Drills for seeing the ball

A couple of thoughts -

1. Bunt, bunt, bunt. When I have a kid who seems to be having trouble tracking, I will have them bunt a ton of balls. This really forces them to track the pitch to the contact point.

2. Follow the ball. Another thing is I will have a kid just take pitches and follow it all the way to the back stop. Pete Rose used to do this on takes. I might add having the kid give me the pitch location where it crossed the plate.

Also, I know you said your DD had an eye exam a few months back, but kids eyes are apt to change very quickly. I know our eye doc will do a quick exam at a discounted price just to make sure there aren't any significant changes. Might be worth asking about.

reagansdaddy said:

A couple of thoughts -

1. Bunt, bunt, bunt. When I have a kid who seems to be having trouble tracking, I will have them bunt a ton of balls. This really forces them to track the pitch to the contact point.

2. Follow the ball. Another thing is I will have a kid just take pitches and follow it all the way to the back stop. Pete Rose used to do this on takes. I might add having the kid give me the pitch location where it crossed the plate.

Also, I know you said your DD had an eye exam a few months back, but kids eyes are apt to change very quickly. I know our eye doc will do a quick exam at a discounted price just to make sure there aren't any significant changes. Might be worth asking about.

Click to expand...

My oldest DD started catching.. amazing how much better she seen the ball after a few weeks sitting behind the plate. She became a better hitter because of it. Nothing wrong with having a little fun with your DD, you learning how to pitch and her behind the plate receiving it

julray said:

I didn't look at all the videos on here, and maybe some mention this. But one thing to consider is soft vs hard focus. OP mentioned that DD has trouble seeing the ball out of the pitchers hand.. maybe too much hard focus and not enough soft. Before the pitcher releases the ball, try to soft focus, as the ball speeds towards you, now hard focus takes over. Somebody on here taught me this, wish I could remember who to give them kudos

Click to expand...

The instructor with all the videos adds something new in each where we may be able to find one thing that can help a kid.

Two more LOL

Did I miss the most simple possibility? Have a pitcher from DD team pitch to her. Don't actually swing but call out location and if it was a strike. Once comfortable seeing the ball then swing.

You may try a pitching machine also for this.

Thanks for all the replies, I like the idea of numbers on the ball.

julray said:

I didn't look at all the videos on here, and maybe some mention this. But one thing to consider is soft vs hard focus. OP mentioned that DD has trouble seeing the ball out of the pitchers hand.. maybe too much hard focus and not enough soft. Before the pitcher releases the ball, try to soft focus, as the ball speeds towards you, now hard focus takes over. Somebody on here taught me this, wish I could remember who to give them kudos

Click to expand...

can you explain hard vs soft focus?

Thanks for all the replies, all of them are good and I don’t know where to start now, lol.

slowcelica said:

My DD is having difficulty picking up the ball out of the pitchers hand, are there any tips or drills we can do to help her with this. Whenever she hits off a tee, front toss, side toss, she has no problems making good solid contact. When she gets to a live pitcher she’s has trouble seeing the ball, she’s 13 btw.

Click to expand...

Is she telling you this, or are you just assuming she cannot pick it up by the way she is swinging? It could be she is just not initiating her sequence/move out early enough.

Post a video if you are comfortable doing so.

slowcelica said:

Thanks for all the replies, I like the idea of numbers on the ball.

can you explain hard vs soft focus?

Click to expand...

hard focus is looking for numbers on a ball

ie, zeroing in on one point/spot in time and motion.

I think of a soft focus as trying to have a field of vision out in front of you and taking it 'all in', if that makes sense. maybe someone has a better definition.

can I ask a question? why do you think her hitting problems are 'not seeing the ball.'?

Does she have problem seeing or tracking the ball in the field or when playing catch?

More likely her hitting problem is a lack of mechanics to at her age catch up with speed or (if facing more advanced pitching) make on-the-fly adjustments to spins or change-of-speed.

I'd bet she's seeing it ok. Her swing just isn't helping her make regular contact against live pitching. see Pattar's slow/early comment above.