banana over a candy bar just a few times a week it will make a huge, long-term difference!
In order to be the best possible baseball player, training should happen year-round and be a joint effort between the coach, the player and the parents. Get more free tips to improve baseball performance, reviews of e-products related to baseball, and links to training resources at http://youth-baseball-training.com.
