- Mar 21, 2015
- 5
- 0
I appreciate the feedback. Is the right eye being dominant better for a slapper or worse?
Turning your Daughter around at the plate.
- Thread starter Doug Jesionowski
- Start date
Welcome to Discuss Fastpitch
Your FREE Account is waiting to the Best Softball Community on the Web.
Does your DD plan to play softball at the next level? Would it be for pitching or as a position player? If she does not plan to play in college or will be a pitcher in college I would not spend the time and effort to make the transition. As other have mentioned, it can take 6 months to a year to make the transition. If she will be a position player in college it may be worth the time and effort to make the transition.
- May 17, 2012
- 2,806
- 113
Make the switch, it won't take as long as you think. The slapping and drag bunting will be the easiest, hitting will be the hardest.
Lots of right handed batters go on to college and become slappers. Age is not an issue.
Lots of right handed batters go on to college and become slappers. Age is not an issue.
- Mar 21, 2015
- 5
- 0
I talked with my daughter and she said she loves being a pitcher but would sacrifice that position just to play at a higher level. She just wants to play in college. We did a slapping lesson the other day and she did very good for a first timer. She hit the back of the cage with 2 balls . Just seeing the excitement in her face after the lesson made the decision easy.
- Jun 18, 2010
- 2,615
- 38
Mizzou Coach Earlywine turned right handed hitter Taylor Gadbois into a slapper in college.
In 2014:
• One of the breakout players in college softball, earning NFCA All-America Third Team recognition after batting a team-leading .421 and stealing an SEC-best 46 bases.
• Her .421 batting average ranked fifth in the SEC and 33rd nationally, and also rests as the third-best single-season mark in Mizzou history.
• Earned First Team All-SEC recognition, as well as a spot on the NFCA All-Southeast Region Second Team.
• Racked up 85 hits in 202 at-bats as a redshirt sophomore after a redshirt freshman season that brought in just three hits in 29 at-bats (.103).
• Her 85 hits rank tied for the second-most single-season total in program history, while her 202 at-bats (6th), 55 runs scored (5th) and 46 stolen bases (T-3rd) all ranked in the program's all-time single-season Top 10.
• Recorded a team-best 26 multi-hit games, including seven three-hit outings and one impressive four-hit occasion.
• Stole multiple bases in 12 games last season, including a four-game stretch of two-steal games at Auburn (April 12-13) and at Iowa (April 16).
• Set then-career bests in hits (3, vs. No. 15 Baylor) and stolen bases (3, vs. No. 14 Arizona) at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic (Feb. 20-22) in Cathedral City, Calif., with her seven steals in the Classic leading the entire event.
• Became one of 17 players to have a four-hit game in head coach Ehren Earleywine's tenure at Mizzou with her 4-for-5 batting performance vs. Illinois State (March 1).
• Second career three-steal game in the 7-3 win at Evansville in game one of the DH (March 11), while also batting 3-for-4 from the plate.
• Recorded a hit in Mizzou's games from Feb. 16-March 29 for a 29-game hitting streak, besting former Mizzou great and three-time All-American Rhea Taylor's 18-game hitting streak in 2010.
• Responded with a 3-hit game in the first contest following the snapping of her hitting streak, batting 3-for-4 with one stolen base in the 6-0 win at Mississippi State (April 4).
• Finished the final two victories of the series sweep at No. 20 Auburn (April 12-13) with two-hit, two-steal games, including a double in the sweep-clinching, 7-6 win on April 13.
• Superb performance from the batter's box and on the base paths in the doubleheader at Iowa (April 16), batting 5-for-8 (.625) overall and stealing four bases over the two games.
• Batted 3-for-4 with two runs scored in Mizzou's series-opening 5-3 win at No. 3 Florida (April 25).
• Recorded a hit in each game of the series vs. No. 6 Alabama, including a 2-for-4 game in the series finale on May 3.
Edit: Article on Taylor here.
In 2014:
• One of the breakout players in college softball, earning NFCA All-America Third Team recognition after batting a team-leading .421 and stealing an SEC-best 46 bases.
• Her .421 batting average ranked fifth in the SEC and 33rd nationally, and also rests as the third-best single-season mark in Mizzou history.
• Earned First Team All-SEC recognition, as well as a spot on the NFCA All-Southeast Region Second Team.
• Racked up 85 hits in 202 at-bats as a redshirt sophomore after a redshirt freshman season that brought in just three hits in 29 at-bats (.103).
• Her 85 hits rank tied for the second-most single-season total in program history, while her 202 at-bats (6th), 55 runs scored (5th) and 46 stolen bases (T-3rd) all ranked in the program's all-time single-season Top 10.
• Recorded a team-best 26 multi-hit games, including seven three-hit outings and one impressive four-hit occasion.
• Stole multiple bases in 12 games last season, including a four-game stretch of two-steal games at Auburn (April 12-13) and at Iowa (April 16).
• Set then-career bests in hits (3, vs. No. 15 Baylor) and stolen bases (3, vs. No. 14 Arizona) at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic (Feb. 20-22) in Cathedral City, Calif., with her seven steals in the Classic leading the entire event.
• Became one of 17 players to have a four-hit game in head coach Ehren Earleywine's tenure at Mizzou with her 4-for-5 batting performance vs. Illinois State (March 1).
• Second career three-steal game in the 7-3 win at Evansville in game one of the DH (March 11), while also batting 3-for-4 from the plate.
• Recorded a hit in Mizzou's games from Feb. 16-March 29 for a 29-game hitting streak, besting former Mizzou great and three-time All-American Rhea Taylor's 18-game hitting streak in 2010.
• Responded with a 3-hit game in the first contest following the snapping of her hitting streak, batting 3-for-4 with one stolen base in the 6-0 win at Mississippi State (April 4).
• Finished the final two victories of the series sweep at No. 20 Auburn (April 12-13) with two-hit, two-steal games, including a double in the sweep-clinching, 7-6 win on April 13.
• Superb performance from the batter's box and on the base paths in the doubleheader at Iowa (April 16), batting 5-for-8 (.625) overall and stealing four bases over the two games.
• Batted 3-for-4 with two runs scored in Mizzou's series-opening 5-3 win at No. 3 Florida (April 25).
• Recorded a hit in each game of the series vs. No. 6 Alabama, including a 2-for-4 game in the series finale on May 3.
Edit: Article on Taylor here.
Last edited:
softballcoach5662
Slapping coach
16u slap hitting
Hello Doug,
I'm a coach with the Wisconsin Lightning 18U Gold Travel team and a slap hitting instructor for the Lightning and Stiks hitting facility. My daughter was a rt handed hitter going into her second year of 16U. She had great speed (2.65) and under 11 home to home so we decided to switch her into a slap hitter. Needless to say she wasn't happy at first, knowing that she hit well from the right side and had 6 home runs the previous year. Nevertheless she work very hard at becoming a left handed hitter, becoming a true triple threat at the plate and eventually was able to put it over the fence. I believe that changing her into a slapper was the right decision and ultimately got her noticed by the college coaches. She had multiple D3 and D2 offers and three DI. She made the decision to play for Washington University. So back to answer your question. I believe it's never to late to switch a kid that has great speed, good hand eye coordination, and the drive to learn slap hitting. It puts them into a small club of elite hitters that sets them apart from the pack. Slap hitters have become as important to the college coach as a good pitcher or catcher.
Robert
Hello Doug,
I'm a coach with the Wisconsin Lightning 18U Gold Travel team and a slap hitting instructor for the Lightning and Stiks hitting facility. My daughter was a rt handed hitter going into her second year of 16U. She had great speed (2.65) and under 11 home to home so we decided to switch her into a slap hitter. Needless to say she wasn't happy at first, knowing that she hit well from the right side and had 6 home runs the previous year. Nevertheless she work very hard at becoming a left handed hitter, becoming a true triple threat at the plate and eventually was able to put it over the fence. I believe that changing her into a slapper was the right decision and ultimately got her noticed by the college coaches. She had multiple D3 and D2 offers and three DI. She made the decision to play for Washington University. So back to answer your question. I believe it's never to late to switch a kid that has great speed, good hand eye coordination, and the drive to learn slap hitting. It puts them into a small club of elite hitters that sets them apart from the pack. Slap hitters have become as important to the college coach as a good pitcher or catcher.
Robert
Last edited:
- Jun 7, 2013
- 984
- 0
My youngest DD had an interesting time deciding what side of the plate to hit from. She is ambidextrous and could have probably thrown right or left and certainly batted right or left. Not realizing her potential, we started her out from the right side of the plate. At one point we struggled and so tried her the other way. It worked for a while and then she struggled. So, for a couple of years she went back and forth, finally settling on being a lefty batter.
I could have wrote this post about my dd! She has picked lefty batter as well, her right eye is dominant.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Last edited:
- Jun 7, 2013
- 984
- 0
What's funny is that I don't think my DD has a dominant eye!
