Baseball Coaching Digest - Team Making Too Many Errors? Two Great Mid Season Team Defensive Drills

Baseball Coaching Digest - Team Making Too Many Errors? Two Great Mid Season Team Defensive Drills
By Nick Dixon

Team defensive baseball drills should be a daily routine for your baseball team. Team defensive drills make your players execute and perform under pressure more than regular ground ball drills. These two team defensive baseball drills are excellent ways to build defensive skills, build confidence, and to improve mental concentration. The two drills are: 1) Infield Live Batting Drill 2) Live Game Action Drill.

If you incorporate these two drills into your baseball practice routine, I am confident that you will see an improvement in your team defensive play and a reduction in errors.

Infield Live Batting Drill - Your infield players will be in their regular positions and they will be making the plays. Your outfield will be the base runners. The coach hits the ball. When the coach hits the ball, the base runners will run to first. If the runner is safe, the runner is on first base. You will keep hitting balls until the infielder record three outs. The infielders must talk during this drill to make sure they know where the runners are, how many outs there are, and where the play should be made. For example, with bases loaded and two outs, the players will say "take it to the easiest base or that the play is at one".

This baseball drill has multiple purposes. The outfielders can improve their base running skills also. You will clear the bases after each three outs. The coach can also lay down bunts to check bunt coverage. Make sure to mark a starting spot for the base runners. Make sure that the runners wear helmets during this drill.

It is recommended that you perform this drill for 21 outs at least two days a week.

Live Game Action Drill - This drill is performed with all players at their defensive positions. You will have 5 or 6 players running the bases while your infielders make plays. The coach will hit the ball in this drill with the base runners going as far as the hit ball will allow them. The players must execute, communicate, and stay alert mentally during this drill. You will clear the baseball after each three outs. Normally you will require your team to do this drill for 21 outs two days a week. Make sure to mark a starting spot for the base runners. Make sure that the runners wear helmets during this drill.

I hope that these two drills prove to be useful in helping your team improve defensive play. Thanks for taking the time to read this article. For more articles like it, you can visit the Baseball Coaching Digest, Youth Baseball Digest, and Little League Digest. Good Luck to You and Your Team. 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.

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

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Youth Baseball Coaching Practice Schedules and Fields

Joe Mauer Quick Swing Trainer

Youth Baseball Coaching Practice Schedules and Fields
By Guest Author John Nowly

Practice is defined as doing or repeating a pattern, or polishing a skill. What we are trying to do is polish the skill. Practice is the tires that make the vehicle go. Practice is the oil that makes the machine run. You will be shaping young minds on your new endeavor. Some of the youngsters you get might be stepping onto the field for the first time in their lives. It is quite possible you will get kids who do not have any ability to make contact with a baseball or have any idea how to judge a fly ball. As a coach, it is important that you provide an informative environment to learn a new skill and develop an effective program for developing that skill.

The informative environment is something we will be covering in lesson seven with baseball drills. Developing these skills happens in the running and planning of practices. In today's high tech, instant satisfaction, high-energy world, everyone is always in a hurry. I suggest setting up a consistent practice schedule. You will find it can be extremely beneficial for everyone involved. Chances are when the season starts you will not have your game times yet but you will have an idea of which nights you will be playing.

One of the advantages of deciding your practice schedule as soon as possible is so you can get the fields locked up. At the beginning of the year before the games start, you will want to get in as much practice as possible. Typically, practices can be for 2 to 6 weeks before your first games are scheduled. I would suggest that you would want to practice at least 1 and a half to 2 hours per session. Any longer than that, depending on the age of the kids, you risk losing their attention. After a week or two of practice, you will get a feel for how long you can practice before the learning curve takes a belly flop into home plate. This is something you need to be in tune with as a coach in order to maximize your time while you have their full attention.

What you want to do is set a practice time that is the same every single non-game day. In the beginning of the year, you should not have problems getting in all your practices. Once the games start, fields and peoples schedules get full. Make sure to print your practice schedule out on a piece of paper and give to the kids. Start with a Monday thru Friday practice schedule. This gives everyone his or her weekends open for now. A start time that is after work is recommended as this time works best for all involved. It gives time for the kids to get their homework done, stay after school as necessary, and gives the parents time to get home from work. Setting practice at 5 to 6:30, 5:30 to 7 or 6 to 7:30 seem to be the best times for parents. It gives them time to get the kids from daycare, and drive your future All Star shortstop to baseball practice. It will also give the parents time to be involved, sit, and watch their child practice. Another benefit is that this time will be consistent with game times after the season starts. Consistency is easier on everybody as it is one less thing to remember. Practice is everyday at the same time.

When the games start, the practice schedule will change. Say your games are on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Practice will then be every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Alternatively, if you play Wednesdays and Fridays, practice is every Monday, Tuesday and Thursday.

Do you notice anything about the above schedule? I will give you a hint. I do not do windows on weekends. Ideally, your league does not schedule games on Saturday. This can vary from city to city and having a Saturday morning game is still quite popular. If that is the case, you might be playing a Thursday, Saturday schedule. Schedule your practices then for Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. My philosophy of practice schedules is that weekends are off days for family. Many people work all week and the weekend should be time for the family to be able to get together and go out of town or spend quality time together.

ProfessorNow.com™ offers free educational courses in an easy to follow format in various subjects. To view a free online course covering the subject of this article, please visit www.professornow.com/coursedescription/coachingyouthbaseball/index.html [http://www.professornow.com/coursedescription/coachingyouthbaseball/index.html]

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

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Baseball Mental Training and Baseball Goal Setting

Mental Training and Goal Setting


Mental Training and Goal Setting
By Nate Barnett

Each year I work with teams of youth baseball players in teaching them the values of the mental game of baseball. Just as there are skills needed to develop the physical side of the sport, there are skills necessary to build the mental side of the game as well. Unfortunately, teaching the mental game is a bit more difficult to teach because the results aren't necessary visible as quickly. Let me assure you however, if you have goals of playing baseball at the collegiate level or above, you will need a sold mental game if you are going to excel.

One of the first things I teach kids is set proper goals. This usually sounds a bit dry and boring, but it's important that a game plan is created in order to form a path to follow as an athlete. There are three important steps involved in setting goals that are functional. Broad goals, process goals, and action habits. Let me explain those below.

If we are talking about a season to season focus, broad goals are essentially what you want to accomplish by the end of the season. These should be something you can measure like batting average, fielding percentage, stolen bases, etc.

Process goals are the middle level of goal setting. There are the things you need to solve or improve upon in order to accomplish your broad goals. They should be specific as far as the things you are going to do daily, but they should be areas in your game that need immediate improvement. So let's say you have a season goal of hitting .400. A process goal would be to improve on your ability to hit off speed pitches. Or, it could be that you need to work on what pitches you choose to swing at.

The last part of this goal setting process is your daily action habits. These are the day to day things that you will do to get better at accomplishing your process goals. Using the example from above, if you process goal is to get better at hitting off speed pitches, your daily action habit might be to spend 15 minutes in the batting cage working on hitting a curveball. Whatever you choose to make it, it should be something that has a time frame attached to it.

Nate Barnett is owner of BMI Baseball designed to improve the mental game of baseball in athletes. Come download a free ebook on dealing with failure and the mental game of baseball.

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

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What is Mental Toughness and Why Is It Important?

By Mike Posey

Over the years I have had the opportunity to coach many players and one thing I can tell you without reservation is the best players were all mentally tough. It's a hard concept to explain until you see it, but it's obvious when you see a player that has it.

To clarify my point, not all of the best athletes have it. No every big league player is mentally tough and there are plenty that never make it to the big leagues that have great mental toughness. It's not about ability, I've coached many great athletes that didn't have a clue about being mentally tough and would fold under pressure. They could perform well when there was nothing on the line, but when the game was in balance, or the competition was tough, they usually failed.

On the other hand, I've witnessed many players with average skills, but mentally tough, perform in ways no one thought they could perform. A clutch hit, a key bunt, a great defensive play that stopped a rally, mentally tough players get the job done. In fact, the greater the pressure, the better they perform.

One thing I've come to understand with experience is that mental toughness is not an inborn DNA trait, but rather one that is developed over time and exposure to adverse conditions. Preparation in mental toughness begins with experiences at a young age. Parents can play a key role to begin the process of training mental toughness, but they need help along the way. A disciplined educational system with high expectations and good classroom rules, along with tough, but fair coaches (or mentors in other activities) with a positive mind set, is essential to developing a child mentally, whether they are an athlete are not.

This is one of the many reasons why it's important for all children to be involved in balanced organized extra curricular activities at a young age: Karate, gymnastics, ballet, music, scouts, children and youth activities at church, or youth sports will play a part in beginning to instill the discipline and structure that is needed to develop mentally. Notice I said begin to play a part. It takes time and preparation.

Development of mental toughness (and leadership skills) is also a reason that athletes need to be involved in a proper training program by the time they are 14 or 15 years old. A training program not only helps to build power, strength, and agility, but is important in developing mentally. Players should be accountable to a mentor (trainer, coach, etc...) as well as the camaraderie and pressure of a small peer group, even if it's only one or two others.

If a player is involved in a training program earlier than 14 or 15, it should be for the purpose of agility and speed training, along with teaching the proper techniques in strength conditioning without weights. Before any training program is started, please consult your child's physician during their annual physical, as the development of each child is unique.

Defining Mental Toughness
Mental toughness is having the psychological edge that allows one to perform at peak maximum effort and efficiency during the demands that are placed on them during training, practice, or competition. Specifically, when the demands are greatest or the conditions become adverse.
Whenever the demands are the greatest is when the characteristics of mental toughness are the most evident.

Some of the many characteristics that are evident when a player is mentally tough include:

- Self-confidence
- Self-motivation
- Focus
- Concentration
- Composure
- Calmness
- Poise
- Self-control
- Positive Energy
- Determination
- Persistence
- Leadership

Please note, this doesn't mean that the outcome is always a win, in many cases these attributes can show up the most during a loss, especially a close loss to a tough opponent or during adverse conditions. But over time and with careful training, the mental toughness of skilled players comes to light in championships won.

Developing Mental Toughness

To become mentally tough one must practice attributes that lead to mental toughness. I wish there were a formula to follow, but there is not. It takes time and patience under the right leadership to develop mental toughness. Parents, educators, coaches, and other mentors must be systematically involved in the training process.

Also, it takes failure and the ability to bounce back. Many people develop mental toughness through the experience of failure. Good parents do not want their children to fail and I understand that. But today, too many blame others for the failure. Parents are quick to blame the teacher for problems in class or a coach when the child is not excelling in an activity. Mental toughness can not be developed properly when blaming others. In fact, the opposite is the case.

Here are a couple of examples:

"Every strikeout got me closer to my next homerun". Babe Ruth
Babe Ruth grew up in an orphanage. During his playing career he struck out a record 1330 times on his way to hitting 714 career homeruns.

"Failure makes me try harder the next time." Michael Jordan

Jordan was only 5' 7" when he entered high school. Because of his speed and athleticism (and an older brother named Larry that the coaches knew well) he was invited to try out for the varsity, but didn't make it. He was placed on the JV team where he routinely scored 25 -30 points a game. By his junior year, he was 6'4" and made the varsity team. By then, he not only had the skill to play, but the drive and determination to be successful, while demanding the same from his teammates. His older brother Larry had a lot to do also with him developing his toughness on the court.

Edmund Hillary failed three times before finally being the fist to climb Mt. Everest.

Bill Gates and Steve Allen (his Microsoft co-founder) failed at their first business, Traf-O-Matic, which was developed to analyze traffic patterns.

Walt Disney's first animation business in the 1920's failed after only one month, forcing him to take a job from another company at that time. Coaches, you can train your players to become mentally tough but it takes time, persistence, and hard work. But the results are worth it.

Coach Mike Posey "CP"
http://www.expert-baseball-tips.com
Tips from a championship coach's perspective and experience, offering creative insights into helping others learn the game of baseball.

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


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Tips For Hitting In Youth Baseball

By Brian McClure

How did Babe Ruth, Micky Mantle Blast the Ball farther than Mark McGuire and Sammy Sosa?

Batting drills can be fun, practice has to be done but in the long run hands, wrists, and forearms need to be strong to develop a quick swing and result in hitting the ball hard. This will not only help your child or team hit the ball harder with more control of the bat , but also prepare them for high school baseball. Here is a simple inexpensive way to do just that.

1) Tennis Ball - Have some tennis balls around the house and especially in your childsroom. While your youth baseball player is watching t.v. or waiting on his turn to play a video game he can be squeezing the tennis ball building the muscles on the hand , wrist , and forearms .

Sure you can buy exercise equipment for this but don't waste the money. This will provide enough resistance for what your child or team needs to develop.

(Bonus) Wrist roller - You can also take a rod (old broomstick handle will work) The rod needs to be 15 or 16 inches long with a hole drilled in the middle. Take some thin rope, run one end thruough the hole and tie a knot or two in it so it will not fall through. Leave a few inches past the rope for adjustments later. Take the other end and tie to a brick or weight. The rope should be long enough the weighted object rests on the ground but will lift when the youth baseball player rolls his wrists. The youth baseball player will hold the rod palms up and rolls his wrists. This mechanism is adjustable with the rope as the child grows
or you can tie on different weights.

2) Repetition - Simply put, It takes swings. Hitting off the tee, Soft Toss and some live batting practice. These three can be done at home or at off practice times to increase hitting performance. As a coach of youth baseball practice it would be great to set up one day just for hitting and have some volunteers help and move kids from stations. A tee station. A soft Toss station, a live free hitting station.

Coaches, be sure and tell your kids and parents about the tennis ball. Several will do it. And if you do a repetition station day and tell the parents this is what they can work on at home..many will do that. After all everyone loves to hit the ball, or at least see their son do it. This will be a great step toward the coaches team (or your child) hitting the ball.

For more free Free youth baseball tips & drills

Author- Brian McClure
More about helping your child in youth baseball as a parent or coach?
http://www.coaching-youth-baseball.com/

See our complete list of Topics and articles on youth baseball here
http://www.coaching-youth-baseball.com/topics.html

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


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Baseball Tips - This Problem May Be Causing That Hitting Slump

By Tom Read

Hitting the baseball is tough. You need to have a good batting stance, correct placement of the hands, good eye hand coordination, a good read on the type of pitch, and good body movement through the ball. And as the old saying goes, you are trying to hit a round ball square with a round bat. So when you go into a batting slump, which part of this equation is failing you?

This is a story I like to tell. My young son was in a bating slump like never before. He had gone from hitting the ball all over the field, to striking out at every plate appearance. Of course he was frustrated. This had never happened to him in his young career. So he and I started to take a look at each part of his swing.

His coach was also very helpful. He pitched extra batting practice to my son and gave us suggestions to try at the batting cages. We tried having him crowd the plate, back off the plate. We tried an open stance, then a closed stance. We raised his hands, we lowered his hands. We did soft toss and hit off the tee. We went ot a lighter bat, then to a heavier bat. I began to realize I was putting too much importance on this small part of his life. But to him it was very important.

Two weeks had gone by and I had decided that maybe this was his real hitting ability, and that his earlier success was just an unusual hitting streak. Then a thought came to me. At school they check every student's eye sight each year, but maybe he needed an eye exam.

My wife was able to get him into the eye doctor the next day. And can you believe it, his sight was 20-100, very bad. Surprisingly, we were all pleased with the news. Can you imagine that.? Happy that he had bad eye sight. Maybe this was his batting problem.

We were able to get glasses right away, and my son was amazed at what he could see. Leaves on the trees were now so much clearer. He was so trilled. He said let's get his ears checked. Maybe there was something he wasn't hearing. We told him his hearing was just fine.

Now the true test, the next game. I tried to prepare him for the worst, telling him it might take some time to adjust to this new sight. But that caution was never needed, he came out of the gate sending hits all over the field again. All those changes to his batting stance weren't needed. His eyes had changed very rapidly, but he had not noticed.

From what I understand, four other boys on the team had their eye sight checked within the next week. I guess you can say seeing is believing. So when you see changes in your player's ability be sure to consider their eye sight, as well as any other physical aspect. Kids grow up fast, and they make many changes during that time.

For other baseball tips and stories, please visit my website at http://baseballknowledge.info

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

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Baseball Tips on Hitting - Practice is Essential For Your Baseball Hitting Success!

Batting Tee for the Perfect Swing - AdvancedSkillsTee.com

Baseball Tips on Hitting - Practice is Essential For Your Baseball Hitting Success!
By Larry Cicchiello

Real good hitters are not born that way. They have worked very hard and spent countless hours to reach that status. There is simply no substitute for hard work and practicing your baseball swing. Are you willing to pay that price?

You've got to go out and hit, hit, hit and then hit some more. Some professional players take 500 swings a day in the off season. It's not by accident or good fortune that some of them bat.330 or hit 45 home runs. Maybe that's why they are professional hitters, because they pay the price and work very hard at it.

Back in the 1970's, I heard about a golfer who just won a major tournament. Do you know what this golfer was doing after the final round of golf? He was practicing for a couple of hours hitting balls out of the sand trap because he had a poor shot out of the trap late in the tournament. Need I say any more? This player won the tournament and was practicing for several hours after his victory!

Good hitters are usually always practicing something. If you've had problems at the plate for a couple of games, it's not a big deal at all and "welcome to the club." Go out to the field or the batting cages the next day and work on the specific pitch and or location that's giving you trouble.

It is very important to practice your swing often. The only way to get good habits is through repetition. Unfortunately, a very common problem is players have a strong tendency to practice what they already do well instead of practicing on the areas that they need work on. Avoid falling into this trap. You will be well rewarded for practicing on areas that you need work on.

Let's say you are a hitter that "eats fastballs for breakfast" but low and away breaking balls give you problems. If you spend 90% of your baseball hitting practice working on hitting the low and away breaking ball, you will become efficient at hitting that pitch also. So now, you have become a very good hitter of both the fastball and the low and away breaking ball. Do you have any idea as to what a problem that presents for opposing pitchers?

You have now become a feared hitter because you no longer have a glaring weakness for a pitcher to exploit. Oh sure, even the great baseball hitters handle some pitches better than other pitches. But the point here is that they do NOT have glaring weaknesses. And it's all because they practice what they do NOT do well at the plate. It took a fabulous M.L.B. hitter two years to learn how to hit a "slider." Do you know how he learned how to hit the "slider?" By spending countless hours of batting practice hitting the "slider."

About five years ago a reporter was interviewing one of the best hitters in M.L.B. She mentioned to him about his God given talent. He very politely told her he's not so sure that he was born with any special talent. She looked at him with a look of puzzlement on her face. He told her that when he was about 12 years old, he and about ten friends decided to practice every day at the ballpark. About a week later, only about five of them were showing up at the ballpark. A week after that, only himself and one friend were showing up.

Maybe that's one of the reasons this player makes about 20 million dollars per year. I'm not implying for a second that if you work hard and practice frequently you have a good chance to sign a contract like that. What I AM implying is that if you work hard you will be rewarded. That I will guarantee.

Are you willing to pay that price?

Larry Cicchiello is the successful author of several very user friendly eBooks covering 320 topics on playing or coaching excellent baseball. ANY player, coach or parent who wants to help their child will be fully equipped! Check out some FREE baseball tips on hitting and FREE baseball pitching tips at LarryBaseball.com.

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

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The 4 Best Batting Tees in Baseball:
Advanced Skills Tee
Stay Back Tee
Hands Back Hitter
5 Position Batting Tee

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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Youth Baseball Coach - The 12 Commandments of Little League Baseball Coaching Success

Youth Baseball Coach - The 12 Commandments of Little League Baseball Coaching Success

By Nick Dixon

Being a good head coach for a Little League Baseball Team or any youth baseball team requires certain skills, character traits, knowledge, and a high sense of commitment and dedication. There are certain rules and guidelines that every Little League Coach should always remember. I feel that there are 12 guidelines, the "commandments" that are required to establish a good learning atmosphere and true team unity.

Youth Baseball Coach: The 12 Commandments of Coaching Little League Baseball

1. I shall always consider the safety and welfare of my players to be my utmost responsibility when we are playing and practicing.

2. I shall treat every player fairly and show no favoritism. I want my players to have faith and trust in me. I want them to know I care.

3. I shall display good sportsmanship at all times. I will not display any behavior that would be a poor role model for my players.

4. I shall always be the first person to get to practices and games and the last to leave.

5. I shall never leave a player or players alone after practice. I will wait for a parent or guardian to arrive and pick them up.

6. I shall plan and organize every practice. Every player will have an assigned place and activity. Idle time is wasted time. Every minute will be valued and used wisely.

7. I shall make doing things right a priority. When it comes to practice repetitions, quality will be valued over quantity. I feel that 5 good practice swing performed properly do more good than 25 sloppy swings with incorrect fundamentals.

8. I shall be honest to myself, my players and my parents. I will always tell my players the truth. Telling misleading or false information is not acceptable.

9. I shall maintain the needed degree of team discipline to foster athletic improvement and growth. I must teach my players the value of self discipline in baseball and team sports.

10. I shall teach my players to respect all persons of authority and adults including myself. I will require that they show that respect to all parents, coaches, umpires, and league volunteers.

11. I shall learn the knowledge necessary to perform my coaching duties. That knowledge will include the rules of baseball, the fundamentals of baseball, and the proper techniques of baseball training, baseball instruction, and baseball coaching.

12. I shall always remember that I have a duty greater than the coaching of baseball. I have a responsibility to help each player learn the proper values and priorities that they should have in life. I will seek to help each player achieve to his or her maximum potential as both a player and a person.

I hope that this article was informative and useful to you. I would like to personally thank your for taking the time to read it. I wish you and your team good luck in the coming season. Have a great day, Nick.

The CoachesBest Baseball Store has a great selection of 1400 Baseball Products. Check out the BatAction Hitting Machine baseball pitching simulator. This high speed training machine is 100% Guaranteed to raise Batting Averages and has a full year warranty.

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.

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

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The Categories they have are: Baseball Training Equipment, Youth Baseball Training Equipment, Training Bats, Pitching & Throwing Trainers, Defensive Trainers, Batting Cages, Pitching Machines, Jugs Equipment, Game and Practice Baseballs, Protective Practice Screens and Nets, Portable Pitching Mounds, Baseball DVDs & Books, Clearance Items on Sales, BatAction Hitting Machines, Hurricane Hitting Machines, NEDCO Bataction Replacement Parts, SKLZ Hurricane Replacement Parts and Much Much More! Visit Baseball2U.com today!
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When and Why a Player Should Play Travel Baseball

When and Why a Player Should Play Travel Baseball
By Jack Perconte

Whether a child should play travel baseball and at what age they should begin playing travel is often a tough call for parents. Deciding to go the travel baseball route too early in a player's career can be detrimental to their desire to continue playing baseball in subsequent years. When anyone of the key factors listed below are missing, it may lead to unhappy ball players. Whereas, not playing travel soon enough can feel like a year wasted, it is usually not so serious because a player can try out the following year for travel ball. I believe a player's talent will come through in the end whether they play travel baseball or not. But when a child seems to be bored or not challenged at the in-house recreational league, it is time to consider playing travel baseball. Every travel team and community is different, but generally, travel baseball provides a higher level and more interested player. Also, baseball players who are around good players and are challenged correctly have the opportunity to improve their skills at a quicker rate.

There are four key things that can help determine when and whether a kid should play travel baseball. The key things are listed in my order of prominence but the importance of each factor is a little different for each family, based on their particular situation.

1. Interest level - parents should talk to their child about travel ball and observe their actions when playing baseball to judge weather a child appears to have the added interest that travel ball requires. The decision to play should not be because the parent wants them to play.

2. Skill level - putting a player in a level they are not ready for is the quickest way to have them want to discontinue playing. Parents should check out travel ball player's skill level before tryouts, when possible. Asking for an outside opinion about their child's skill level from their previous season's coach may be helpful. Even having a player try out for a team - when they are obviously not ready for that level of play - can hurt a child's self-esteem and desire.

3. The coach - in my opinion, having a child play for a knowledgeable, well-respected coach is priceless. When parents hear of such a coach they should look into the possibility of their son playing for his team. Good coaches help players even beyond the playing field and serve as positive role models for kids.

4. Time commitment - meeting the demands of much more playing can be tough to balance while having kids stay involved in other activities, including non-sport related ones. It is never a good idea to have every hour of a kid's day and week scheduled, providing no free time for kids to just "hang out" with friends and family. Playing travel ball with more than one sport, when their seasons overlap, can cause this type of over-scheduling.

Of course, there are many other factors that may go into the decision to play travel baseball. Among those, a family's financial situation as well as the effect on other family members must be considered.

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 Digest - Proper Baseball Swing Mechanics and the "Belly Button" Rule of Hip Turn

Little League Digest - Proper Baseball Swing Mechanics and the "Belly Button" Rule of Hip Turn
By Nick Dixon

Little league Digest: Baseball Batting Coaching Tips: Teaching Hip Turn Mechanics and Using the "Belly Button" Rule to Improve Baseball Swing Quality

The hips play an important part in the baseball swing process. The turn of the hips helps to generate power and bat speed. There are several important coaching points about the involvement of the hips in the swing. The "B B" rule is one good way to teach young players the degree of hip turn on various pitch locations. This article presents several coaching points and explains the "B B" rule.

Here are 10 Coaching Points related to Hip Movement Mechanics:

1. The degree of hip movement is determined by the location of the pitch.

2. The hips must turn more when hitting an inside pitch.

3. The hips will turn less when hitting a pitch away.

4. The hips should not move before the hands and bat.

5. To free the hips, the back foot must spin, rotate or turn onto the toe.

6. The hips follow the barrel. The hips should open behind the barrel, not before it.

7. Premature front side or hip movement will cause a batter to pull the head and to pull of pitches.

8. The correct hip movement is a spin. Lunging or sliding the hips forward is not acceptable.

9. The hip movement should be a thrust or fast rotation. The faster the rotation of the hips, the faster the bats speed.

10. The degree of hip rotation can be taught by teaching the "Belly Button" rule as explained below.

The "Belly Button Rule" is explained as the following:

The Belly Button should follow the barrel of the bat through the baseball swing process. The location of a pitch determines hip turn. The degree of hip turn determines where the belly button is pointing when the batter finishes the baseball swing. The belly button should always finish in a position that points toward the direction in which the baseball was hit.

For example, when a ball is hit to the opposite field, the batters "Button" should point or be directed toward the opposite field when the swing is completed. If a batter pulls an inside pitch, the belly button should follow the ball and point toward the direction in which the ball was hit.

Coaching Point: For right and left handed batters, if the ball is hit through the box, up the middle, the belly button should "shine" or point toward second base when the swing is complete. For right handed batter, is a ball is pulled, the belly button should finish pointing toward third base. If a right handed batter hits the baseball down the right field line, the button should point toward first base when the swing is completed. If a left handed batter pulls the baseball, the hips should turn completely and the button should finish pointing at first base. If a left handed batter hits the ball to left field, the hips should turn less and the belly button should finish the swing pointing the 5-6 hole or between 3rd and 2nd base.

I hope that you found this article to be informative and helpful. Thanks for taking the time to read it. I wish you and your team good luck this season! Have a great day, Nick.

The CoachesBest Baseball Store has a great selection of 1400 Baseball Products. Check out the BatAction Hitting Machine baseball pitching simulator. This high speed training machine is 100% Guaranteed to raise Batting Averages and has a full year warranty.

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.

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

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The Categories they have are: Baseball Training Equipment, Youth Baseball Training Equipment, Training Bats, Pitching & Throwing Trainers, Defensive Trainers, Batting Cages, Pitching Machines, Jugs Equipment, Game and Practice Baseballs, Protective Practice Screens and Nets, Portable Pitching Mounds, Baseball DVDs & Books, Clearance Items on Sales, BatAction Hitting Machines, Hurricane Hitting Machines, NEDCO Bataction Replacement Parts, SKLZ Hurricane Replacement Parts and Much Much More! Visit Baseball2U.com today!
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4 Highly Recommended Baseball Coaching Articles for High School Little League, Cal Ripken, Dixie Youth, Babe Ruth Pony, and all other Youth Baseball C

4 Highly Recommended Baseball Coaching Articles for High School Little League, Cal Ripken, Dixie Youth, Babe Ruth Pony, and all other Youth Baseball Coaches


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Baseball Youth Digest - Bunting Made Simple - Teaching Bunting Skills to Beginners

Bunting is a skill that must be taught and practiced just like throwing hitting, and fielding. It is wise for t-ball or Little League coaches of coach pitch teams to introduce every young player to the basics of bunting. This article outlines 10 recommended coaching points for teaching and introducing bunting to beginners.

Baseball Coaching Digest - What Baseball Coaches and Umpires Expect From Each Other
Baseball coaches and umpires often have a love/hate relationship. Coaches often make the job of an umpire more difficult. Umpires sometimes hurt the feelings of a coach with a crucial call. Coaches expect a high level of professionalism from the umpires in the crew working a game. Umpires expect a high level of professionalism from the coaches of both teams. Here I outline 5 things coaches expect of umpires and 5 things umpires expect of coaches:


Little League Digest - The KISS Rule of Teaching Youth Baseball Players a Proper Swing
Coaching baseball is not rocket science. I believe in the KISS rule of coaching young baseball batters. The KISS or "Keep it Super Simple" rule means that the coach will present the batting instruction in a way that it is easy for young baseball players to understand, visualize and perform. This article explains the 6 simple steps in teaching youth baseball batters using the "KISS" method.

Youth Baseball Digest - Good Pitcher Sometimes Can Not Throw a Strike - 10 Things to Check First

If you have a young baseball pitcher that at times looks like a Josh Beckett or Randy Smith and other times he struggles to throw two strikes in a row, what can cause of his control problems? There are 10 key elements of his delivery that should always be checked first. Those key elements are outlined in this article.

Coaching Baseball - The Importance of Teaching Batters to Hit the Ball Where it is Pitched

Great hitters at all levels share one common skill. They know when and how to attack every pitch location. Great hitters read and react to every possible pitch location. If you watched the 2008 Baseball College World Series, you quickly realized that great college hitters can catch up to any fastball regardless of the velocity. You saw batters over and over, on the ESPN TV Coverage of the CWS in Omaha, hit mid-90s to upper-90s fastballs with amazing power and bat speed. You also saw college baseball batters that apply and execute one of the most important and basic skills of hitting a baseball, the skill of "hitting the ball where it is pitched". The philosophy of most pitching staffs today is that the job of the pitcher is to allow the batter to get himself out. Pitching coaches teach and coach the pitcher to keep moving the ball in or out, up or down, and to never leave it over the plate. A batter often does not get the same pitch in an at-bat and may not see the same pitch in several at-bats.

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Hitting Ground Balls? - Turn Them Into Line Drives

By Jack Perconte

Putting the ball in play on the ground is not always a bad thing, but turning ground balls into line drives will definitely help the hitter's batting average and chances of playing baseball at the higher levels. Hitters with good speed can prosper by hitting the ball on the ground, especially in youth baseball, but at some point the ability to drive the ball into the outfield is necessary. Of course, hitting ground balls is better than hitting pop-ups but hitting the ball consistently on the ground is a sign of a faulty fundamental swing.

People generally think that hitting the top of the ball, which results in ground balls, is caused by hitting down on the ball or chopping at it. In my 21 years of coaching baseball, rarely would I come across hitters who actually chopped at the ball. I observed that most ground balls hit were caused by the hitters hands were on an upward path on the initial portion of the swing, usually caused by the lead elbow coming up at the beginning of the swing. This incorrect action is generally known as a chicken-wing, which does not allow hitters to bring their hands to the correct palm-up, palm-down hitting position at contact.

With this in mind, here are the drills which will generally turn ground balls into line drives.

Drill # 1 - To rid the player of the chicken wing problem, have them place their fielder's glove under their lead armpit and take numerous swings this way, allowing the glove to fall out on the follow through.

Drill # 2 - Have the hitter stand belly button away from a net and take swings with the end of the bat just scraping the net as it comes through the hitting zone. This will prevent the hitter from casting the bat out and over the ball which can cause ground ball hitting. This drill and the next on will help players develop the correct hands to the ball and hand position necessary to hit the ball in the air.

Drill # 3 - Place a tee at knee high level and have hitters work on hitting balls at this height until they begin to hit line drives or solid fly balls. Hitters with incorrect swings will continually hit ground balls at this pitch level. Hitters will have to develop the correct hip turn and swing in order to hit solid line drives on the knee high pitch, as stated.

* Hitters can combine these drills and perform all three at the same time. This becomes more difficult but can accelerate the process of developing the correct baseball swing.

For hitters who consistently hit solid ground balls, as opposed to weak or chopped ground balls, a slight adjustment in their stance or hand position may lower the bat position on the ball just enough to hit the lower back portion of the ball instead of the top of the ball. Hitters who widen their stance and bend their knees slightly may see the necessary line drives. Also worth a try is lowering the height of the hitter's hands a couple of inches in their initial set-up position. This may allow the hitter to get to the back of the ball more consistently. Following these few guidelines should turn those ground balls into solid line drives. For photo illustrations of these drills please refer to my book, The Making of a Hitter: A Proven & Practical Step-by-Step Baseball Guide.

Former major league baseball player, Jack Perconte gives baseball hitting tips and batting practice advice for ballplayers of all ages. His books and 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 and books can be found at http://positiveparentinginsports.com

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

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Coach, Why Does My Arm Hurt?

Coach, Why Does My Arm Hurt?
By Chip Lemin

Greetings to all coaches,

Now that the youth baseball season is in full swing, we will hopefully see the results of any pre-season work. If your team worked extra hard on defense, you should see the results. You may also notice a drop off in offensive production, due to the extra time on defense. This is normal and will adjust itself over the course of the season. What you don't want to see is any of your players coming down with sore arms as the result of too much off season throwing.

Many teams want to get started early in the year,often many weeks before the start of the season. Too often these practices include too much throwing without monitoring the amount of throws by the players. Players are also not properly warmed up,or worse yet, not stretched out enough. Often, coaches will have the players throwing too hard, too early.Coaches need to teach players how to properly stretch out and warm up early in their careers. An 8 yr old may not need to warm up as much,but they should be taught. As these players get older,it will become very important. They must have this ingrained into them before that age. This is YOUR responsibility as a youth baseball coach.

These players that came down with sore arms all had some type of growth plate injury. Their parents listened to the players complaints and went to doctors for exams.The good thing is that none of these injuries were very serious yet. They were the result of overuse. It began with too much pre season throwing.I know that none of these coaches did this out of negligence. They are all good veteran coaches from successful programs.

One parent, who is a good friend of mine, stated that the specialist they saw, told them this fact. No player at 12 years old should have ANY ARM PAIN. If they do, shut them down right away. Then consult your doctor.It is not worth the young player's health under any conditions.

There many ways to run pre season workouts without throwing the baseball so much. Speed and agility drills are one. Foot work drills are another. Fielding drills without throwing full speed is another. You want your players to come out of spring training fresh and ready to play, not compensating their throwing form because of a sore arm. Remember, these young players may not want to disappoint the coaches or parents by getting hurt,so they may not tell you. You must pay attention to your players. If you see any change in their form ask them if their arm hurts. The earlier it is noticed the quicker it can be treated. Many times all it will need is rest.

This just a reminder to keep a close eye on your young players. They are giving it all they have most of the time.You must give quality leadership and instruction as a youth baseball coach. Do your best to protect their health on and off the field. Please abide by pitch counts for your age groups. Thanks for your time and I hope you and your team are enjoying a fun season. Thanks

Coach Chip.

Chip Lemin has been a promoter of youth baseball since they started using aluminum bats. That's a long time. I have witnessed many good people get into coaching without solid coaching skills and it is not fun for them or the kids.Today's newer coaches are also being shortchanged on sportsmanship, like there is none. Visit my site to sign up for a insightful, informational, free coaching e-course at http://www.baseballecourse.com

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

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Baseball Swing Mechanics - The Rotational Swing

Baseball Swing Mechanics - The Rotational Swing

By Todd Thomas

Rotational hitting...What is it?

My simple answer is that it is simply the big league swing. Prior to 2000, no one even knew what rotational hitting was. Now there are experts on every street corner. The facts are that Mike Epstein in his diligent study of the art of hitting isolated the core movements of the game's greatest hitters and defined their baseball swing mechanics in a term he coined Rotational Hitting.

You can call it what you want. Call it the rotational swing. Call it a hybrid swing. Call it weight shift hitting. There are many "names" now that other people have come up with, but I call it the big league swing. After all, that's what it is. Rotational hitting as Mike Epstein defined it encompasses and engulfs ALL of those other names that some are calling it. It IS the big league swing and that's what Mike Epstein Hitting teaches.

The bottom line is that there are really only TWO methods of hitting. A hitter is either Linear or he/she is Rotational with their swing mechanics. Now both techniques have elements of the other in them. Linear has some rotational and Rotational has some linear. The fact that each has elements of the other makes all of the other "techniques" or really names that people are calling baseball swing mechanics simply irrelevant and fictitious.

So let's define the Rotational Swing and the Linear Swing.

A rotational hitter establishes a stationary axis with the dropping of the front heal and with the front leg and they rotate around that stationary axis. This hitters "stays back" with their upper body. The head and chest do NOT come forward. They a very steady and do not lunge forward in the direction of the pitcher. You will occasionally see this happen when a hitter is completely fooled by a pitch and they break through their axis lunging forward in an awkward attempt to make contact. So the rotational hitter rotates around a stationary axis and stays back.

The linear hitter does not establish a stationary axis and they do not stay back. The linear hitter continues moving forward throughout their swing in a straight forward(linear) movement finishing their swing out over the top of their front foot or even slightly forward of it. The linear hitter typically swings in a downhill plane while the rotational hitter is typically taught to swing on the plane of the pitch because those swing planes match each technique. A linear hitter trying to swing on the pitch plane is very awkward and doesn't work well with all of the moving parts of this technique. Likewise, the rotational hitter swinging on a downhill plane is also an awkward unproductive swing. Staying back and swinging down do not match.

So to summarize the two basic baseball swing mechanics...The rotational hitter stays back and the linear hitter comes forward. See it's not as complicated as many desire to make it out to be. And remember, Rotational Swing Mechanics are simply the Big League Swing.

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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Four Steps to Organize Your Little League Practice

Four Steps to Organize Your Little League Practice
By John R Di Nicola

The only chance you have as a Little League Coach is try and get yourself organized. I have listed out the very basic steps to organize your practice. You have so so many constraints on you it very difficult to get all the practice completely covered. The amount of practice time is limited maybe to 3 days per week. Getting practice fields is a major problem in most instances. The length of practice is another. You cannot hold marathon practices three to four hour practices. Using a planned schedule will enable you to have practice that are fun for the players therefore they will learn what what you trying to teach them.

Scheduling Practice -

You have a such a short time to prepare your team usually about 3 to 4 weeks. It is important you are organized your practices so that you may over come the constraints that come with being a Little League Coach.

Getting Practice Fields


number of times you practices: weather, all players can make to all practices.
practicing to much parents complain
not practicing enough

Fielding, Defense, Pitching and Hitting

Fielding


Outfield
Infield

Pitchers


Pick off - 1st base, 2nd base, 3rd base, and covering home
Run downs
Out field: Cut off men, short stop, 3rd base, 2nd base, 1st base, Pitcher
Throwing to bases -2nd,3rd, home
Situations - Simulate a game situation with coach hitting and player running

Hitting Stations


Hitting off of a "T"
Soft Toss
Live Hitting - 10 swings
Bunting

Pitchers


Throwing a bull pen with catcher

You look at this say wow! You just have organize yourself. Make sure self a template (using Microsoft word) for your practice days. Plug in your dates. You can do A, B C, D and rotate them through your practice schedule. It is a must that you get parents to help. You will need at least two to help to run a practice. You will have to do two of these segments each day and possibly a third.

You will find defense is one of the most important segments you must cover everyday. You can never hit enough ground balls to your infield. So fielding must be done just about every day. You may want to have just your infield come and work on ground balls and going over where they positions themselves for cut off from outfield. You can do the same for pitchers. Bring the pitchers and catchers to practice their defense and working on their wind up and delivery.

Best thing a you can do is make sure you are organized! Stick to your schedule and make adjustments as you go. Please do not get frustrated and not follow an organized plan.

You will soon realize the areas that you need to work on a little longer as you play games. During game you are still coaching as if it were practice. when situations happen taken player aside and talk to them.

You Never Stop Coaching!

Practice Makes Prefect

Thank you for taking the time to read my article. If you would like further information on this topic or information you can E-Mail me at: jdinicola@easypitching.com

You can follow us on Twitter - http://twitter.com/easypitching

Web site: http://www.easypitching.com

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

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