Front Toss

[Shawn]

I don't like side toss because to me it doesn't really make sense they are never going to see a ball coming from that direction. We do front toss at about 15-20 ft. and I do try to shoot it in there with some speed not a lot, but enough that they have to be ready. I've notice that most of our girls time my arm when my arm starts back they load and then when they see the ball they stride and swing it works out pretty good for us. We don't have any coaches that can windmill so this is as good as it gets. When we are indoors we have front toss in one cage and then in the other cage they hit off a machine and that's where they get the sensation of speed, but a lot of the girls don't like the machine at first because there is nothing to time.

It’s not the direction of the ball toss that is bad, she is swinging inside the ball (out from) and driving it to right center. It’s a must in my book to do exactly what is being done in that swing.

Side toss is like a moving tee. You have to toss them correctly. Just like he posted about front toss. They’re often done to fast and the hitter doesn’t start on time. In both tosses front and side they’re seldom done correctly (speed of toss, accuracy of toss, when to start).

I have a Utee also as a moving tee. Same direction as a pitched ball. The speed can be changed, just adjust the length of the cable. Here’s a chart for Utee.



I also like the jugs pitching machine closer with lower speeds as well as front toss. Very accurate up close.

 

[Shawn]

View attachment 27013
@Cornbread i think you are on to something important. Sometimes you see people recommending that in camps, when the players have to get in front of a machine being fed poorly by another camper with no way to time the launch that the hitter load early or start from a stretched position. This is kind of like that.

Idk if this helps but I tended to throw short distance front toss way too hard. I throw 30-35 mph and was around 15’ away. I really had to work on throwing accurately from a little farther back.

I always do a windmill motion even though I can’t really pitch. (Obviously lol). I think that helps the hitter be “ready to hit”.

Correctly done, this is very valuable to hitters. DD’s college team is known for their hitting as a team and they do a lot of this.

Thanks for the chart I will use it.

 

[Westwind]

Side toss is like a moving tee. You have to toss them correctly. Just like he posted about front toss. They’re often done to fast and the hitter doesn’t start on time. In both tosses front and side they’re seldom done correctly (speed of toss, accuracy of toss, when to start).

I have always been suspect of side toss but I like your thoughts on this. Having a plan, (and your plan is a good one), is half the battle.

I also like the jugs pitching machine closer with lower speeds as well as front toss. Very accurate up close.

I also like this. Since dd has been in college I felt like she needed to seee an actual professional hitting instructor and he uses this a lot.

If I was still coaching a team I would be using this like crazy, if you have a large cage available for team practice you could split a cage in half and do half slow jugs and half live arm front toss. Most places we practiced had a second cage that could be used for regular machine etc.

 

[_MIA_]

If the tosser sets up close and rips it in there when the hitter is static

part of the problem with a lot of girls is that they are static to begin with..

Mookie Betts takes BP | 10/21/2020

Mookie Betts takes batting practice ahead of Game 1 of the World Series against the Rays

www.mlb.com

 

[Westwind]

This seems like a good starting point @pattar

 

[_MIA_]

This seems like a good starting point @pattar

I am really just talking about getting some rhythm pre-pitch...eg bat waggle, etc, etc. Too many kids just stand there like a statue until they actually start their pitcher-timed movement..

 

[Westwind]

I am really just talking about getting some rhythm pre-pitch...eg bat waggle, etc, etc. Too many kids just stand there like a statue until they actually start their pitcher-timed movement..

Gotcha.

Agree.

ETA- players stone still, not ready to hit, with the 3b coach bellering “YER LATE” is pretty much a preventable scourge at all ages including college.

 

[Rolling Hard]

Gotcha.

Agree.

ETA- players stone still, not ready to hit, with the 3b coach bellering “YER LATE” is pretty much a preventable scourge at all ages including college.

I despise stupid coaches.

 

[BillyB]

This seems like a good starting point @pattar

Everything Trey posts is golden!

 

[Cornbread]

Not talking about bat wiggle or any pre pitch rhythm. I’m talking about waiting to flip the ball until the hitter picks front foot up or shifts weight back slightly prior to picking front foot up.