Plate hitting position opinions?

[radness]

Yes talking about throwing it at the batter and then break over the inside corner. If you get it over the plate it gets hit hard. IMO, when thrown well it's tuff to hit in play hard.

The batters mechanics/stance help determine calling pitch location.

 

[chinamigarden]

Back of the box. Time is your enemy. The longer you see the ball the better. A lot of bad hitters scoot up in the box because they can’t stay back on off speed. They use it like a crutch.

How does that help on off speed? If you are up in the box on hard and soft stuff the difference is still there. I see it as good hitters see the ball better so they can pick up speed and location sooner so they can get on the pitch sooner. Batters who have a hard time reading pitches move back. They use it as a crutch.

 

[Towny9]

How does that help on off speed? If you are up in the box on hard and soft stuff the difference is still there. I see it as good hitters see the ball better so they can pick up speed and location sooner so they can get on the pitch sooner. Batters who have a hard time reading pitches move back. They use it as a crutch.

the ball gets to the contact point sooner if you are up in the box…hence less wait time.

You will never find them in the front of the box. Moving up in the box is what rec league coaches usually suggest to hitters when they are early or the pitcher is slow and they don’t know how to wait.

What is the disadvantage to seeing the ball for longer? I can think of a bunch of advantages.

 

[CoachJD]

There is no logical, scientific argument for not giving yourself as much time as possible to see and react to a pitch. The idea of hitting the ball "before it breaks" only shows that the person who holds that opinion doesn't understand physics.

I think you can argue that standing in the very, very back of the box can lead to getting some difficult strike calls on pitches that cross the plate at the lower part of the zone but are even lower by time they reach the batter. Maybe.

And if you're facing very bad, verrry slow pitching (it's not uncommon to get a pitcher tossing 30 mph in some HS games), moving up some could be beneficial because a hitter is just not used to that kind of timing.

But generally, moving all around is a bad idea. You're just making it harder on your eyes/brain to constantly have to recalibrate.

 

[Lemond]

Roughly speaking, time for fastball from pitcher’s hand to catcher’s glove is .54 sec at 50 mph, and .49 sec at 55 mph.

If the batter is able to utilize 6 ft of the box from front to back, the time the batter sees the ball changes by ~.08 sec (@50 mph) or .07 sec (@ 55mph) from the front of the box to the back. (Time it takes to blink =~.1 sec.)

Interestingly, drop over the same distance (gravity effect only, no spin taken into account) is ~1.3 inches (@50) and ~1.06 in (@ 55).

I promote setting up just behind the middle (not all the way back, but some) to get some benefit of seeing the ball a little bit longer, but also seeing the ball in the same strike zone that the umpire is (supposed to be) calling. I’m very opposed to giving pitchers two opportunities for a strike by creating two zones (one for hitter, one for umpire). And yes, I have seen plenty of pitches that changed zones from the front to the back (even middle) of the box.

(Numbers here not meant to be perfect calcs, but close enough for comparisons. Too many variables for me.)

From the other thread. Also, agree that it is best to find the one spot that works the best vs moving around too much.

 

[chinamigarden]

the ball gets to the contact point sooner if you are up in the box…hence less wait time.

You will never find them in the front of the box. Moving up in the box is what rec league coaches usually suggest to hitters when they are early or the pitcher is slow and they don’t know how to wait.

What is the disadvantage to seeing the ball for longer? I can think of a bunch of advantages.

Up or back They still have to read the ball and adjust.
The disadvantage is good pitchers with movement can hit that front corner and by the time the ball gets to the back of the box the batter has to adjust to a pitch that is now 6-12 inches outside

like I said in my original post. It depends on the batter and what she is comfortable with. Not every batter can read. A pitch quickly, some need that extra bit of time

 

[Towny9]

Up or back They still have to read the ball and adjust.
The disadvantage is good pitchers with movement can hit that front corner and by the time the ball gets to the back of the box the batter has to adjust to a pitch that is now 6-12 inches outside

like I said in my original post. It depends on the batter and what she is comfortable with. Not every batter can read. A pitch quickly, some need that extra bit of time

The strike zone might be technically at the front of the plate, but umpires don’t call it that way in reality. If the catcher catches a ball 6 inches off the plate that’s getting called a ball every time no matter where it crossed. The Atlantic league had robot umpires calibrated to call strikes at the rule book written location and had to quickly change it to middle back of the plate for this very reason.

There’s a reason you don’t find pros at the front of the box.

 

[cnardone]

I always preach, where ever you stand, be comfortable.

 

[_MIA_]

The Atlantic league had robot umpires calibrated to call strikes at the rule book written location and had to quickly change it to middle back of the plate for this very reason.

That made for some amusing "highlights"

 

[radness]

The strike zone might be technically at the front of the plate, but umpires don’t call it that way in reality.

Actually the strike zone is across the entire plate and yes pitches get called from the back of the plate Zone also.
Height and location matter.

If the catcher catches a ball 6 inches off the plate that’s getting called a ball every time no matter where it crossed.

That is absolutely not true.
There are pitches that are 6 inches (even sometimes further) outside of the zone that do get called strikes. (Hoorah framing!) Ohhh and inconsistent umpires.
Which by the way since the pitch can be called a strike at the front of the plate the farther you stand to the back of the box the farther the pitch can move away from batter. it creates greater adjustments for batters.

don’t find pros at the front of the box.

Pro's? are you compairing baseball pro's to fastpitch?
In baseball the pitch starts out of the strike zone and comes into the strike zone.
( pitcher standing on a mound throwing overhand=from wide end of cone inward to small end)


In Fastpitch the Pitch starts as a strike
(Apex~From the pitcher's underhand)
and goes out of the zone/outer edges and off plate~ base.
Standing at the front of the box is standing closest to the narrower part of the cone.