DD and her hitting coach

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Aug 12, 2015
3
0
Ohio
My DD is 16u and had a horrible TB hitting year this past season after the assistant coach changed her swing, stance, bat angle after her first tournament where she hit a single, double and triple...Her high school JV season was outstanding batting .525 in the 3rd spot. She was at an all time confidence low, one to which I have never seen from her.

We asked her jv coach to take her under his wings for hitting lessons. He saw what they tried to do, but was able to pull the spirit back out and prove to her that she still has it in her. He is really happy with her and her swing, her technique and her drive. He only said she needs a few more lessons to help her gain some of that confidence back.

My question is, is this normal? Do your dd's or has your dd's only needed a few lessons? I know of some girls that are really good that see a hc once a week, even though they seem fine. Do you only see the hc every once in a while or when they get in that slump? I'm confused. I really like and respect this guy and was thrilled at what he said, but I think I may be overthinking this.

He did tell me to tell her TBC that she has a hc and to not tweak her at the plate.

Thank you!
 
Feb 7, 2013
3,188
48
IMO, you never stop the process of trying to perfect the swing so you need to regularly see a hitting coach. For some, it's weekly for others it's bi-weekly or even monthly but you never completely stop. It's always a work in progress and having a good, professional instructor helping you along the way is very valuable.
 
Sep 17, 2009
1,636
83
If the second coach changed her in a very obvious way that went against her natural or best movements, and the JV coach was able to see it, take the chains off her and return her to a swing that to her comes naturally (and works well), I imagine she could get back to a good place after a few lessons. It's like taking off a cast and letting her just be herself.

That said, I agree that hitting lessons/work is never a one time thing, your JV player goes to varsity or faces higher level travel pitching or just wants to continue to improve and there's always something to learn, work on, get better with.
 
Jun 27, 2011
5,089
0
North Carolina
He did tell me to tell her TBC that she has a hc and to not tweak her at the plate.

I like the advice, although I wouldn't do it until it becomes necessary. Have her bat the way she believes she should bat.

Other advice -

Be wary of any hitting coach. Many don't know what they're doing. If unsure, post here and get opinions.

You can't compare 16U travel to high school JV. It's very possible for the same hitter to bat .500 in JV and .200 in 16U travel.
 
Jun 17, 2009
15,037
0
Portland, OR
Very true!!! Excellent point!

Agree. It's possible that the young lady "had a horrible TB hitting year this past season" simply because she faced teams with better pitching and stronger defenses.

JV-HS is a different animal from a competitive club ball program.

Many players are placed on JV because their skills are not good enough for the Varsity team.

Many Varsity teams that I see don't have a line-up of 9 strong hitters. When you get to the JV team it isn't uncommon to see a line-up with 0 strong hitters and swings that lack a reasonable platform.
 
Last edited:
Mar 18, 2014
222
18
Georgia
My DD is 16u and had a horrible TB hitting year this past season after the assistant coach changed her swing, stance, bat angle after her first tournament where she hit a single, double and triple...Her high school JV season was outstanding batting .525 in the 3rd spot. She was at an all time confidence low, one to which I have never seen from her.

We asked her jv coach to take her under his wings for hitting lessons. He saw what they tried to do, but was able to pull the spirit back out and prove to her that she still has it in her. He is really happy with her and her swing, her technique and her drive. He only said she needs a few more lessons to help her gain some of that confidence back.

My question is, is this normal? Do your dd's or has your dd's only needed a few lessons? I know of some girls that are really good that see a hc once a week, even though they seem fine. Do you only see the hc every once in a while or when they get in that slump? I'm confused. I really like and respect this guy and was thrilled at what he said, but I think I may be overthinking this.

He did tell me to tell her TBC that she has a hc and to not tweak her at the plate.

Thank you!

once she is comfortable with her swing changes just hit on your own the majority of time. We hit 5 days a week on our own and see her hitting coach 1 or 2 times a month at most. Once the girls start understanding there swing they can make slight adjustments on there own. That's why I video a lot of our batting sessions so she can see what she feels in her swing. Confidence plays a huge role for hitters and the more she works the more confidence she will carry to the games.
 
Jul 16, 2013
4,659
113
Pennsylvania
Agree. It's possible that the young lady "had a horrible TB hitting year this past season" simply because she faced teams with better pitching and stronger defenses.

JV-HS is a different animal from a competitive club ball program.

Many players are placed on JV because their skills are not good enough for the Varsity team.

Many Varsity teams that I see don't have a line-up of 9 strong hitters. When you get to the JV team it isn't uncommon to see a line-up with 0 strong hitters and swings that lack a reasonable platform.

Case in point... but I am sure this varies by region and size of school.

DD's 16u team has 12 players with significant softball experience for their age (6+ years of experience and none are over 15 years old. Several are still 14 years old). Over half of them lettered for their high school varsity teams as freshmen. Several played very little at JV because they were primarily varsity players.

DD's JV team is mostly made up of players with less than 3 years of experience and only includes 3 players with any travel ball experience. 3 of them have never played organized softball. Ever....

Honest assessment. Our 16u team would be competitive with many high school VARSITY teams in our area, and I would consider us an average 16u team...
 

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