shaker1
Softball Junkie
Watched a recent practice video from Oklahoma where they were using a Hack Attack for batting practice, but I can't remember where it was posted. This is off the Sooner website.
Hitting off machines vs. Front toss/Live
- Thread starter lynx
- Start date
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Maybe I should rephrase the question..."what half decent college softball team have you seen hitting off a pitching machine?"
As a coach, I prefer front toss. However, machines have their place in the toolbox too. Ideally you'll have 4 options...
1. front toss
2. machine
3. coach live pitch (assuming they can somewhat match the players level)
4. player live pitch (NEVER LET A PITCHER THROW BP!!!! ONLY LIVE AT BATS!!!)
Now when I say live pitch it actually means, mixing speeds, spins, and locations to simulate a real game play
1. front toss
2. machine
3. coach live pitch (assuming they can somewhat match the players level)
4. player live pitch (NEVER LET A PITCHER THROW BP!!!! ONLY LIVE AT BATS!!!)
Now when I say live pitch it actually means, mixing speeds, spins, and locations to simulate a real game play
- Feb 6, 2017
- 38
- 6
DD went to camps this fall at OU and Minnesota and hit off a machine at both places. I’m assuming since they invested thousands of dollars in the high level machines they used at camp that the schools use them in ways other than just camps. This is especially true for self feeding machines. A lot of programs who have dedicated indoor space give 24 hour access to players who could use self feeding machines when they go alone.
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I think there are some HIGH END pitching machines that are much better than what most TB teams have access too.
- Feb 6, 2017
- 38
- 6
Agree. They are very high end and not your standard Jugs wheel. But you asked what programs use a machine...
Like some others have said, it’s just part of a tool box to use.
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A pitching machine is one of many ways to send a ball at a batter so they can hit it. Nothing more or less than that. Use it like any other tool -- intelligently. And as I said before, prepare your players that they'll encounter some situations where it's not used so intelligently.
I'm going to play around with this set up when we start up again this winter (18U team)....30 feet or so, relatively slow, maybe 40mph, with a goal of hitting line drives back at machine 10 out of 10 times. I saw a video of an MLB player doing this....seems like a good way to groove your swing. And we'll have other stations in a two hour practice with front-toss, tee, live pitching, hitting league score-keeping etc...
I'm going to play around with this set up when we start up again this winter (18U team)....30 feet or so, relatively slow, maybe 40mph, with a goal of hitting line drives back at machine 10 out of 10 times. I saw a video of an MLB player doing this....seems like a good way to groove your swing. And we'll have other stations in a two hour practice with front-toss, tee, live pitching, hitting league score-keeping etc...
- Dec 11, 2010
- 4,725
- 113
Nope. Most are Sports Attack Hack Attack Softball 3 wheel machines just like the one I bought on Craigslist. They are very good machines but nothing special. The rest are Jugs Super Softball’s save one school that has this evil old programmable self feeding monster that looks like a doghouse. I’m not a fan of that one.
Sports Attack makes a programmable machine called an eHack. They are approximately $10k, I keep looking for one because I’d like to see one talk to someone who uses one but I have never seen one in person.
Here is Sports Attacks’ list of schools by state that own their machines. Two of the schools I saw them at are not listed yet.
https://sportsattack.com/customer-list-sb/
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