Thread: Slap Bunting?

Yes, only thing better than a versatile left sider with pop, is a big time home run threat.

To Marks point. Don't waste your time learning to be a slapper if you aren't capable of hitting/slapping with some power. College defenses just absolutely collapse on the "slapper only" players. You need to keep the defense relatively "honest".

To Ricks point - have watched too many travel games (get to know players) and see the same weak slap to the left side by many. They can't/don't swing away and after the first at bat become an easy out.

Originally Posted by Rick Pauly

To Marks point. Don't waste your time learning to be a slapper if you aren't capable of hitting/slapping with some power. College defenses just absolutely collapse on the "slapper only" players. You need to keep the defense relatively "honest".

Yes. Unless of course you are Autumn Champion. If you are state sprint champion fast then you have options. Still, might as well learn to drive it well enough to keep the defense honest even if you did post a 2.51 on the automatic timer at the NFCA camp. Now we'll see if a buddy of mine is reading this site.

Sadly, we have a junior on our HS team who can only attempt one thing.....slapping from the left side. She cannot hit the ball standing still and yet the coach thinks she can hit the ball when she's moving. She never shows bunt, then slaps. She only slaps and the truly sad part is that the coach never actually showed her how to slap so she seldom even makes contact with the ball, and even less seldom does she get on base. She goes up, runs forward, then hacks away.

I taught my travel team girls that they first need to be able to hit, from both sides. Then they learned to bunt, from both sides. And finally, I taught them to slap, yes from both sides. Keep the defense guessing at all times. Our HS coach seldom bunts, and only with 1 or 2 girls, and she slaps the 1 girls mentioned above. That's it. Such a waste of offensive potential.

I don't personally believe you should only slap your fast runners. A well timed fake bunt to a slap can totally catch the D off guard and get even a slower runner on base. You know, the whole tools in the tool box thingy.

Ed

Here is another good video

Crissy Rapp - Softball Slap Hitting