HItting a tire drill

Coach Ken,
I have a question about a hitting drill. I made a device for a hitting drill to teach players to continue accelerating the bat through the ball at contact. The concept is similar to that of hitting the flat basketball off of the tee. My tool is a metal stand with a pole standing straight up. The pole has a motorcycle tire (lighter than car tire) mounted on it in a way that when you hit the side of the tire it spins, then you reposition and hit again. It allows getting in several repetitions quickly and builds muscle memory to accelerate the bat head through the ball at impact. The tire is mounted with plastic bushings so it spins easily. My question for you is this. Is it okay to do this with a full speed swing? What is your opinion of this drill?

miller5kdcsg said:

I have a question about a hitting drill. I made a device for a hitting drill to teach players to continue accelerating the bat through the ball at contact.

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Just and FYI ... Data collected on highly accomplished hitters shows that the bat does not continue to accelerate beyond contact.

try an impact bag. tires are too hard.

hit with lead wrist uncocked/aDducted and top hand wrist unbroken (still bent back toward forearm/"set"/dorsiflexed) and with out breaking down lead wrist (do not let this wrist dorsiflex)

YouTube - lynnblakegolf's Channel

YouTube - lynnblakegolf's Channel

Coach Marc said in an article I read last year that an impact bag is bad because for one thing it puts too much strain on the wrist and will cause an injury if done too much. The other thing is that you lose the muscle memory you are trying to promote of maintaining bat speed or even accelerating the bat through the ball at contact. I have seen too many young players that stop pushing or accelerating the bat through the ball at contact, and yes I know you don't accelerate beyond contact. The key word is AT CONTACT. If bat speed is not maintained at contact momentum is lost and the transfer of maximum force from the bat to the ball does not occur. The longer the bat is in contact with the ball the more momentum is transfered to the ball the greater the distance the ball travels. The device actually works well. I have made one for a local training facility and the High School in my area. The tire spins freely and it doesn't seem to bother the players wrists.

Even Bustos won't do this drill. Many articles posted on wrist injuries to girls. There is a new ball that is on the market it only weights 14.9 OZ. You do not stop your swing and you get instant feedback on the sweet spot of the ball. It is posted below.

I use the basketball tee drill. A slightly deflated basket ball off a tee. Use a small plunger on the tee to hold the ball.

From a prior post: By Howard.
Try to keep in perspective most of these kids we are talking about are females and do not have the forearm strength or wrist strength the potential major league player has or will have.

We hit a weighted ball that is about 10.8 ounces and others that are 11.8 ounces. I am not exactly sure however I think a regular softball weighs about 6.75 ounces so it provides resistance verses coming to a complete stop which is were the stress on the elbow, shoulder and wrists take a beating. Practice smarter not dangerously with a sound reason or logic.

Without naming the team, every girl on the team was having shoulder issues and I jokingly said what are you doing hitting basketballs and both parents who happened to be coaches said yes!

Hitting a basketball with a bat is a terrible idea!! I have a couple of pictures of some kids that have head injuries from this drill, Lady_Knights posted them on a prior page, hope he can post them. .

I agree that hitting basketballs is a bad idea.

Please explain the logic of hitting 11.8 oz balls.

http://www.discussfastpitch.com/softball-hitting/3010-tcb-balls-bb-training.html Same reason we have been discussing on this site and the posts on this web page.

SBF ... you directed me to a link discussing the TCB balls.

The TCB Atomic Ball weighs 900 grams (31.7465 oz).

They also have a smaller product called the "TCB Ball". The product description for the TCB Ball is as follows.
The TCB Ball is a MUST HAVE for the serious Fastpitch or Baseball hitter and their teams. Designed to develop maximum strength and drive through the hitting zone.

Is this the objective you have in mind when hitting 11.8 oz balls ... to develop maximum strength and drive through the hitting zone?