The Advanced Youth Baseball Training Tips and Techniques Blog provides youth baseball coaches with free youth baseball drills, tips for coaching youth baseball, youth baseball training techniques and articles on coaching young baseball players.
Advanced Youth Baseball Training Tips and Techiques
The Advances Youth Baseball Training Blog features daily posts with free articles on coaching youth baseball, advanced youth baseball drills, and advanced tips covering all aspects of youth baseball training. Our posts provide you with free baseball youth baseball hitting drills, youth baseball pitching drills, defensive drills for youth baseball and much more. Make sure to save or bookmark this site so that you can visit it regularly for baseball coaching articles.
Showing posts with label Baseball Training. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Baseball Training. Show all posts
Youth Baseball Series Baserunning and Sliding Video / DVD from BaseballVideos.com Uploaded by BaseballVideoscom http://www.baseballvideos.com - Instructional youth baseball training video Youth Baseball Series Baserunning and Sliding DVD with Coach Steve Johnigan: In this instructional baserunning DVD Johnigan explains the importance of good baserunning and proper sliding technique and has drills of good baserunning and proper sliding demonstrated. He starts with home to first base and getting out of the box, running in a straight line, focusing on the front of the base, pumping the arms, turns at bases and the curve, leaning into the turn, and hitting the inside of the base. He also discusses Figure 4, head first and hook slides. 2000. 45 minutes. LD-01233E
This Instructional Baseball Training Video / DVD Is For Sale At BaseballVideos.com
Dustin Pedroia of the Boston Red Sox, provides a baseball training how to, addresing the importance of hard work and the difference between high school and college training. Pedroia: ""I went to Arizona State, and in the fall there, when we weren't playing, it was always, get as strong as you can as fast as you can for the season. I try to take that into professional baseball as well. That's why I train at ABI and get ready for the season, because I feel like it's the best fit for me, and makes me become the better athlete that I can be. I trained in high school too, but it got more advanced when I got to college. I think in high school, you just go in there and any time you can, you just go in there and lift weights any time you can, but once you get to college they have people that prepare you and they have strength coaches where in high school it was just our baseball coach telling us what to do and to lift weights. I think once you get to college, you'll understand that there is a program that you need to be on.""
Gain a Competitive Advantage With Baseball Training Aids By Louis Seeley Are you looking to take your baseball skills to the next level? Do you dream of throwing harder, batting better, and fielding with ease? These are skills that can be learned, honed, and perfected and baseball-training aids can make it possible.
Baseball and softball training aids are athletic training tools designed to develop and improve baseball specific skills. There are a variety of different training aids, each designed to perfect a specific area of your game. Each training tool improves skill-specific muscle memory; so effective training with these tools will vastly improve game performance.
Muscle memory is a form of procedural memory that stores the physical mechanics behind a specific task inside the brain. Muscle memory training is a very important part of athletic success. While it is always great to get faster and stronger, an athlete should really focus on getting faster and stronger in a way that is relevant to his or her specific sport or even his or her specific position.
Baseball training aids not only improve strength, conditioning, and hand-eye-coordination, they do so in a way that directly correlates to baseball success. For example, the Swift Stik lightweight training bat allows hitters to practice hundred of swings in one training session without the injury risks of a heavier bat. This type of repetition is the most important factor in building effective muscle memory.
Another training tool, the Arm Strong, improves throwing strength, accuracy and speed by combining light resistance training with a natural throwing motion. The benefits of this type of training are plain to see. In order to see the same results with an outdated training regimen, an athlete would have to spend hours in the gym, followed by hours playing catch and taking batting practice. That's not exactly efficient.
While no training tool can ever replace real-game experience, there is no reason to risk injury and waste time by treating skill and strength conditioning as different types of training. With baseball training aids, all of these necessary training steps can be combined into one simple program.
That's not all. The best part about these types of training tools is the fact that they can be used alone. There are no more excuses to slack off in the off-season. These training tools put success squarely in the hands of the competitor. It is time to gain a competitive edge with professional baseball and softball training aids.
Forearm and Grip Training For Baseball By guest author: Mike Posey
It recently occurred to me how often young baseball players fail to train their lower arms and hands for baseball. I was recently discussing this with an expert, former National Grip Champion Jedd Johnson, and how important strong hands and forearms are in baseball. Jedd was also a baseball player in college and helped me understand how grip and forearm training relates to baseball, My hope is to help young players perform better and prevent arm injuries by adding some simple grip and forearm training to our routines..
Much of the skills of baseball require the use of the hands - swinging the bat, throwing the ball, catching the ball, applying the tag. Also, the hands can be injured during high impact situations such as diving for balls, collisions at home, leaping for a home run ball, sliding into a base, and getting the hand stepped on. In order to perform well at the skills and to be as resilient against injury in these impact situations, the hands, wrists, fingers, thumbs and forearms must be properly trained.
Bat speed starts from the legs and core, of course, but the grip comes in a split second later. With strong hands, we can have a faster bat path through zone, stronger force through contact, and a better follow through.
One item concerning the hands that is often overlooked is the role of the last two fingers (pinky and ring finger) in the control and direction of the bat. When we gear up our swing for a fastball and then notice it is a curve or a slider, we have to make micro-adjustments in order to make contact. This kind of bat control is actually done with the weakest two fingers on our hands - the last two - the pinky and ring finger. Unfortunately, nobody spends any time training these fingers so hitters have a hard time making that adjustment.
In relation to injuries, grip training is beneficial in two ways. First off, the tendons and muscles become stronger, and thus can take more force during impact without becoming strained and without causing misalignment of the bones in the wrist - when the tiny bones in the wrist get out of alignment, they can cause some nasty aggravating pain that last a long time, so prevention is the key here.
A second way grip and forearm training keeps you in the game, instead of on the disabled list is because stronger muscles will recover from injuries quicker. Hand, wrist, forearm, and even elbow injuries can be avoided or when there is an injury help you heal sooner.
Baseball Training For Power Hitting By guest author: Vic Read
Watching a 5' 8", 160 pound shortstop hit a 400 foot bomb is always amazing. Sure, the 6' 4", 235 pound first baseman has the natural strength to put the ball out of the yard, but how does the smaller player do it? What does he possess to produce such power? And how do some larger players consistently hit for distance, while others just have the occasional home run?
The three main components to hitting the baseball consistently and for distance are:
1. Proper mechanics - feet comfortably spread apart, hands back, and a smooth transfer from load to swing. 2. Good eye-hand coordination - seeing the ball all the way in and watching the ball hit the bat. 3. Good bat speed - the faster the bat, the faster the ball flies out.
Each one of these components can be improved upon by every baseball player.
1. Proper Mechanics - Watch some major league games and check out the different styles of batting stance. Then grab a bat and see what is most comfortable for you. Being tense at the plate cuts down on your reaction time. And when that fastball is coming in, you have to be relaxed and ready to release the perfect swing. Once you have found a stance you like, go hit off the tee and then take some cuts at a batting cage and continue to refine your mechanics. Once you like your stance, then do some research and learn about loading up, staying back on the ball and swinging thru the pitch.
2. Good eye-hand coordination - soft toss, which is hitting a ball into a net when tossed by someone from a short distance, is a good tool to work on and improve your eye-hand coordination. Have the person toss the ball at different angles and different locations. Start off with slow tosses, and then increase the speed. Read more.
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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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.
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Coaching Youth Baseball By Guest Author Mike Xavier
The secret to developing a winning youth baseball team is to build a foundation of the correct championship attitude in your players. This solid foundation is supported by four critical pillars that must be present to succeed and explained to your squad repetitively.
The first pillar is called crossing the lines attitude. When your players are at home with their families, they must be nice to their siblings, respectful of their parents and perform their daily chores without a fuss. They absolutely should be nice as nice can be. But when they cross the foul lines on a baseball field, that is not that place. On the field, they need to have the mindset of being the toughest guy around - taking a ball off their face and still throwing someone out. Upon crossing back over the lines when the game is over, they return to help their mom take out the trash.
Next is the attitude of no excuses. They need to be taught that they need to take personal responsibility for everything that they can control. Items such as, the sun was in their eyes, the grass is too long, the umpire stinks are all excuses. Your coaching staff should set an environment of trust where no cares if you mess up if you take responsibility for your actions and fix it proactively.
Everyone can perform well when things are going great, but the mark of a true championship team is how they respond when things are not going well. This leads you to the pillar of dealing with adversity. By bringing this to the forefront of their thinking, they begin to check their emotions to the side and look for solutions on how to get out the the jam they currently are in.
Finally, the fourth pillar to complete the support of your team's attitude foundation is referred to as - we are all in this together. Have your players look around at each other as you describe that the last time you checked we are all in this together. Coming together as a unit will significantly alter the odds in your favor to be on the winning side of the score. This almost always involves picking each other up when something goes wrong, but also occasionally can involve getting on each other when a player is dragging a bit.
By developing these four characteristics in your team's attitude with your consistent words and actions, your team will win at home and your team will win on the road.
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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:
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.
Baseball coaching is teaching the big and little details of the game. Every position or location on the field requires a player to observe and to be aware of what is happening. Many young batters on deck often do no pay attention to what is happening. They are often guilty of looking into the crowd or even talking to someone through the fence. On-deck batters that do not closely observe the pitcher and the catcher are missing a greatly opportunity to "scout" the opponent.
The coaching of baseball pitchers does not require a degree in "pitchingtology". There is no such degree to my knowledge. I just made that up. My point here is that coaching baseball pitching is not rocket science. However, having a basic knowledge of the terms and mechanics is a must.
Fewer things in baseball are more embarrassing for a young baseball player than to make a base running mistake that cost his team a run. Some of the most devastating and demoralizing mistakes in baseball are made by baserunners at 3rd base. When a runner gets to third, the team momentum and confidence is increased. The team and the player, and the fans feel like they are going to soon score a run. But, to have that chance of scoring removed by a blunder by the runner or coach can take the momentum completely away from the team.
The skill of throwing a good curve ball accurately is a skill that must be taught and coached. Teaching curve ball control and accuracy is vital to a pitcher's success at any level. Here I discuss the method I use to teach and coach our high school pitchers to vary their curve ball location and to accurately control the spot to which the ball will break.
Teaching, training and developing young baseball pitchers takes a lot of time, patience, and practice repetition. Many young pitchers need to practice pitching skills daily. To keep the interest level high, it is best to use a variety of drills on alternate days to prevent boredom. Here are 4 baseball pitching drills that can be used to train youth and beginner pitchers.
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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 batting 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.
Once you know their eye sight is good, and you are looking for some batting tips, please visit this website for some helpful instructions http://hittingslumptip.info
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.
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
Shop CoachesBest.com for your baseball coaching needs including baseball training aids, training videos, and other coaching supplies. Check out the Derek Jeter Hurricane Hitting machine by SKLZ at HurricaneTrainer.com.
See the “Original” Rotational Hitting Machine at BatAction.com. Are you looking for the perfect trainer to teach proper timing and swing mechanics? You can stop looking and go to HandsBackHitter.com.
Teaching Young Baseball Batters to Have Better Eye Focus and Visual Concentration By Nick Dixon
The eyes of the batter are his greatest asset. The batter must "see and think" with the eyes. A batter can know the count, know the situation, know the pitcher, and know how to swing, but if their eyes are weak or fail them, they will more than like suffer defeat at the plate. How many times have we heard a successful batter say that "I am really seeing the ball right now" or an unsuccessful batter say "I am not picking the ball up. I am not seeing the ball". There are many factors that affect the ability of the batter ability to see the baseball.
Factors and conditions such as the pitchers motion, the amount of sunlight or field lighting, the angle of the sunlight as to the time of day and the background in center field all can hamper or affect the ability of the batter to see the baseball. These factors we have little ability to change. However, we can minimize their affects by improving the ability of the batter to focus or see the baseball.
How should a batter use the eyes during the batting process? Does a batter simply step in the batters box, tap the plate with the bat, and start looking for the ball? Or is there a recommended process or procedure of using the eyes during the batting process? What should the batter focus the eyes on prior to the pitch? If you ask 10 batters, most likely, you will receive 5 different answers. Batters can be taught a technique that can increase the effectiveness and sharpness of eyesight during the batting process.
Batters should use two types of eye focus when batting. Batters should start with a "soft eye focus" to ease tension on the eyes, and then go to a hard eye focus when the pitcher starts the pitching motion. The batter begins the soft focus by looking at an area around the pitchers head and shoulders. The batters may soft focus on the pitchers cap. As the pitcher begins the pitching motion, the batter when then converts to a hard eye focus on the pitching arm shoulder area and the pitchers release point. During this crucial segment of the swing, the batter uses an extreme hard eye focus technique to pick up the ball. Using the soft to hard focus technique, batters tend to not lose concentration, suffer eye strain, and get too up-tight.
Coaching point: good teams and players read and identify certain tendencies by pitchers. The opposing pitcher should be observed and studied to determine his "arm slot" and "ball release point". Players should be doing this "observation" from the dugout and in the on-deck circle. Knowing the delivery motion, timing, and release point of the opposing pitcher allows batters to "pick up" or see the ball much quicker out of the hand of the pitcher. The ability to see the ball earlier increases the chances for a successful at-bat.
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Top 5 Baseball Drills to Improve Your Baseball Game By Kendra L Fagan
Open professional baseball tryouts are designed to help scouts determine the physical talents and abilities of aspiring baseball players.
Though many of the drills that young MLB hopefuls are put through might seem random. This is because different drills are put to people to test their skills level. While one person trying out might have a killer pitch and he knows it, a scout might want to see what the person's skill level is with other types of baseball maneuvers.
Scouts look for speed, arm strength, glove skills, and hitting skills and overall mechanics. The tryouts are grueling and not like any version of American Idol you've seen. There is no "nice" judge. Instead, baseball scouts simply call out the names of those they like. The rest of the players go home, and many of theme eventually give up on their dream.
But not unlike any talent-based industry, hearing "no" is just part of the game. It is up to you and your trainers to make sure you are getting all the necessary drills and skill-building exercise to take you to your goal of becoming a professional baseball player.
I have compiled some of the best drills for cross-skill development that will give you a leg up in the competition and hopefully win you the interest of a baseball scout.
AROUND THE WORLD DRILL
The "Around the World" drill is a great conditioning exercise that will help any baseball player develop physically.
Here's how it works.
Take the players to the foul pole in left or right field. Then time them from foul pole to foul pole to get a good accurate base time. Then have a set time that they should complete each of the laps. Some choose seven laps, some others. The number should be based on the number of innings one would play professionally. A good hint is that coaches should remember to adhere to is to not let a lap count if it is under time. This will help the player push himself to get it right. There is no "almosts" in pro baseball.
DIVE BACKS
Besides basic conditioning, this drill helps to build the players speed and quickness back to the bag. Also, it is helpful to work on quickly leaving the bag as well as helping the players to recognize how big of a turn they can make around a bag to make sure that they get back in case of a throw. Here's how a good Dive Backs drill is set up.
The players start out at Home Plate and run around first base, making an aggressive turn, and then dive back into the bag. After diving back they get up as fast as they can and head to second base to do the same thing. They do this also at third then slide feet first into home plate to end their round.
A good way to prove the get back theory is to have an outfielder and a second basemen trying to get a player out every couple of times through. This exercise works wonders for agility and speed skills which is an absolute necessity to play in the major leagues.
THE GLOVE BASEBALL DRILL
Conditioning is a grueling task, so some fun elements need to be used as well. A good fun conditioning drill is great because you can make them the hardest and the fun elements makes it not so bad.
The glove drills starts off with separating players in groups of 4 or 5. (If you are just with yourself and your coach, find a friend or two to help.) Line the people up and put their gloves in the outfield at about 25 foot intervals apart, away from them. They start the drill with a ball in their hand and run to the first glove and set the ball on it and come back to the line and go back and get the ball and come back to the line and go to the second glove and set the ball down and go back to the line and so on and so forth, until all the players have gone through and the winners get out of laps at the end of the practice.
SPEED QUICKNESS AND POWER
In any good baseball training program, player development is a primary concern. As players get older they also raise their level of function in the game. One of the areas to try to improve is the physical or talent area. If you are at all seriously about playing professionally you must first be in the talent pool of players. If you can't do the physical levels, no one will look at the skill or playing abilities.
A well rounded pre-season conditioning program starts when the players get back from Christmas break. Work should be focused on 3 areas essential to playing baseball at a professionally competitive level - speed, quickness, and power.
The first day should be spent testing the components of each skills set that are vital to an overall skill matching assessment. Test items can include:
· 40 yard sprint · 10 yard sprint · Standing 2 footed vertical jump · 30 second dips · 30 second sit-ups · Home to 1b · Bench press · Dot jumps · Diamond push ups
After the testing is done, you should have a good two months dedicated to a program that incorporates exercises, running, and strength training. Once this part is done, practice the test points listed above again. This will help you accurately measure your progress and where to improve.
THE 60 YARD DASH DRILL
This is used to determine sheer sprint speed, and it is chosen to determine the athlete's ability to run from the length of two bases. If you decide to incorporate this for your child, do so sparingly and make sure that your child is warmed up. Also reduce the length from 60 yards to only twice the distance from home to first. Of course, make sure that your child is medically approved to do sprinting. Keep the number of such dashes very low and GRADUALLY build up over time.
Here is a good pointer:
When asked to hit, scouts do not look at the end result of whether the ball was a hit, home run, foul ball, etc. Instead, they look at mechanics in order to determine if there is a "loop" in a batter's swing, weight transfer, and the batter's overall approach to the plate appearance. If you are able to introduce your child to one of the scouts during a break at the tryout, ask the scout to give you a minute to understand what he likes to see in his ideal batter. You may learn quite a bit.
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Alright let's talk hitting! So how many of you baseball or softball hitters out there heard the term of having a level swing. I will, in this article, review the word level in other ways in order to submit this properly. I will use words such as flat or correspond to etc. when it comes being on plane or level. Yes, having a flat swing is vital to becoming a complete hitter whether you play the game of baseball or the game of softball. The concept of achieving this is vital to consistency in your game.
As a baseball player you will have to be on plane with your swing in reference to the pitch that is delivered. What does this mean? If your trying to hit a fastball that is coming to you on a down angle your swing must be adjacent to the pitch in order to hit the ball square at impact. This will in return take out the idea of creating backspin etc... Lets get that word out of your mind. Good square contact is important, not backspin. In addition if you heard the concept of rotational hitting or linear hitting this will also play a factor in your swing plane. Keep these swings in mind when it comes to developing your swing plane. Both result in different attack angles. To further understand what these hitting styles are please do your research for further information.
Some relative factors with swing plane: If a pitch is up in the zone you will obviously have to relate your swing to the path of the ball. So you may hear the term getting on top of a pitch. In reality this term means leveling your swing up to the plane of the pitch, which in return creates a much flatter swing plane.
If your trying to hit a breaking pitch you are obviously going to have some type of an upswing when it comes to attacking the angle of the pitch properly. If you try to attack the pitch on a downswing there is a good chance that you will either cut the ball and pop up or pound it in the ground.
I just wanted to touch on some of this idea. I have a lot more information on this concept in depth on my website. I hope this short article gave you a basic concept of what having a level swing is all about. Thanks and good luck - Bryan.
Your #1 source for online hitting information! Bryan @ Hitting Made Simple: Hitting Made Simple.
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
