2-Strike Hitting

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BigSkyHi

All I know is I don't know
Jan 13, 2020
1,385
113
First, I coach the swing and so, hit the darn thing hard. Heck with trying to put it in play. The next thing I would mention is do your hitters know how pitchers are getting them out? Meaning, do they talk to each other about pitcher strengths and weaknesses? Do they know how most pitchers pitch them and then work on being able to adjust and drive that pitch? Do they know pitcher tendencies? An example, when my dd played she knew how different schools pitched her and it was very consistent.

IMO, one of the worst things that can happen is if a hitter is afraid to strikeout. In my experience this lead to strikeouts. I know some college coaches who make hitters run for striking out. That pressure makes hitters easier outs since they will swing at anything to not get to two strikes. How about this, go to your hitters and ask them to take note of the strikeouts and set goals for themselves on how much they will improve upon that rate. That would then demonstrate real progress if they can achieve their goals. It would also create a path that might be more positive.
Right on, you're still an expert coach (y).
 

BigSkyHi

All I know is I don't know
Jan 13, 2020
1,385
113
I’m looking for ways to help my 18U players strike out less as there are too many with runners on base. They are all veteran players, all decent hitters, and since they are older and mostly engrained in their hitting style/mechanics I decided not to make any major changes with them. I have talked to them about taking on a 2-strike mentality. Meaning when you get 2 strikes, just try to get the ball in play, just survive! I probably will get some disagreement from all the coaches who want the long ball swing all the time but a strikeout is more likely than a homerun with 2strikes and a K does us absolutely no good. A blooper, a bleeder may find a hole, cause an error, etc, etc. Fouling a couple more balls off may create a walk. So the simplest way I’m teaching is to really minimize the load and even start the hands closer to the pitcher, kind of in front of the chest, creating a quicker punch type swing. Still staying long in zone, still keeping otherwise solid hitting mechanics. Just seeing what others think. Remember I’m coming from a team first mentality not just a develop the players for the future mentality.
IMHO coach, it appears the girls may be in 'fear' mode when 2 strikes shows up. What I mean by that results are have taken over rather than a having clear mind with a plan against that pitcher. Heart rate and breathing may have accelerated and the game has sped up.

Best way to prevent that is drive the ball to the green stuff before 2 strikes.

This video may have something that helps a kid.

 
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May 12, 2016
4,338
113
JMHO.. very short and simple, hitters need to know it’s ok to strike out. Once they understand this they will stop worrying about how many strikes against and play their game. The only thing that changed when I had 2 strikes against was my vision... my hitting zone increased, my swing did not change.
 
Sep 17, 2009
1,637
83
Hey coach. I know you said you are dealing with older players so this won't help you as much (sorry). But I think the key as some have said is coaching the fear of failure out of girls. So at early ages make striking out WATCHING the very worst thing they can do. Have them be aggressive with two strikes -- if they strike out swinging (good pitch or even not-so-good) they get applauded. If they watch, they get a talking-to. If they walk, it's thought of as a missed opportunity more than anything. As they get older, they can combine that aggressiveness with a better knowledge of the strike zone and how pitchers are trying to get them (and their teammates, as they watch and talk to each other) out via pitch sequence and type. That's a pretty lethal combo.
 
Dec 11, 2010
4,713
113
IMO, one of the worst things that can happen is if a hitter is afraid to strikeout. In my experience this lead to strikeouts. I know some college coaches who make hitters run for striking out. That pressure makes hitters easier outs since they will swing at anything to not get to two strikes. How about this, go to your hitters and ask them to take note of the strikeouts and set goals for themselves on how much they will improve upon that rate. That would then demonstrate real progress if they can achieve their goals. It would also create a path that might be more positive.

Heck yes. Great stuff CB. Attack anything that comes near the zone with two strikes. You aren’t trying to foul it off, you are still (always) trying to drive something to a gap. Great hitters are good at big zone hitting.
It's about using good technique to put solid contact on the ball, regardless of the count. Depending on pitch location and the quality of the swing, the ball might go out, but she's not trying to do that. Her swing is no different with two strikes than it is any other time. There's enough going on in the batter's box without changing swing techniques.

I talk to her about her hitting "window"...what she's looking for depending on count. With zero or 1 strike, she's looking in a narrower window at a particular location where her chances of driving the ball are best. With two strikes, the window gets bigger...she's using the umpire's strike zone to decide whether she should attempt to hit something outside her best spot. For example, if the umpire is calling the inside river, then she needs to make some kind of contact, even if it's just a foul ball.
A coach could cut and paste these two paragraphs and use it as a team approach and be very successful. The last sentence and my approach are the same thing just described differently. I personally hope the hitter is trying to drive anything that comes near the zone- put solid contact on it, but a foul ball in that situation is a win and I let them know it by a nod, a couple claps, a good job, whatever. They won that pitch with two strikes. They need to feel invincible, 9’ tall and bulletproof. I let them know that I know they are going to k sometimes and I don’t care. The funny thing is that the less you worry about k’s, the less they happen. They start surprising you because you realize it hasn’t happened in awhile.

With this approach at younger ages bb/k of 2+ means they are swinging in at good pitches, at older ages the best hitters are free swingers with a bb/k of 2 or 3+. If players are doing that you have them in the sweet spot of attacking good pitches.
 
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Strike2

Allergic to BS
Nov 14, 2014
2,044
113
" what drives me insane are the pitches that go right down the middle that are taken for called strikes. "
Great hitters don't miss the pitchers mistake. Fastball out over the middle of the plate should be damaged.

Yeah, but I'm sure you've seen it, even from great hitters. How many times during the college fastpitch world series have you seen batters take called strikes over the plate.?
 
Apr 20, 2018
4,581
113
SoCal
Yeah, but I'm sure you've seen it, even from great hitters. How many times during the college fastpitch world series have you seen batters take called strikes over the plate.?
Forget the college players... I have seen Mike Trout look at strike one on a belt high FB down the middle. It was part of his approach??? He gets his timing dialed in??? He was taking something 85% on first pitch. He has changed that though and has become more aggressive. I like Rickey Henderson 's approach. Think he has the record on first pitch HRs.
 

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