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Baseball Hitting Drills
Your Head Follows Your Hands
Your Head Follows Your Hands. Think about it.. As your hands go back your heads follows your hands. So if my hands go back my head goes back. If my hands go from high to low your head goes down and it’s not until after contact that your head will end up on your front. Just like throwing. Now this time try not to get any movement whatsoever with your head. I don’t care what you do with your body,…
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Mental Approach
The Nine Strike Zones
The Strike Zone. How many hitters can actually say they go up to the plate and “know the strike zone”? What is “the strike zone”? Good question… there are many answers! Who’s “strike zone”? The Pitcher’s? The Catcher’s? The Hitter’s? The Umpires? Today? Tomorrow? Yesterday? The “strike zone” changes. It’s an amoeba. That’s one of the things that makes the game of hitting such a difficult task. Combine not knowing “the strike zone” on any give day with a fastball…
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Is Today a Leg Day? Back and Bi’s? Chest and Tri’s?
When it comes to training like a body builder, the formula above would work. If you plan on being an athlete, hopefully a successful one, then you need to stop thinking in terms of muscles, and start thinking in terms of movements. The whole objective behind weight training is to enhance performance on the field and the only way to do that is to train the body in synergy. Train you body in patterns that will be used on the…
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Fundamental Baseball Skills
All Great Hitters Hit To The Opposite Field
What do Derek Jeter, David Wright and Albert Pujols have in common? They all let the ball get ‘deep’. What does that mean you ask? Letting a ball get deep in the strike zone means simply hitting the ball later. Too many young hitters are told to ‘go get the ball.’ In our training facility we teach all our hitters how to hit to the opposite field. Players think if they don’t get the ball early they’ll get jammed. That…
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Conditioning for the Modern Day Ball Player
This is a topic that is often left up to guess work and is really one in which could create a stronger athlete later in the season if this program is devised correctly. The biggest misconception, when it comes to conditioning, is that sweat and ballplayers that are keeling over have just been through a quality conditioning session. If we actually break down what conditioning is meant to be we would arrive at a simple definition: To increase the current…
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Baseball Strength Training
Machine Training vs. Free Weight Training.. Train to Move!
Many people that I come across always ask me about this so called “debate” on machine training vs. free weight training, which one is better? In my mind there really is no reason for debate. If you carefully analyze sport, and compare and contrast it to the training methods in which you are using, you will be able to answer your own questions to this non-debatable subject. Whenever I get the opportunity to speak with Coaches and Athletes alike, I…
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Fundamental Baseball Skills
Pure Hitter = Power Hitter
What do we mean when we say “Pure Hitter?” It’s simple actually. We want our hitters to swing to hit the ball “Pure,” not swing to hit the ball “Hard.” In the process of hitting the ball “Pure” (hitting the big part of the ball with the big part of the bat) you will naturally hit the ball “Hard.” Pure Hitter = Power Hitter. Now, we are not saying to put a lame swing on a pitch. You won’t go…
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Baseball Strength Training
Top 5 Exercises for Bat Speed!
Many studies have been done that say training must correlate directly to the movements that take place in sport. This is a wordy definition for the phrase: sport-specific training. If we want greater bat speed we must replicate our swing dynamics using resistance to build strength, and speed training to build power. Strength and Power are directly related. Power in definition is really just fast strength. With these two points being made, we now need to understand the mechanics of…
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Fundamental Baseball Skills
The Football Change — A Baseball Hitters Defense
Football Change.. that’s what. Football what? Football Change. It has also been referred to as Football Curve. It is a devastating pitch that hitter’s should learn to immediately recognize. It not, you will likely have a very difficult time laying off of this pitch. If thrown by a Right Handed Pitcher, the ball falls away from a Right Handed Hitter. It looks like a fastball, has a fastball arm speed… comes at you like a fastball. The only problem is,…
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Baseball Soft toss Drills
Baseball soft toss drills. These baseball soft toss drills will help with your timing and with your trigger mechanism. When used properly in conjunction with the other drills, you should be able to develop a fluid, easy swing. Let’s get started! The objectives in this drill is to develop good timing and good balance. Take your stance, have someone toss you balls from behind a screen just a short distance in front of you and little off to the side.…
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Mental Approach
Professional Hitting Tips
Tips from the Pros Cal Ripken, Sr: The Ideal Hitter The ideal hitter would probably have a combination of these qualities: strength, determination, coordination, confidence, vision, rhythm, style, body control, quick hands, and the will to learn and to take advice. The following is a list of batting tips that can help anyone become a better hitter. Select a bat you can handle. Learn the strike zone – don’t swing at bad pitches. Keep your front shoulder and chin tucked…
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Fundamental Baseball Skills
Choosing The Right Baseball Bat
One of the most important factors in a young player’s enjoyment of the game is his (or her) success at the plate. Besides proper training in the art and science of hitting a baseball, the bat itself plays a big role. Choosing the right Baseball Bat is crucial. Too many well-meaning but uninformed parents buy their kid a bat that is the wrong length or weight, or both. This adds yet another obstacle to the budding player’s efforts to succeed.…
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Weight Back Drill
The batter stands about 20 feet away from the pitcher. The pitcher takes a tennis ball and bounces the ball so that the ball ends up in the strike zone. With bouncing the balls the hitter will tend to jump out on his or her front foot. This drill will allow he or she to stay back in the load and keep his or her weight back so that they can explode on the ball. This drill really works because…
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College Recruiting Advice for Athletes
College Recruiting Advice: An Interview with Coach Mark Davin, American University Head Swimming Coach by Ryan Spoon, Published by USA-Swimming Ryan Spoon: What is the best advice you would give to a high school athlete hoping to compete in college? Mark Davin: The best advice I can give is for the high school athlete to search for and find the University that is the best total fit. I think that some athletes and parents might be looking for a simple answer,…
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Seeing the Ball Part 4: Mental Preparation
Hitters are in complete control of how well they see the ball. Nothing can interfere with how you see the ball unless you allow it. If you have a poor swing mechanically, but you see the ball well, you still have a good chance to hit the ball. Conversely, if you have a great swing, but don’t see the ball well, you will not hit. When you are up to bat you must not let mechanics enter your thoughts. Think…
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Seeing the Ball Part 3: Physical Preparation
1. Stance – The stance is very important. Hitters should be off their heels, knees bent a little, and be in a balanced position. This gives them the confidence in their ability to get out of the way of the ball. A hitter’s stance should allow them to have their head and eyes in good position to see the ball. 2. Consistent Eye Patterns – The hitter must have consistent eye patterns. Beginning with stepping into the batter’s box, your…
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Seeing the Ball Part 2: Obstacles to Seeing the Ball
Seeing the ball should be as easy as it sounds, but it is not. There are obstacles to seeing the ball that interfere with the hitter’s ability to focus on such a simple task. Learning how to control these obstacles is imperative to successful hitting. The following are reasons I have found, over the course of my career, to be the most common obstacles to seeing the ball the best you can, every time you bat. Fear The fear of…
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Seeing the Ball Part 1
The most important aspect in hitting a ball is seeing it. A hitter can have a perfect swing, but if he cannot see the ball he may as well be hitting blindfolded. He can have the game’s most perfect swing, but not even the greatest can make contact without first seeing what they want to hit. Simply put, hitters that see the ball best are the best hitters. Pete Rose, the all-time hit leader, Clemente, Williams, Stargell, Griffey, McGwire, Jeter,…
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Baseball Strength Training
Getting Powerful at the Plate
In this day of age in baseball, power is the most common term best used to describe the top batters. Strong powerful core, legs, and hips are the keys to unleashing tape measure home runs at a record pace. Baseball is a ballistic sport that involves quick, explosive, and reactive movements. The ability to generate this power, the product of force and velocity, is essential to becoming a successful power hitter. How do they do it? They do it in…
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Baseball Hitting Drills
Baseball Vision Hitting Drills
As you may notice in the numerous articles appearing on this site, we are big proponents of seeing the ball well. You must see it to hit it! There are many drills that have been around baseball for years and years that deal with seeing the ball, tracking the ball, identifying pitches, etc. Here are a few of our favorites. Colored Horseshoe of Baseball This drill is used to warm up the eyes for live pitching. Color the ball between…
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Lou Gehrig’s Farewell Speech
Yankee Stadium July 4, 1939 Fans, for the past two weeks you have been reading about a bad break I got. Yet today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth. I have been in ballparks for seventeen years and I have never received anything but kindness and encouragement from you fans. Look at these grand men. Which of you wouldn’t consider it the highlight of his career just to associate with them for even one…
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Baseball Strength Training
A baseball training program should incorporate a strength training component. Strength is crucial for baseball success. The two primary reasons for this are to develop explosive power and to protect against injury (especially arm injuries). Many players neglect to develop explosive power. The reasons for this are varied. Some don’t know how. Some have tried lifting weights, and become injured (doing the wrong kind of baseball weight training). Some don’t think it’s important (guess again!). In baseball training, little things…
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Baseball Hitting Drills
Shadow Hitting Drill
Purpose: To determine the degree of head movement in the baseball swing. We all know how difficult it is to hit a baseball. Every hitting instructor worth his salt acknowledges the importance of a steady head during the swing. The reason is simple: The eyes are the source of information for the body. The information we see (the approaching pitch) must be as accurate as possible in order for us to put an accurate swing on the pitch. If we…
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Lau’s Laws on Hitting
Here’s an excerpt from Charley’s Lau’s Book: The Brain: It Can Help and Hurt Your Hitting Ever notice when you get into a slump in any athletic endeavor the amount of people are eager to help you? Fall into a 1-for-25 slide in baseball and it seems everyone has a solution for you, from your teammates to your coach to your wife. Your head is pulling out. Your stance is all wrong. Your bat is too heavy. You name it:…
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Who’s Job is it to Promote Baseball Players?
There is no doubt that the baseball talent throughout the United States is overwhelming. The difficulty in deciding who to watch is increasingly demanding for the professional scout. Especially given the tremendous increase in High School talent as opposed to the more established and polished college prospect. Consider that fact that the average Major League baseball team is allowed 50 selections, and there are literally thousands of High School and college teams to choose from, let alone players. How does…
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Fundamental Baseball Skills
Lost Secrets of Hitting
By Coach Rob Ellis Going for home runs, too many modern players pile up strikeouts instead of making contact with the pitch! It was a monumental find. While pursuing my lifelong study of the skill of hitting, I discovered some old, dusty, 16 mm film footage of the great hitters of yesterday. One was titled, “Hitting Stars of 1943.” It featured Stan Musial, Ted Williams, Enos Slaughter, Dixie Walker, Ralph Kiner, Pete Reiser, Joe DiMaggio and at least a dozen…
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The Rolly-Polly Drill
This simple little drill is an outstanding tool to help the player to make more consistent contact with the baseball. Designed to ingrain the proper path for the lead hand to attack the ball, it also develops proper top hand action. When correctly employed, the drill helps the hitter to understand the role of each hand during the swing. A hands only drill, the drill promotes active hands and wrists in the hitters swing. As you will see, the player…
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Mental Approach
How to Raise Your Batting Average 100 Points
As a former college coach who now runs a baseball camp year round, I spend a lot of time talking and teaching the skill of hitting a baseball. Too many times players and coaches are too concerned with the mechanics of the swing and forget about the mental side of hitting. We can spend hours going over swing mechanics and even players with beautiful swings may still only wind up batting .250. I’m amazed whenever I ask a player, “What’s…
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Fundamental Baseball Skills
The Top and Bottom Hand Swing
If you have played under a good hitting instructor at any time in your baseball career, you have heard those words before. Releasing your hands to the ball is vital to good hitting. The top hand on the bat is the “power hand” in the baseball swing. It starts out on top, trails the knob of the bat and lower hand as the hands “go to the ball,” and eventually becomes the “lower” hand on the bat just before and…
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Baseball Strength Training
Grad-U-Weighted Bats Drill
This is the key to creating quickness. Wrist roll exercises are to develop strength from the fingertips to the elbows, which is important. But this is the secret to creating Bat Speed!. If you have been playing baseball for a few years, you probably have a few different sizes of bats laying around in the garage. Go get them. They are your tools for success. Ideally, you need at least three graduating sizes of bats. A tee-ball bat (maybe 16…
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Baseball Strength Training
Wrist Roll Exercise for a Faster Swing
To develop a quick bat you must have strong hands, wrists and forearms. Some hitters are blessed with these attributes naturally. Others will need to work on getting stronger in this area. I will say this, if you have naturally strong hands, wrists and forearms, you would be silly not to improve on what you already have. You could be that much farther ahead of your opponent. Have your father head to the hardware store and buy a piece of…
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Mental Approach
Hitting Focal Point
I find it interesting that so many coaches and parents are quick to change this and alter that when it comes to a young player’s hitting. Young players are advised to open their stance, close their stance, keep their elbow up, keep their elbow down, squash the bug, don’t squash the bug, keep their head in there, and on and on and on. In reality, to make a significant change in a player’s stance or hitting habits takes a tremendous…
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Mental Approach
The On-deck Circle
As I mentioned earlier, much of hitting is understanding the game. Baseball is a game of situations. Because baseball is a team game, a successful at-bat may not be one that results in a base hit. Your time in the on-deck circle should be used to analyze the game situation. How can you help your team when it’s your turn to step into the batter’s box? Will a bunt help the team? A fly ball? Should I try to hit…
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Fundamental Baseball Skills
Six Steps to a Sweet Baseball Swing
Everybody wants to be a great hitter. Most young players dream about hitting the ball like Alex Rodriquez or David Wright or Prince Fielder. What they don’t realize is that All-Star players like that have such deeply ingrained muscle memory built into their swing that they can totally forget about their swing and concentrate solely on hitting the ball. The swing just happens for them at this stage in their careers. They are literally seeing the ball and hitting it,…
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Baseball Hitting Drills
Soft Tap Hitting Drill
Enlist the help of your father, mother, brother or a friend. You will need a whiffle ball or other soft ball. Have your training partner get in a safe position at about a 45 degree angle from you. The partner should toss the ball up softly in front of you. From a good, fundamentally sound batting stance, try to hit the ball with the knob of your bat. Take the knob of the bat directly at the ball and just…
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Baseball Hitting Drills
Power Bat Hitting Drill
Boxers learn how to develop power in their punch by trying to power through a heavy bag that weighs anywhere from 120-200 lbs. Why is that relevant to a baseball player? Well, certain players are power hitters and are necessary in the makeup of a baseball team. These players generally occupy the “corners” of a team; LF, RF 3B and 1B. If you play at one of these power positions you will need to develop power in your swing. The…
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Baseball Hitting Drills
Chair Drill
Here’s a drill to emphasize the importance of the hands to the ball. This drill can be incorporated with a soft toss or a short screen. It is very effective even without the luxury of hitting a ball during the drill. Find yourself an old plastic chair, or a bucket with a lid and sit on it. Lock your ankles around the legs of the chair or base of the bucket; This is to anchor yourself into the chair. We…
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Fun Baseball Articles
The Catch by Willie Mays
Wertz hits it. A solid sound. I learned a lot from the sound of the ball on the bat. Always did. I could tell from the sound whether to come in or go back. This time I’m going back, a long way back, but there is never any doubt in my mind. I am going to catch this ball. I turn and run for the bleachers. But I got it. Maybe you didn’t know that, but I knew it. Soon…
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Mental Approach
Pressure or Opportunity?
How many of you have been in a position to win the game in your final at- bat? You know, 2 outs… bases loaded… your team losing by one run in the last inning. The other team changes pitchers as you step up to the plate. The “Big Kid” moves from first base, saunters up to the pitcher’s mound and starts throwing fastballs that look like BB’s streaking to the plate. How would you handle this situation? Most kids will…
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Mental Approach
Hitting is Timing
The swing is grooved, the concept of matching your swing plane with that of the pitched ball is clear and understood. The next step in the act of successfully hitting a pitched baseball is timing. Timing your swing so that it meets the ball at the proper impact point, at just the right moment. Not a moment too soon, not a moment too late. Hall of Famer, Warren Spahn, while speaking of pitching, actually gave great insight to the art…
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Mental Approach
The Pitch Count
The pitch count should have a direct impact on each swing you take at the plate. Certain pitch counts favor the hitter and certain ones favor the pitcher. Just as the smart pitcher takes advantage of the times he is “ahead in the count,” the smart hitter understands when he has the advantage. In these situations, the hitter must capitalize. Or, at least, give it his best. If you are ahead in the count 1-0, 2-0, 2-1, or 3-1, you…
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My Brother’s Baseball Cards
During the 1920s and into the period just before World War II, my family lived in various apartments in the Bronx, New York. In those depression years, it was cheaper to move than pay the rent, and so they did. Those were also the years before television, and, indeed, before the times when baseball salaries became rather high. I am not complaining about what major league players earn; as far as I am concerned, this is America and there is…
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WHO’S ON FIRST! by Abbott and Costello
Abbott: Well Costello, I’m going to New York with you. The Yankee’s manager gave me a job as coach for as long as you’re on the team. Costello: Look Abbott, if you’re the coach, you must know all the players. Abbott: I certainly do. Costello: Well you know I’ve never met the guys. So you’ll have to tell me their names, and then I’ll know who’s playing on the team. Abbott: Oh, I’ll tell you their names, but you know…
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Casey At The Bat
by Ernest L. Thayer The outlook wasn’t brilliant for the Mudville nine that day; The score stood four to two with but one inning more to play. And then when Cooney died at first, and Burrows did the same, A sickly silence fell upon the patrons of the game. A straggling few got up to go in deep despair. The rest Clung to that hope which springs eternal in the human breast: They thought if only Casey could but get…
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Our Favorite Quotes from Ted Williams
1.) There has always been a saying in baseball that you can’t make a hitter, but I think you can improve a hitter. More than you can improve a fielder. More mistakes are made hitting than in any other part of the game. 2.) There’s only one way to become a hitter. Go up to the plate and get mad. Get mad at yourself and mad at the pitcher. 3.) You have to hit the fastball to play in the…
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Take Me Out To The Ball Game
by Jack Norworth & Albert von Tilzer Katie Casey was baseball mad, Had the fever and had it bad, Just to root for her hometown crew, ev’ry sou– Katie blew. On a Saturday, her young beau called to see if she’d like to go To see a show but Miss Kate said, “No, I’ll tell you what you can do” Take me out to the ballgame, Take me out to the crowd. Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jacks. I…
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Baseball Strength Training
Baseball Conditioning and Fitness
Your Legs | Rotator Cuff | Consuming Water | Running Program Your Legs are Your Lifeblood Regardless of whether you’re a position player or a pitcher, your legs are your lifeblood. And, for successful, injury-free performance, they need both stamina and power. They need the stamina to endure 9-inning games and 162-game seasons and the explosiveness to run, hit and throw with power. Remember, all actions in baseball, not just running, start with your legs. The forces used in hitting…
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Mental Approach
Handling Failure
The proper mental attitude for a hitter is to first understand that you will fail more times than you succeed. Notice I didn’t say accept failure, I said understand that you will fail. There is a big difference between the two. To illustrate the difficulty of hitting a pitched ball, the greatest hitters that ever played the game “failed” nearly seven of every ten times they stepped to the plate! The last player to hit for an average of .400…
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Fundamental Baseball Skills
The Swing Plane
I always get a kick out of listening to the parents of Little Leaguers when their child is at bat. “Swing level,” “Keep your back elbow up,” “Do this,” Don’t do that.” “Geez, Mom, hush up and let me hit!” Most kids would probably love to step out of the batter’s box and say that. In reality, your swing must match the path of the baseball thrown by the pitcher as closely as possible, and for as long as possible,…
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