Here you go RichK, strategy.

[GOINGDEEP]

FFS would you -- or anyone/everyone else, please -- go into more detail on hitting zone strategies. I agree 100% with the quoted above, but how do you TEACH it to hitters? How do you practice it, etc. How do you then take some basic approaches into a game vs. a pitcher who has her own counter-strategy for the strike zone.

We could make this a great separate thread, or...I don't think it's off-topic of the original how-to-hit-a-high-pitch post...I'd really love some input in this area.

I'm going to have to back into this from a pitcher's perspective where I'm more comfortable.

A batter typically has around .40 secs to see a pitch, it's spin and determine the location. So you really don't have time to make 2 decisions, swing or not. So I teach to always be on go, that way "if" you need to make a choice........it's only one choice "not to swing". ( hope that makes sense )

A hitter can face a dozen counts.
Hitter's Count: 1-0, 2-0, 2-1, 3-0, 3-1, 3-2
Pitcher's Counts: 0-1, 0-2, 1-2, 2-2
Even Counts: 0-0, 1,1

Being a pitcher I know "most" pitcher's mind set. If a pitcher gets behind ( hitters count ) the hitter can be more selective and I have to come in the zone more at the same time. So I tell the girls to really be ready for something sweet. If its another ball, lay off it.........you're still moving ahead.

Just opposite for a pitcher's count. If the pitcher gets ahead, usually they are going to waste a couple ( at least one ) to see if you'll chase out of the danger zone. So in this senecio, I'll tell them to be more ready to lay off anything looking "ball". You're trying to even the count or slide it to a hitters ( your ) advantage.

( above is usually for higher levels where you have good pitching vs good hitters, you have to play both ends and always be ready for the unexpected SURPRIZE )

As a pitcher I watch which side of the plate the batter is trying to control. Most can't ( or won't ) control all of it. So watch your stance ( open, even, closed ) and your position or proximity to the plate, cause I am. That gives away information to the pitcher where possibly an advantage is hiding.

Each batter "usually" has a pitch they hit better or feel more comfortable with. That's what we use to call "sitting on a pitch", may be a new name for it now. Best advice I give mine is be ready to explode on YOUR pitch as SOON as you recognize IT. Chances and odds are against you that you might see that perfect "gift" again.

The real bottom line is it takes a ton of experience to get your personal grove of hitting down to an art, and even then some "color" outside the lines.

 

[RichK]

Thanks GoingDeep.

One thing we've tried -- but honestly haven't had much success with (14s moving up to 16 this fall) -- is the idea of having "one idea" at the plate. So....don't go up trying to cover the whole zone or figure out every pitch count, but at least have a thought (or two), based on what you're seeing from the pitcher. So...layoff early changes because they are all going out of the zone (and even if they are strikes, take them early) and sit on the fastball strikes.

But even simplifying to that level, we still have girls chasing pitches and just in general being off-balance.

We are making this a major priority for our off-season, so looking for any/all ideas.

A couple of additional questions:

- what's the best way to find a pitch to sit-on? count-related, pick up pitcher's motion, some combo of both. again, don't want our players over-thinking

- do you agree with SBFamily about getting hitter's aggressive even 5 inches off the plate?

- how would you work pitch selection and at-bat plans in a winter workout situation? does classroom/conversations help? how do you best take it into live pitch situations?

Tks guys....

 

[GOINGDEEP]

- what's the best way to find a pitch to sit-on? count-related, pick up pitcher's motion, some combo of both. again, don't want our players over-thinking

Well it can be approached by a couple of ways. One would be individual batter's strength, pull hitters sitting on something mid to inside, away hitters of coarse sitting mid to outside. Another is knowing what a pitcher's strength or "go to" pitch is. Because in reality most only have great command of 3 pitches, and they will go with the command pitches in a bind or early to get ahead. Good rule of thumb is one of those command pitches will come the first 2 pitches, because the pitcher wants to get ahead. So we do a lot of sitting early. ( it's very mentally stressful for a pitcher to be constantly working from behind the count......you feel me? )

Rich, as a coach you have to watch every player at bat. You have to make notes of what they are and are not hitting and then bring those things to their attention. You make sure THEY realize where their strengths are and use them, and at the same time show them their negatives. You don't want to "take away" the negative option, but encourage them to attack when the pitch is in their HOUSE.

do you agree with SBFamily about getting hitter's aggressive even 5 inches off the plate?

I try not to judge anyone's approach ( except maybe Greenmonsters ) because there are so many tools and styles that one discipline can't cover them all.

But for me no, that's too much to cover for an average to great hitter. Elite hitters probably can, but it involves more mental abilities and senses than mechanical. ( elite meaning the 1% )So it would waste my time teaching to cover 27 inches, when it seems easier to cover say 20 inches and leave the extra to the umpire and hope for a legit called ball. And that's only the horizontal. ( just my opinion )

- how would you work pitch selection and at-bat plans in a winter workout situation? does classroom/conversations help? how do you best take it into live pitch situations?

It MUST BE one on one. Again, you have to communicate to each batter their strengths.

Conversations? Well, we probably do more than most could stand. Remember we live in a little town of 4500 where 80% of our TB team resides. Add in that most of the dads have played at the HS level or above and it gets like a second language haha. Stepford Wives is more like Stepford Daughters. So we do a good deal of conversing with the kids on THEIR game.

Live pitch? A lot of hard toss, machine, and live pitching working on them recognizing their strength "pitch" ASAP. ( and in that order ) HT as a foundation just drilling their minds on location, machine so they then can see it from the proper distance, live pitching to see it at hip release and incorporate the spin that needs to be detected.

As a quick formula I'll guess we work 65% on individual strength hitting situations, and 35% on individual weaknesses. Just like boxing you still need a jab, but a KO usually comes from your power punch.

 

[rdbass]

We do not have a strike zone....the umpire does! We have a hitting zone!

GOD Bless the umpires however they are only human so we want the kids to be more aggressive and swing the bat and get use to the pitchers working in, out and up, down.

The only thing we want the umpire to do is call safe or out and the hitter MUST decide what to swing at. So we work outside the official strike zone.

You can lay 5 softballs across home plate and see the visual strike zone.

I have a rubber cord and put 5 white softballs on the cord and then 1 yellow one on either side of the 5 white ones and then 1 green one on either side of the yellow ones. This makes our hitting zone 9 balls wide and 9 balls high. For a girl around 12 years old or older in most cases, this would allow the balls on a cord to be vertical and the ball positioned at the top of the arm pit and the low ball to be at the middle of the knee.

This is why we work with the milk jugs and V8 juice tees and place the regular tee on top of a 5 gallon bucket.

I worked with a team Wednesday and laid the balls on a cord down over a home plate. I ask a parent to be the umpire and soft tossed to the number 9 and 1 ball and the kids had no problem hitting it.

The visual is allowing the kids to see what they can do verses what some body says they can not do in my opinion.

I use a Schutt multi position tee and had to put additional hole in it to serve my purposes. It has decals of 5 softballs and 7 hard balls to indicate where the ball could be and still be termed a strike. Then outside the plate I covered with gray duct tape as the hitters ALWAYS struggle with should I hit that one and the answer is yes.



This was posted by Howard C on another site. I re-post because I like it and I'm a visual guy.

 

[GOINGDEEP]

Moved with FFS permission.

Originally Posted by RichK
FFS would you -- or anyone/everyone else, please -- go into more detail on hitting zone strategies. I agree 100% with the quoted above, but how do you TEACH it to hitters? How do you practice it, etc. How do you then take some basic approaches into a game vs. a pitcher who has her own counter-strategy for the strike zone.

We could make this a great separate thread, or...I don't think it's off-topic of the original how-to-hit-a-high-pitch post...I'd really love some input in this area.

TKs.

ADD: GoingDeep was kind enough to start a new thread (and name if after me, ha, what an honor : >) on this topic and contribute a great first post. I'd love to hear what others think

Here you go RichK, strategy.

From FFS:
In terms of hitting zone strategies ... the entire team should constantly be analyzing the opposing pitcher to learn if they can gain an advantage via zoning.

If a pitcher has a weakness of not being able to throw consistent strikes in the high zone ... then hitters can "zone low" on that pitcher.

If a pitcher has a weakness of not being able to throw consistent strikes low in the zone ... then hitters can "zone high".

If a pitcher has a weakness of not being able to throw inside for a consistent strike ... then hitters can "zone the outer half".

If a pitcher has a weakness of not being able to throw outside for a consistent strike ... then hitters can "zone the inner half".

If a pitcher has a "go-to" pitch that they use predominately when they need a strike ... then hitters can "zone" that particular location when a strike is needed.

Anytime you can zone a pitcher, you can reduce the area of where you are looking for a pitch, and gain a significant advantage.

A pitcher that allows themselves to be zoned is giving the opposing team an advantage in terms of increasing the opposing team's advantage to hit the ball solid.

When you zone a pitch ... that is when you look for the pitch to come into a particular area ... and the pitch does come in that area ... then contact can be solid ... very solid! The smaller the area that you can zone to, the greater the advantage for the hitter, and should the ball end up in that zone then the more probable that the ball will be "well driven".

Hitters should routinely practice zoning ... at least once/wk if not in every hitting session. There is a huge advantage to having an entire team of hitters that is skilled in zoning.

I advocate a "zoning mindset" when performing nightly dry-swings.

A game that play to help facilitate zoning I call "death". The batter pretends they have a 3-0 count situation. They receive a pitch at normal game speed ... and they zone the pitch ... i.e., they look for the ball to be pitched into an area about the size of 1-2 basketballs in diameter. They are looking for the pitch to be delivered right there ... they begin their swing with the mindset of swinging the barrel to just that reduced area ... and if the ball is not there, then they abort their swing. They are welcome to take a strike if the ball is outside of that zone. The way the game goes .... the hitter receives one swing ... there is no penalty for taking a strike. When they do swing, the goal is a line-drive with authority. Success allows the hitter to advance to the next round ... round 2. The hitter advances one round for every successful line-drive. A swing that does not result in a line-drive ends the game and I shout out ***DEATH***.

I'll cycle through the hitters ... there is a winner for each cycle ... the hitter that makes the highest number of line-drives wins that cycle.

I also have variations of the game ... but the basic idea is to promote zoning and for the hitter to expect a well driven ball as a result.

That's my expectation for zoning on a 3-0 count ... a line-drive with authority. I want to be able to trust my hitters on a 3-0 count. I don't want to have to give them a "take signal" because I can't trust them. They have to prove to me in practice that I can trust them ... and they have to succeed in this game to win my trust. I don't want them to believe that simply putting the ball in play on a 3-0 count is acceptable ... and rather than give them a "take signal", I'll give them the "death signal" ... meaning they are expected to zone this next pitch.

Learning to zone allows hitters to take advantage of pitcher weaknesses relative to certain areas of the plate. Hitters should practice zoning ... and take advantage of pitcher weaknesses.

 

[GOINGDEEP]

FFS, it wasn't my intention to steal your thunder. I just had a few extra minutes on my hands and thought I'd give my pitcher's ( and teams ) perspective on "hitting" strategies.

From a pitcher's view I look for the same weaknesses in the batters box as you are looking for in the circle. First, I can usually tell by the way someone walks or presents themselves on the trip to the box how much confidence they come with. ( it's a look )

Next, is their feet ( mostly the front foot ) are they stepping, turning, stepping in/out, etc.

Next is the stance ( what are they trying to accomplish, runners on? ) open, even, closed.

Next is their head, is it pulling, turning, staying down, flying open.

Next is do they have a short or looping swing.

How are they reacting to a foul? Did they have the WOW look, or was it a look of "I'm on it now"?

How did they react to a particular pitch? Ugly swing, take it, we're they surprised, did they lock up. Did they have the look of "I should have killed that ball". ( the "kill" look usually tells where they like a pitch, I won't be visiting that area code again )

So much body language goes on in the box, you just learn to read it after staring at it for 20 years.

Most every hitter has a weakness, even in MLB. That's why the need for specialty pitchers. The battle between a pitcher and the lineup is like David vs Goliath. The pitcher really must use his brain when tossing a little ball towards 9 guys/gals with a big stick wanting to cram it down your throat. ( I love it )