I hate side toss, do you?

[iMlearning]

balls

We use a variety of balls from mini wiffles to Evil Balls Long Haul Bombers for practice. I've never noticed a problem with any of them. I just mix them all up most the time.

 

[FiveFrameSwing]

Maybe this is me being an idiot, but wouldn't high compression balls lead to more pushing? You can push and hit them even further.

Lower-compression balls seem as though they would demand more bat speed before contact, high compression balls compress more if you put more force into them.

Pstein, the lower the compression rating of the ball, the softer or easier to “compress”. The higher the compression rating, the harder the ball, and the harder it is to “compress”.

 

[FiveFrameSwing]

Can you name any drill that can't be performed incorrectly???

GM, drills, by their very nature, are not carbon copies of a swing. Generally a portion of a drill (and in some cases the entire drill) does not match up with the targeted swing, .... and hence performing a drill leaves open the possibility of ingraining faulty mechanics ..... which IMO is the benefit of having a technical forum .... because knowledge is generally what helps folks extract the usefulness from a drill.

That said ... TCB balls don't even come close to representing a real ball. The time of the bat/ball collision is so long that the feedback to the body allows for an additional pushing action that would be ineffective in a real swing. One well-respected former poster wrote of the benefits of the TCB ball being that the extra time allowed for increasing the pushing action through contact ... which is exactly what you don't want to happen.

 

[Greenmonsters]

GM, drills, by their very nature, are not carbon copies of a swing. Generally a portion of a drill (and in some cases the entire drill) does not match up with the targeted swing, .... and hence performing a drill leaves open the possibility of ingraining faulty mechanics ..... which IMO is the benefit of having a technical forum .... because knowledge is generally what helps folks extract the usefulness from a drill.

That said ... TCB balls don't even come close to representing a real ball. The time of the bat/ball collision is so long that the feedback to the body allows for an additional pushing action that would be ineffective in a real swing. One well-respected former poster wrote of the benefits of the TCB ball being that the extra time allowed for increasing the pushing action through contact ... which is exactly what you don't want to happen.

So what drill do you recommend that 1) emphasizes swinging hard (i.e., high bat speed) 2) provides incontrovertible feedback as to quality of contact 3) can be performed in limited space, inside or outside, with or without a net/fence 4) can be done using a tee or front toss?

Just like any other drill, I make sure that the hitters understand the focus and purpose i.e., maximizing pre-contact bat speed. One explained and demonstrated, I haven't had issues with unsupervised, improper implementation, but that may be because I also explain to them that it's perfectly acceptable to half rear drills if they don't care to improve.

Just curious if those who don't use TCBs instead do wiffle golf ball front toss or rapid fire front toss?

 

[FiveFrameSwing]

So what drill do you recommend that 1) emphasizes swinging hard (i.e., high bat speed) 2) provides incontrovertible feedback as to quality of contact 3) can be performed in limited space, inside or outside, with or without a net/fence 4) can be done using a tee or front toss?

The answer to this is NOT using TCB balls, which often fail '2' above.

See earlier example of using high compression balls ..... I use these for front toss in the cages .... emphasizes swinging hard, provides excellent feedback on the quality of contact, can be performed in indoor cages, with a net. Great drill ... very good in terms of swing development ... but does require resources.

Just like any other drill, I make sure that the hitters understand the focus and purpose i.e., maximizing pre-contact bat speed. One explained and demonstrated, I haven't had issues with unsupervised, improper implementation, but that may be because I also explain to them that it's perfectly acceptable to half rear drills if they don't care to improve.

I'm sure many people believe this ..... but as I traveled across the country and observed many supposedly elite teams practicing, my observations were completely the opposite when it came to the use of TCB balls. The extra-long bat/ball collision time frequently had girls attempting to overpower teammates with extra push.

 

[Greenmonsters]

The answer to this is NOT using TCB balls, which often fail '2' above.

See earlier example of using high compression balls ..... I use these for front toss in the cages .... emphasizes swinging hard, provides excellent feedback on the quality of contact, can be performed in indoor cages, with a net. Great drill ... very good in terms of swing development ... but does require resources.




I'm sure many people believe this ..... but as I traveled across the country and observed many supposedly elite teams practicing, my observations were completely the opposite when it came to the use of TCB balls. The extra-long bat/ball collision time frequently had girls attempting to overpower teammates with extra push.

1. limited space, inside or out, with or without a net/fence excludes cages IMO. So what then instead?
2. Sadly, the drills I see performed more often than not are performed poorly or, IMO, of little real value.

 

[RichK]

TCB balls let you take full swings in a small area, especially with younger teams that don't hit them too far. That's useful during tournament warmups in tight areas.

Other than that, I never liked them because, yes, one of the easiest ways to hit them far is to push through contact. Too many coaches cheer good TCB results from bad swings. You can also have a kid with a great swing miss slightly under center and a cut that would literally be a home run with a softball is a spin back with a TCB.

That said, starting last summer we started almost exclusively using TCBs for oppo swings. In our TCB station, hitters (RH) must hit line drives to the left side of the pitcher. I like what I see from our hitters when they hit TCBs this way. It reinforces a good deep contact point, an away-from swing path and the feel of driving to the opposite field.

 

[tjintx]

That's an interesting use Rich, Now I wonder if a better use for them might be with a stop swing or check swing at contact?

 

[FiveFrameSwing]

The answer to this is NOT using TCB balls, which often fail '2' above.

See earlier example of using high compression balls ..... I use these for front toss in the cages .... emphasizes swinging hard, provides excellent feedback on the quality of contact, can be performed in indoor cages, with a net. Great drill ... very good in terms of swing development ... but does require resources.




I'm sure many people believe this ..... but as I traveled across the country and observed many supposedly elite teams practicing, my observations were completely the opposite when it came to the use of TCB balls. The extra-long bat/ball collision time frequently had girls attempting to overpower teammates with extra push.

1. limited space, inside or out, with or without a net/fence excludes cages IMO. So what then instead?
2. Sadly, the drills I see performed more often than not are performed poorly or, IMO, of little real value.

Honestly, I don't allow my hitters to use the excuse of limited space or equipment for not developing their swing between lessons. Don't overlook the value of performing dry swings. Not uncommon for me to assign homework that is 100% performed via dry swings. The excuse of limited space and equipment just doesn't work with me when it comes to swing development.

 

[Rocketech1]

Yes, excellent for pregame warm-ups in small areas where wiffles just are not practical because they travel too far. On windy days wiffles can be problematic, not the case with TCB balls.

Injuries caused by TCB use is a myth. And 15 swings using them is not going to destroy someone's swing mechanics when combined with all the other hitting drills and stations most players use.

IME, the best hitters on the team with solid mechanics are also the same hitters who perform well using TCB balls. To this end, these balls are a nice complement to all the other hitting devices and tools in the market.