Baseball Hitting Drills: "Hitting Zones"

Baseball Hitting Drills: "Hitting Zones"
http://www.baseballsmith.com is another great resource for players, coaches and parents involved in youth baseball.

This drill illustrates proper soft toss technique when working with hitters to hit to all fields.
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Simple Little League Baseball Drills to Help Teach Swing Mechanics

Little League Baseball Drills
By Guest Author: Joseph Harrison Jr

Hitting a baseball is perhaps the most difficult aspect of any sport. This can be an especially daunting task for the inexperienced little leaguer. Like all things in life, hitting a baseball requires dedication and a lot of practice. Additionally, successful batting requires sound mechanics and body control. That being said let's discuss some of the mechanics of hitting and a few little league baseball drills that will have your child well on their way to becoming a more consistent hitter.

The first and most important thing for your child to remember when attempting to bat a ball is to keep their eye on the ball. I know this sound like common sense but you would be amazed how many kids spin completely around when swinging. If your child can not see the ball, they most assuredly will not hit it.

There is a simple drill used in little league baseball designed to help keep your child's eye on the ball. Have your child stand in the batter's box with their chin on their front shoulder (the shoulder facing the pitcher). Have them practice keeping their head down as they swing through the ball. As their swing reaches completion their chin should end up on their back shoulder (or the shoulder facing the catcher). A batting tee is quite helpful when performing this drill. If you do not have a batting tee, soft toss drills are also quite effective in teaching this skill. This is also a good habit to get into as it teaches the child to keep their head still as well, further increasing chances of contact with a pitch.

Balance is the second piece to hitting successfully, once again, common sense right? Revisit the spinning child mentioned above. Your child must be balanced to successfully hit a baseball. A good rule of thumb to follow to achieve optimum balance is to keep the feet about shoulder width apart. This is not a must, there are a lot of successful ball players out there with unorthodox stances; it all boils down to what feels comfortable to the individual. Try to encourage an orthodox batting stance in your little leaguer, they will benefit in the long run.

In addition to eye-hand coordination and balance, the upper body muscles play an important role in achieving a successful swing. There seems to be a bit of a misconception concerning the importance of the upper body, namely the wrists, when swinging. It is true that a lot of power is generated from the lower body, but bat speed also plays a pivotal role in hitting for power, and bat speed is primarily attributed to, you guessed it, the wrists. There is a delicate balance in the wrists that needs to be achieved to be a consistent hitter. As a hitter the trick is to not necessarily swing hard, but quick. The trick is to shorten the swing, just a bit, and roll the wrists over as the bat strikes the ball.

The other component of the upper body in batting is the hands. Most batters keep their hands somewhere in the mid chest level with the bat held slightly out in front. There are, however, plenty of players that implement unorthodox batting stances and styles that have yielded great results. The most important thing is that your child feels comfortable in the batter's box.

Another important aspect of batting is to remember to never drop the hands prior to a swing. A lot of young players like to drop their hands, meaning they ever so slightly dip the hands from the chest area to the stomach area. Consider that when you have tenths of a second to see the ball, decide if you will swing, and then execute your swing, dropping the hands can speed a pitch up for a batter, meaning the time the batter spent dropping his hands should have been spent moving the hands forward in preparation of striking the ball. Just a tenth of a second shaved off a swing can be the difference between the game winning line drive and foul ball down the first baseline. Often batters that swing late do so because they drop their hands. Soft toss is an excellent little league baseball drill for developing quick wrists and strong hands. Other simple but effective little league baseball drills are squeezing a tennis ball which builds strength in the hands.

The lower body is the last component of hitting. As previously mentioned, first and foremost, good balance is needed to achieve a proper swing. The biggest mistake that young hitters commit that affects their balance when batting is over striding, resulting in an off balance swing. Instead of taking a giant step, the batter should simply lift the front foot, or the foot nearest the pitcher, off of the ground, this is a mechanism used to time ones swing. Instead of taking a giant clumsy step have your little leaguer practice lifting their foot and simply placing it back on the ground almost where they got it from. This helps them to keep their weight back, a crucial element to hitting well.

The other key ingredient involving the lower body is to twist the hips, ideally as the bat contacts the ball, and simultaneously rolling the wrists over. Commonly used little league baseball drills such as a method called "squashing the bug" is fine tools to teach this hip twisting. In this particular drill the batter holds out their left hand (for a right handed batter) and strikes the left hand with the right simulating a baseball swing. The emphasis of the drill should be placed on the feet and hips as the batter should focus on sharply turning the right, or back, ankle as if to squash a bug with the toes.

Well there you have it, a few simple little league baseball drills that work to improve the key components of hitting, eye on the ball, balance, and a delicate timing of the upper and lower body muscle groups. Hitting is no easy task; even for the guys you get paid the big bucks. The only way to get better is to practice good habits and abandon bad ones as soon as they arise, and they will. Hitting is an exercise in muscle memory, the key is consistency.

I am Joseph Harrison, a baseball coach since 20 years ago. I love baseball since I am young, especially the feeling when you know you will absolutely crush the ball. Training your kid to gain interest in baseball will benefit him from both mentally and physically. In with he will gain team spirit, learn how to cope with teammates, and at the same time train up his physical, and concentration (to have good eye and hand coordination and the ability to use both at once). Go through my article and you will know all the benefits of baseball.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Joseph_Harrison_Jr

The Perfect Baseball Hitting Drill?

The Perfect Baseball Hitting Drill?
By Guest Author:Jack Perconte

The sign of a good baseball hitting drill is one that forces the correct hitting fundamentals and that over time, causes the correct hitting action when a hitter goes without the drill. With that in mind, some drills are obviously better than others. The drill below does just that. It forces the correct action and works on all the important hitting fundamentals of staying back, compact swing, weight shift, hips opening and follow through.

Because this drill combines all the correct baseball hitting fundamentals into one drill, it makes teaching hitting easier and quicker, as long as it is performed correctly. It is a little complicated and requires some hitting tools that one does not usually have in the basement, or backyard. The local batting cages though will have the things needed - balls, protective screen, batting cage.

Here is the perfect baseball hitting drill:

1. The hitter stands very close (within six to 10 inches) from a net, facing the pitcher with the net being behind the hitter where the catcher stands. The hitters rear foot and hands should both be this distance away from rear net. Make sure a home plate is set and hitters stand their normal distance from the plate.

2. The coach sets up behind a protective screen with a bucket of balls in front of the hitter, beginning at twelve to fifteen feet away.

3. The coach flips balls to the outer half of the plate - firm underhand flips are best from this distance, trying to keep the ball level with no rise or drop on the flipped ball.

Result you are looking for? Because the ball is on the outer half of the plate, hitters should drive the ball to the opposite field by missing the net on the initial portion of the swing but hitting the net on the follow through.

Note: Hitters may graze the net on way forward and come up a little short of hitting net on follow through and this is acceptable.

Why is this the perfect baseball hitting drill?

1. One of the main fundamentals of hitting is "staying back" - if the hitter jumps forward (lunges or over strides) they will not be able to hit the net on the follow through.

2. Another goal of hitters is to have a compact swing - when a hitter's swing is long, in anyway (upper cutting, casting, dropping barrel behind them) they will be striking the net on the initial portion of their swing.

3. Another objective of a good swing is to have the hands in a power position (palm-up, palm down) at contact. By hitting the ball to the opposite field on this outside pitch, this drill will guarantee that the hitter is in this correct contact position.

4. Another component of the perfect baseball swing is that the hitters' weight transfers while their hips open - missing the net on the way forward will promote weight shift and the only way to hit the net on the follow through, or get close to it, is to open the hips.

5. Another ingredient of good hitting is that hitters' keep their eye on the ball; thus, the reason for working on the outside pitch. It is further recommended that hitters keep their eyes in the direction of where they ball is hit, while trying to hit the net on the follow through as hard as possible.

As hitters begin to perform the drill with some consistency (frequent line drives with back-spin to the opposite field), the coach can begin to back up until eventually doing the drill from regulation, hitting distance.

Is the drill the perfect hitting drill? Maybe not, but if done correctly, it works on all the necessary hitting fundamentals all at once. Finally, I am sure that I have not been the first one to discover this drill, but it is one of my favorites while teaching hitting over the last twenty-two years.

Former major league baseball player, Jack Perconte gives baseball hitting tips and batting practice advice for ballplayers of all ages. His baseball playing lessons, books and advice can be found at http://www.baseballhittinglessons.com/baseball
Jack is the author of two books, The Making of a Hitter and Raising an Athlete - his positive parenting advice and books can be found at http://positiveparentinginsports.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jack_Perconte

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Baseball Drills - Creating Bat Lag Vs Bat Drag

Baseball Drills - Creating Bat Lag Vs Bat Drag
By Nate Barnett

Baseball terminology should be a class taught in college. Maybe I'm more aware of all of the different terms because it's a game I'm most familiar with, or maybe there is just an extraordinary amount of verbiage to learn. Nevertheless, I'd like to discuss a couple important hitting terms that should be understood as you're working on your various baseball drills. The difference between bat lag and bat drag are immense. And because of the similar sound, they ofter get mixed up. Bad mistake. Let me help explain them both by developing a definition for each.

Bat Lag:

Bat lag is what all good hitters look to develop while hitting a baseball. As the hands move into the hitting zone it's important to throw the knob of the bat at the baseball. You may be familiar with that concept as it's a common phrase (throwing the knob). Doing this produces a result of the hands leading the barrel of the bat which creates whip and bat speed in the baseball swing. When looking at a picture of a hitter nearing the contact position, look for the hands to be in front (more towards the pitcher) of the elbows of the hitter. The barrel of the bat will be remaining significantly behind the hands and enters the zone last.

Bat Drag:

Bat drag has the opposite effect on the hitter's swing as compared to bat lag. This is a common problem with younger hitters who lack strength or proper training. Bat drag is easy to spot when looking at a picture (from a side angle looking at the hitter's chest) as you will quite likely see the hitters elbows "dragging" the hands and bat behind into the hitting zone. In this case, bat speed will be minimal and a sweeping action with the bat will occur. This problem often is accompanied by a collapsing back shoulder.

What's unfortunate about the bat drag problem is that it can be years before a young hitter gets this mistake corrected. Reason being is that some success can be achieved at the younger levels as pitching is slower and the bat has much more time to enter the strike zone and connect with the baseball. The problem occurs when the hitter advances into junior high and high school where pitching velocity is greater. The mechanical failure created by bat drag becomes exploited and often hitters find their batting averages and consistency dropping very quickly.

There are thousands of pictures and video clips of MLB hitters all over the web. The best way to learn what this bat lag and bat drag look like is to observe what big leaguers are doing and compare their hands with those of a younger and less experienced hitter. Then, go to work solving the problem with a focus on some good baseball drills on the topic.

Nate Barnett is owner of BMI Baseball designed to improve the mental game of baseball in athletes. Learn how to help your game by improving the skill of mental baseball.

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5 Ways to Add Power to Baseball Swing and Improve Arm Strength

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By Jack Perconte

If there is one thing I would have done differently in my major league career it would have been to consistently use a strength building program during the season. Understand that for most of my early career lifting weights was frowned upon for baseball players. Why that was I am not sure. Probably because people assumed that lifting weights would make players build muscle that would inhibit the long fluid actions ballplayers need. Anyway, gaining and maintaining strength for ball players is essential and can keep a baseball player physically and mentally strong throughout the season. The great number of games during the season often zaps a player's strength which may lead to mental fatigue as well.

Of course, the best way to develop strength and power is to swing the bat and throw the ball more. Performing repetitions of the actual skills of swinging and throwing will lead to strength. For players who want to be their best, there is no substitute for swinging and throwing more than your competition. From experience I have noticed baseball players who throw and swing more months (up to nine), are the players who increase their power and arm speed the most. It is a good idea to give the body and mind a two or three month break from the skill training, but the conditioning and strength work can continue year round.

However, it has been proven over the years that bigger, stronger, faster can be improved through a weight training program. With that in mind, following are some basic tips that players of all ages can use to develop power and arm strength without having to hire a personal trainer or buy expensive exercise equipment:

1. Much of the bat speed, control of the bat and throwing speed comes from the forearms, hands, wrists and fingers. Players can work on these areas by squeezing things. There are many useful items on the market designed to help, but squeezing a tennis ball or water out of a towel will work just as well. Doing this a few minutes a day will develop the strength that will make a difference with how to get the ball to "jump off the bat" and have a "livelier" fastball.

2. The next set of muscles to develop is the core muscles of the midsection. Doing fast hip turns while holding a weighted object are good. Gradual increases in the amount of weight held will develop this core strength. Old fashioned sit ups or any variation of those are beneficial too.

3. Most of the time we think of running exercises only for running speed. However, working on fast crossover steps and explosive first moves of the lower body are just as important for hitting power and throwing speed. Much power is generated by the muscles around the thighs and rear end. Using these muscles with explosive movements will help. Working on explosive crossover steps will develop fast hip rotation for both the hitter and pitcher.

4. Old-fashioned pushups are still great strengthening tools that are good for any and all ages. They will help develop the bigger muscles around the chest and shoulders. Performing different variations like hands wide, hands together and finger tip push ups will work on different muscles.

5. Finally, doing lunges and knee bends will help develop the leg and rear end muscles, which are a major source of power for both a hitter and pitcher.

After a few weeks of this conditioning and continued work on the fundamentals, players will notice the difference with increased bat and arm speed. Working to be bigger, stronger, faster and fundamentally sound will allow players to reach their full potential, without future regret of what they might have done differently.

Former major league baseball player, Jack Perconte gives baseball hitting tips and batting practice advice for ballplayers of all ages. His baseball playing lessons, books and advice can be found at http://www.baseballhittinglessons.com/baseball Jack is the author of two books, The Making of a Hitter and Raising an Athlete - his positive parenting advice and books can be found at http://positiveparentinginsports.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jack_Perconte

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Little League Baseball Coaching

Little League Baseball Coaching

By Joe Brockhoff

If we hold our hands up and pop our wrists, we can do that over and over again very quickly. If someone were to throw a punch at us, our hands would quickly and automatically pop up in defense.

As an infielder, we don't have to think about a ball thrown to us. Our hands will react to the direction of the ball and make the catch without having to think about it.

Think of the catcher after he gives the sign. He is taught to frame the pitch. His hands automatically go to the pitch without any thought or direction.

So the hands are auto reactors. Is this good for the hitter? The answer is: No! The hitter who allows his hands to react automatically as his first movement towards the pitch will never have full body support.

When the hands go too early, this is when we hear the coach yell out, "Wait on the pitch!"
Now, let's apply this to our baseball hitting mechanics.

These are the steps:

1. Coil (Load): The hitter collects his weight on the backside
2. Stride: a linear step towards the pitched ball (30-40% of weight transfer)
3. Body Rotation: Hips rotate toward the ball
4. Hands will then, and only then, execute the stroke

Here is one of our best little league baseball coaching tips: "HIPS TAKE US TO THE BALL. HANDS TAKE US THROUGH THE BALL."

So, when we are leaning how to hit a baseball, do we trust the hands? The answer is:

Don't trust the hands. Then, trust the hands. In other words, discipline the hands to wait until we get into the launch position, which is with the hands inside the ball and the hips rotated.

Our hands do not initiate the stroke until we rotate to the pitch. They travel in rotation with the pivot, but they do not commit to the pitch until the rotation is complete. This rotated position with the hands still back is what we call the DRIVE position. It is at this time that the hands will launch.

NOW we can trust them. Let them explode the bat to the ball.

One final note. Remember that when we hit, the hands are in a double lever system. That is, they don't personally go to the ball. They are holding the bat, which goes to the ball. The hands always end up in front of the body. They are responsible for directing the bat to the proper cut line on the pitch.

Former Tulane Hall of Fame Baseball Coach, Joe Brockhoff, fully explains his baseball hitting drills with the Super 8 Hitting System, completely demonstrated with videos and hitting drills to help you hit with more power and raise your batting average. http://www.kewego.com/video/iLyROoafMM8J.html.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Joe_Brockhoff

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Great Baseball Hitting Drills For Keeping The Head Closed

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Article Title: Great Baseball Hitting Drills For Keeping The Head Closed
By Joe Brockhoff
It is very easy to get into the habit of pulling off the ball. This is especially true for power hitters. Have you ever seen a power hitter hit a home run and thereafter, he can't couch the ball? What happened? The home run took him out of himself. So as he pivots, he is also pivoting his head.

First of all, hitters should never take a 100% stroke. Doing this invites pulling off the ball. For efficiency, the stroke should be no more than 95%, saving 5% for command. As coaches, we sometimes go too far in the other direction by telling them to "just meet the ball." And now they start to aim the bat, which is not good either.

Hitting is a controlled explosion. Continue to be aggressive, with a 95% stroke. So what do we advise? The hitter is pulling off because he's rotating his complete body when he hits. He must focus on his head rotating in the opposite direction to the hips. As the hips rotate to the pitcher, the head should rotate to the ball.

Here are three baseball hitting drills for this:

DRILL #1

Place a pile-on or glove across from the hitter just outside the batter's box in front of home plate (45% angle). After the hitter makes contact, he looks into the pile-on area. This keeps the head inside.

DRILL #2 (with pitching machine or live pitcher)

Hitter assumes his stance, with no bat. To simulate holding a bat, his top hand grabs the thumb of his bottom hand. Coach stands in back of the hitter and holds his head on both sides . The hitter takes batless strokes at the pitched ball, while coach restricts the head to keep it on the ball as it enters the hit zone.

DRILL #3 (Full Take)

The hitter will coil, stride, and read the pitch to the catcher. This keeps the head independent and disciplines it to stay with the ball. Note: This head discipline should carry over to his regular hitting, in the "full take", a pitch that is an obvious ball.

Coaching Points. The hitter should not go to the point where his head is pushing against the back shoulder. This locks up the back shoulder and restricts his extension. The head swivels. It should never tilt while reading the pitch. This causes the body to tilt also and the eyes to look on a vertical plane. Eyes must stay basically horizontal for best vision and body control.

Former Tulane Hall of Fame Baseball Coach, Joe Brockhoff, fully explains his baseball hitting drills with the Super 8 Hitting System, completely demonstrated with videos and hitting drills to help you hit with more power and raise your batting average.These techniques are fully explained in our baseball hitting instruction web site for the "Super 8 Hitting System", including batting aids and a series of baseball hitting videos, which demonstrates many baseball hitting drills. http://www.LearnBaseballHitting.com/lcp.

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Hitting Drills For Baseball - How to Perfect Your Hitting Skills in Baseball

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Hitting Drills For Baseball - How to Perfect Your Hitting Skills in Baseball
By Carolyn Anderson

Hitting the baseball correctly is indeed an essential skill for baseball players. For all of us who loves to watch baseball, we often equate superb batting skills to being a good baseball player. Of course, as an essential skill in the sport, hitting the ball is one skill that all baseball players should master.

Although different individuals may have their own techniques in hitting the ball, it is however important to learn the correct way of doing it right from the start so you won't end up correcting a bad habit that is hard to straighten out later. Aside from learning the correct way of hitting the ball in theory, it is also important to have some hitting drills for baseball to help you practice what you know and help you body master the skills needed in hitting the ball nicely.

Keep in mind that making yourself a good batter in baseball is a combination of having a correct and good grip, an athletic and balanced stance and of course, the right swing. To help you practice these important skills, it is also important to condition your mind and body to be able to master this skill well. Here are some hitting drills for baseball to help you improve your batting and your performance in every game as well.

The Power Bat

One of the hitting drills for baseball that you can make use in improving your batting is the power bat drill. What you will do in this drill is to practice on an object heavier than a baseball. This drill aims to help you increase your power through the point of contact, and not decrease the speed of your swing as soon as it comes in contact with the ball.

The Chair Drill

As the name suggests, this hitting drill uses a chair to help you see the importance of your hands to the ball. By sitting down on a chair while hitting the ball eliminates movements on the lower body and helps you concentrate on your hand. You can ask a practice partner to throw a ball on your hitting zone while you will try to hit the ball as flat as you can focusing on your wrist action.

The Vision Drills

One of the hitting drills for baseball includes the vision drills which help in improving your reflexes to the ball as well as preparing your vision for the real game. This drill is usually done by using differently colored balls and hitting each color depending on the instructions given with them. Say, you have red, blue and yellow colored balls and you assigned red to be the balls you should hit, the yellow ones you should take. Indeed, vision drills will help sharpen your mind and your eyes and in dealing with pitching in the real game.

These are just three hitting drills for baseball, but there are still a lot you can do to improve your hitting skills. And of course, you have to keep in mind to concentrate and focus while in the game as well. Tension can be devastating to your hitting the ball also.

Carolyn Anderson is a sports lover and loves to learn some new sports and interests now and then. To help you master a superb batting, check out Parker Training System Manual. Also check out Youth Soccer Power Unleashed, a step-by-step training program to help you make your kids learn soccer and enjoy it.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Carolyn_Anderson

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Benefits of Portable Batting Cages

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By Jason Gluckman

Many advanced baseball and softball teams use portable batting cages to ensure adequate training while on the road. Just like standard batting cages, portable models act as a virtual catcher, helping to control the movement of baseballs and softballs. With batting cages, teams can focus less on chasing down errant balls, and more time fine-tuning their batting skills.

Portable batting cages hold many advantages over other types, including standard indoor and outdoor models. Portable batting cages can be used for baseball or softball teams traveling from field to field, as well as for families who pursue outdoor activities and who like the flexibility that portable batting cages offer. Portable batting cages are functional and convenient because of their capacity to be dismantled and stored when not in use.

In addition, portable batting cages can be purchased at a variety of prices, which correspond to various sizes and styles. Portable batting cages vary in price. The difference in price is usually determined by the size of the overall batting cage (by frame length, width, and height) and the type and quality of the netting. For schools or teams planning to use their batting cages frequently, it would be beneficial to purchase the most durable quality available. For a family who might not use their batting cage on a regular basis, but who likes to have it from time to time, it would be less important to have an expensive, high-quality cage.

Portable batting cages can provide many years of use with minimal maintenance. Seldom do cages require major overhauling. Batting cage equipment can be purchased conveniently at a hardware or sporting goods store, as well as online. With very little upkeep, portable batting cages can provide years of use and enjoyment.

Batting Cages Info provides detailed information about batting cage equipment and indoor, outdoor, portable, and tunnel batting cages for sale. Batting Cages Info is the sister site of Trampolines Web.

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Baseball & Softball Swing Training - Is Muscle Memory a Myth?

By Todd Thomas

Exactly what is muscle memory and how do you create it for a specific thing you want your body to learn to repeat? The term muscle memory is thrown around so loosely, but do those who use the term really know what muscle memory is and how to create it? So many have just heard the term and simply repeat it because it sounds good. First off let me ask, do your muscles really have cognitive power in and of themselves? Do our muscles have brain cells embedded in them? I think even those who throw the term around as if they really understand it would even admit the simple answer to that question. That answer being No. Our muscles do not have the ability to remember anything. So where does the term muscle memory come from and how does one actually create it?

Muscles really only have two capabilities. They can either be constricted(to varying degrees) or they can be relaxed. That's it. So again, where does this "muscle memory" come from? Well, it's really BRAIN memory. The brain is what is really "remembering" moves or has the "memory" of certain performed activities. The brain sends electrical impulses to the muscles causing them to either be constricted or relaxed in order for the body to perform what it is being asked to do. So it's really the brain that needs to be programmed for memory of desired muscle movement not the muscles themselves. They just perform what the brain tells them to.

So with this in mind that we really need to train the brain not the muscles in order to learn and repeat a desired athletic move, that begs the question of exactly how to do it. To understand the answer, just think about the sensory inputs that the brain receives in order to learn. Yes, the senses...Sight, Sound, Smell, Taste, and Feel(Touch). And of course, that sixth sense, Emotion. The two most important here for programming "muscle memory" is sight and feel. Sound or Hearing factor in here too from the instruction of what a coach may be telling a player to do, but hearing by simply being told how to perform an athletic move is a far distant second(if you will) behind sight and feel in training the brain for muscle memory.

It is important for a player to "feel" what they are doing in their swing. Feeling the swing as a whole and feeling what different body parts or muscles groups are doing is a powerful step forward for any player. The ability to feel the "hands" for instance and how they are working in the swing is important. Knowing where they(the hands in this example) are at each moment of the swing is important. "Feeling" where they are and feeling what they are doing IS KNOWING their performance in the swing. I tell students a lot to draw their attention to a certain body part and to "pay attention" to what that part is doing in their swing. Paying attention to it(whatever it is) is to "observe" it without trying to change it. Pay attention or observe it as I, the instructor, am observing it. Feeling is important and is a powerful way to make mechanical changes or adjustments and to promote muscle memory.

Then there is sight. Baseball and softball players being able to see themselves and what they are doing, be it in a mirror or on video is extremely important as well. Seeing what they are doing helps them to feel what they are doing. However, the players seeing what they are doing is not the only important visual sensory input to the brain that will help develop the much desired muscle memory. It is also extremely valuable for players to take in the visual input of other players they want to emulate by watching video of that player(s) over and over and over perform at their best(or performing their best swing). Don't sell the value of this short. I'm telling you, it is a scientifically proven fact that watching the best players perform at their best is a great(and in many ways untapped) way to train a player's brain in their desired athletic endeavor. Remember, it's the brain that is trained for "muscle memory" not the muscles themselves. The brain stores and recalls this information to send to a player's muscles when it is time to perform. Does just watching a little bit of video do it? No. It should be a regular "practice" of a player wanting to train their muscle memory. Just like physical practice isn't a one time(or few times) thing either. Repetition. Repetition. Repetition.

Oh yea, that brings me to physical REPETITION. Physical repetition of course is critical. Does physical repetition train the muscles? No. It trains the brain on the impulses necessary to send to the muscles to perform the desired athletic activity.

So technically, muscle memory is a myth. It's the brain that one needs to train to perform the desired muscles memory. Remember that!

Todd Thomas is a Baseball Coach and Professional Hitting Instructor for Mike Epstein Hitting. Coach Todd's personal hitting website is http://www.HitItHere.net. Coach Todd also enthusiastically endorses http://PlayMyBestBaseball.com as a place where baseball and softball hitters can master the Confidence, Composure, Focus and Consistency of their game so they can reach their full potential.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Todd_Thomas

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Two Ways to Develop Bat Quickness and Bat Speed

By Jack Perconte

There is a difference between bat speed and bat quickness. I once did a study of bat speed at a local college. To make a long story short, the player who had the fastest bat speed was not a very good hitter and rarely played. Once he had the bat moving, his bat speed was fastest, but he lacked initial quickness to the ball. This player had great power which is the result of high bat speed, but rarely made good consistent contact. Think of a running race where a runner is slow out of the blocks but eventually surpasses the quicker runner as the race progresses. Unfortunately in hitting, there is no time to catch up because the whole sequence of the swing happens in less than a second. Usually, when a hitter lacks bat quickness his bat speed is useless, at least when they begin to face advanced level pitchers. To become an advanced hitter, one who can play into their varsity high school years, hitters need both bat speed and bat quickness.

Many people think that bat quickness and speed are dependent on overall strength. If this were true than all huge football players should be able to swing a baseball bat unbelievably fast. This is not true and big muscles may even slow down their quickness and speed.

This is not to say that increasing strength will not help bat speed and bat quickness, but how this strength is developed is what is important. As I have written about before, there is no substitute for good fundamentals, which includes the development of a compact swing. All good hitters are fundamentally sound and have a compact swing. Once a player is fundamentally sound, developing their fast twitch muscles will allow hitters to swing the bat quicker and faster. The good news is that good fundamentals, bat speed and bat quickness can be worked on in two ways. Obviously, the more practice time put into these two drills the more bat quickness and bat speed that will be developed.

1. Have hitters put their fielding mitt under their armpit closest to the pitcher and swing until their hands get tired. Hitters should allow the glove to fall out on their follow through with each swing. This drill will promote good swing fundamentals as well as build up the hand, wrist and forearm strength necessary to increase bat speed and bat quickness. Remember, players should stop swinging when their hands tire to avoid picking up any bad habits. Hitters will notice after awhile, that they are able to swing more times with each subsequent practice session, which is a sign of increased strength.

2. Have hitters develop a quicker back knee and back hip action with the following:

A. From their hitting stance, hitters will see how many times they can turn their back knee in a specified time span. Players can begin with a five second time span and increase it up to ten or fifteen seconds as their endurance and balance build up. Hitters should be sure to let their rear hip open with knee turn and have their weight shift slightly forward with each turn of knee. This will work on developing faster hip action for the swing rotation.

B. From hitting stance, hitters fire their back knee and hip forward when the coach yells "now." This will work on the hip quickness necessary. This drill can be done with player holding a bat regularly but not swinging, with no bat or with bat held behind them with both hands along their hips. This is the same hip and knee turn as previous drill but done for explosive quickness on the yelled command.

Unfortunately, there is no magic formula, like weightlifting, to increase speed and quickness. Like anything, success only comes with correctly performing the desired skill over and over again. Developing strong hands and quick turns with these drills will increase bat speed and bat quickness.

Former major league baseball player, Jack Perconte gives baseball hitting tips and batting practice advice for ballplayers of all ages. His baseball hitting lessons advice can be found at http://www.baseballhittinglessons.com/baseball Jack is the author of two books, The Making of a Hitter and Raising an Athlete - his parenting blog can be found at http://positiveparentinginsports.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jack_Perconte

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If you are looking for great coaching articles, please consider one of our sites: The BaseballCoachingDigest.com, the YouthBaseballDigest.com or the BaseballParentGuide.com. Have a safe and happy season! Nick Dixon

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The Soft Toss Drill - You Will Benefit Tremendously If You Use it Properly!

By Larry Cicchiello

The soft toss drill is one of the best baseball coaching drills around and please don't ever sell it short. It is a great time saver to break a bad habit, get into a good habit or to simply maintain your baseball swing if you are in a good groove.

Let's say you're into baseball coaching and you want to break a bad habit that one of your hitters has suddenly gotten into. It may take about 300 swings for the baseball hitter's muscle memory to take over and break the bad habit. For you to throw this player enough pitches for him to get 300 swings would take a long time. Even if you went to the park every other day and threw 50 pitches a day to the hitter and they were all strikes, it would take a couple of weeks. Now you can see the major advantage if you can accomplish the same thing in only one or two days. I would much rather have my player struggle for a day or two instead of two weeks. That's awesome.

Remember, you don't have to be in a baseball hitting slump to practice your swing. It is simply one of the outstanding baseball coaching drills and do yourself a favor and make very good use of it.
Some Benefits of the Soft Toss Drill
It doesn't even require a baseball field or a glove.
You don't need someone to round up all the balls in the outfield.
The person doing the "soft tossing' to the hitter doesn't even have to have any baseball skills at all, so you can get anybody to "soft toss" to you. Please don't take this the wrong way but your grandmother can soft toss to you. I say that with total respect.

Soft toss only requires a bat, some baseballs, a fence and an optional plastic bucket or two.

I know more than one person, including my 17 year old son, who has a setup in the garage with thick carpeting fastened to the wall of the garage and that acts as a fence. You can then soft toss any time of the day or night. It can be ten degrees outside or even raining or snowing. You can still get your swings in.

Regulation balls are not necessary and you can use a softer type of ball to practice damage control in your garage or even in your back yard if you opt to soft toss there. (And you will remain on good terms with your neighbors if a batted ball should go over the fence)
If using non regulation baseballs, you will not detract from the benefits of the soft toss drill at all, as the swing is the same no matter what type of ball is being used for the drill.
Many players, coaches and parents use this drill incorrectly. There are many variations and I've tried lots of them.

My Favorite Method:

You stand about 12 feet from a hitter who is about 8 to 10 feet in front of a high fence.

Be very careful. Make sure to avoid areas of the fence that have posts or the batted ball may come right back at the hitter. Make sure the fence you are hitting into is high enough! The person doing the "tossing" should make sure to be in a very safe position so they don't get hit by the batted ball.
Your angle to the hitter should be just about like he's in the batter's box and you're in foul territory just outside the foul line. In other words, if he's a right-handed hitter and you were soft tossing to him, imagine that you are positioned along the first base line, slightly in foul territory. Stay very safely out of the way so there is no chance that you can get hit by the batted ball.

Squat, kneel or sit down with as many baseballs as you want to use right next to you. A plastic bucket is very helpful to sit on and and an additional bucket to hold the baseballs is also very useful.

Three Easy Steps involved:

Holding the ball underhanded, show the hitter the ball.
Drop your hand with the ball in it down toward the ground and pause for about one or two full seconds. (At that point, the hitter should "load up," cocking his hips, hands and elbows.)

Softly toss the ball to the hitter, so that it has a slight arc up and then down. Aim for his back hip, or a different spot if desired and the hitter hits the ball into the fence. Repeat with the remaining baseballs.

It's very important that this drill never be rushed. The purpose is to have a good swing repeated many times until the hitter can do it in his sleep. It is one of the best baseball coaching drills for getting a hitter to break a bad habit or to develop a good habit through repetition.

Once again, be very cautious as to where you are when soft tossing the ball to someone. And make sure there is nothing in front of the hitter that can possibly have the batted ball come right back at the hitter.
The amount of time spent to break a bad habit will be at an absolute minimum because you can soft toss a hundred balls in no time at all!

Larry Cicchiello is the author of "Excellent Baseball Coaching: 30 Seconds Away." His very user friendly eBooks cover 320 topics on playing or coaching excellent baseball. ANY players, coaches or parents who want to help their child improve will be fully equipped! Some FREE tips are available at http://www.LarryBaseball.com/product/all

Article Source: http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Larry_Cicchiello

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If you are looking for great coaching articles, please consider one of our sites: The BaseballCoachingDigest.com, the YouthBaseballDigest.com or the BaseballParentGuide.com. Have a safe and happy season! Nick Dixon

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