slap hitting

[Coach JV]

I have a player who I deem as 'slow' she is a very good contact slapper
who can drop the slap in front or behind the defense. She has a knack for a
'power slap' which she can drive beyond the drawn in defense in LF. This
being the case, a slow home to first time is neutralized. Not all players should
be taught to slap, but it varies from player to player. IMHO there is not
a straight up yes or no answer to OP question

 

[11smom]

Have been wondering if my natural lefty (who has good speed) should be slapping. She is a 12U player, bats 1 in line up and consistently gets on base. Not a home-run hitter, but smart at the plate, hits well and draws a lot of walks. Takes private batting lessons where coach is teaching her to slap, but don't think travel ball coach seems too eager to try her slapping (he says because she hits well as is). My fear is that we are doing her a disservice in getting prepared for high school ball, where they will expect a lefty to slap. If it takes a while to perfect this technique, we should be starting now. We notice that here in 12U, not too many slappers are effective at getting on base, and my dd may take a step backwards and lose confidence if she stops hitting well. Any thoughts?

 

[RichK]

With a natural lefty it's less "risky", it can be another tool in her bag and move defenses around. Turning a righty around is a huge commitment. I agree slapping only less interesting than bunting/slapping/powerslapping/swingingaway combo.

 

[softballphreak]

Have been wondering if my natural lefty (who has good speed) should be slapping. She is a 12U player, bats 1 in line up and consistently gets on base. Not a home-run hitter, but smart at the plate, hits well and draws a lot of walks. Takes private batting lessons where coach is teaching her to slap, but don't think travel ball coach seems too eager to try her slapping (he says because she hits well as is). My fear is that we are doing her a disservice in getting prepared for high school ball, where they will expect a lefty to slap. If it takes a while to perfect this technique, we should be starting now. We notice that here in 12U, not too many slappers are effective at getting on base, and my dd may take a step backwards and lose confidence if she stops hitting well. Any thoughts?

Slapping in your case will be icing on the cake. It won't hurt her hitting. If SHE has a desire to learn slapping, it's a no-brainer; let her have at it. Slapping should not be practiced in her situation as a replacement for her hitting; it should be viewed as another tool in her arsenal.

 

[Steve Huff]

I said this before but umps are starting to call slaps bunts. So you also need to either be comfortable turning back to righty with two strikes or be able to hit away lefty. (FYI: What they want in college is both slapping and hitting away lefty.)

I would only teach the short players and the quick players how to slap. A taller and stronger power-hitting lefty who is also fast can be taught to slap. For the short ones, I like them to have the skill so coaches CAN'T overlook them at tryouts or when filling batting orders.

The best examples I can think of are Jessica Mendoza and Natasha Whatley of Team USA. Both can hit the ball over the fence from the left side, but both could also slap. They take what the defense gives them!!!!

 

[mizunomp37]

Wonder what you think on this situation. DD is 10U starting pitcher, weekly lessons, team practice you know the drill, 70lbs soaking wet, tiny little thing with blazing speed to first. Problem is she does not have the body size to get the ball out of the infield, but almost always beats out the throw to first on your basic soft contact grounders. I have had her go lefty in the cage and seems to be able to make more consistent contact from the left side because she can get more momentum into the ball attempting slap hitting. Is this a good time to go all in on slapping until her body can grow a little and have both sides of the plate as an option later?

 

[quincy]

I am thinking there is a lot of truth to this statement:

First, slapping takes a lot of time to learn and it requires constant practice. If your kid is a pitcher or already has a "secondary" skill requiring a lot of practice, it's not a good idea.

Maybe just switch her to a lefty for now and worry about slapping a little bit later.

I would also be a little concerned about her lack of power, at 10 she should be able to get a fair amount of balls into the outfield. Next year you are going to another drop in power when you move to the 12” ball.

Maybe if you posted her swing some posters might have some suggestions to have her generate more power in her swing.

 

[Coach Ron]

When I started my new 11U team, I was loaded with 10's and 11's only. All new to travel. No pitching, no hitting, no defense. So much to teach with so little time or resources. I tried teaching the four fastest kids on the team - 3 of whom had darn good wheels - to go lefty! (Btw, took me forever on the internet to find speed times for 10 y/o's in the 20 yard dash.)

What I can tell you for sure is this - unless the girl AND her parents buy into it - lock, stock and barrel - it is doomed from the start! Parents want their kids hitting the ball into the alley. And they will watch their kid look terrible swinging a bat forever. But let the kid look bad on just one lefty slap and they're ready to bail. It's a mindset that both the player and her parents must embrace. Now beginning our 3rd year as a pure 13 y/o team, I have just one girl who has embraced the lefty slap. She is a skinny little thing with very little going for her other than wheels. Her father has supported me all the way. The result? Lead off batter, best BA on the team (.361) and best OB% by far (.483). And this is NOT an elite team! This girl turned lefty two years ago and hasn't batted righty ever since.

Gotta go one way or the other, and then never look back.

 

[Sparky Guy]

What I can tell you for sure is this - unless the girl AND her parents buy into it - lock, stock and barrel - it is doomed from the start! Parents want their kids hitting the ball into the alley. And they will watch their kid look terrible swinging a bat forever. But let the kid look bad on just one lefty slap and they're ready to bail. It's a mindset that both the player and her parents must embrace. Now beginning our 3rd year as a pure 13 y/o team, I have just one girl who has embraced the lefty slap. She is a skinny little thing with very little going for her other than wheels. Her father has supported me all the way. The result? Lead off batter, best BA on the team (.361) and best OB% by far (.483). And this is NOT an elite team! This girl turned lefty two years ago and hasn't batted righty ever since.

Gotta go one way or the other, and then never look back.

Ron you are soooooo right!!!!!!!!

As I said, it takes a full two years for a girl to become proficient at slapping.

 

[cwestwjg]

My DD is 4-11" and 109 pounds runs very fast for her age, the 109 is all legs and hips. She was always a lead off and would outrun whatever she hit and I got caught up in the she has to learn to hit lefty with her height and speed. She could hit for power but lifted the ball high in the outfield, as you know, in open class ball thats an out even at 12u unless you clear the fence.

I hired a very well respected hitting coach, Pat Harrison, to teach her to hit left handed. I work on the road and after 5 weeks of lessons I ask my wife how her left handed hitting looked and to my suprize he hadn't let her hit lefty yet. What he has done is taken all the lift out of her swing and she is consistently hitting hard line drives toward any target he picks.

I owe him a debt of gratitude, his phylosophy as he explained to me, make her the best righty she can be then teach her to bat left slowly over the next few seasons. Something about bad habits on the right side will follow her to the left and it's best to fix them in her natural swing.