Please take a look at 13 yo DD's swing

[BradB41]

Sorry if this post is long, but IMO you really need to understand why kids swing the way that they do in order to permanently fix the problem.

Phase 1: Most kids are born with a natural swing. I love to watch very young kids at the batting cage....the ones that have not had any meaningful instruction on how to swing. They all pretty much do the same thing....very similar to what your daughter does....drop hands straight down to get on plane of the pitch. This natural motion is not only an attempt to get the bat on the same plane as the pitch, but it also slots the back elbow....which is really the body bracing the rear arm against the back hip in order to gain leverage to swing the bat.

Phase 2: The local coach or hitting instructor will see her dropping her hands and start telling her to keep her hands up or to not drop her hands. This is the beginning of her athleticism being coached out of her....and it typically continues throughout her career.

The first step in fixing a problem is knowing what the problem is. The problem with your dd's swing is NOT HER DROPPING HER HANDS. I wouldn't say anything to her about her dropping her hands.

There are two idiot proof ways to permanently fix your dd's swing virtually overnight. One way is to become an expert on teaching the basic throwing motion and how the throwing motion relates to hitting. The second way is to go find an old tree and an old wood bat. Teach her how to swing the bat like you would an axe. Use some common sense. She doesn't need to swing full speed and hurt her wrist or arms. She should start with the bat between her feet with the barrel touching the ground similar to how you would start with a golf club. This starting position will also help her with her grip. Wrap the barrel with something soft if it makes to much noise when hitting the tree.

Both the throwing motion and the axe swing will teach her the proper sequence. I'm finding that the axe swing gets quicker results. There are some other advantages to using the axe swing that I can get into later if you want me to.

With the axe swing her hands will be starting down at about crotch height. She will swing her hands back up to about shoulder height. From there she will take the barrel to the tree. It should be one seamless motion with no pauses. When she does this you will notice she will NOT DROP HER HANDS when she begins the throw of the barrel at the tree. She should set up so that contact with the tree is made close to 90 degrees.

Obviously you can use other items to hit instead of a tree. Most kids think it's fun whacking a tree.

Once she gets comfortable, have her experiment with the position of her barrel as she takes it back. I like the kids to experiment with getting the hands and barrel to a position close to this:
View attachment 3897


Here is what a good ax swing looks like:
View attachment 3898

If you don't like the idea of hitting a tree, you could always throw a bat into a net using the same starting position you would when swinging an axe. The only problem with doing that is that you have to retrieve the bat after each throw.

The main point to my post is that the easiest way to teach a sequence is by using an activity unrelated to hitting a ball. No tees, no front toss, no balls. You want them to focus 100% on the feel of a good sequence. They need to feel how their body is working. They need to feel the stretch. They need to feel the additionally loading that takes place when the hips and hands transition. They need to feel what it feels like to load and unload at the same time.

You can't do any of that if you're worried about hitting a ball.

Once she owns the sequence she will have to figure out how to perform the same sequence using her preferred batting stance. She will need to figure that our for herself. The absolute is the sequence. How players transition from their batting stance into the sequence is a style choice that each player needs to figure out for themselves.

The only rule is that the player has to be able to perform their sequence starting from their stance and get to a good ready to hit position ON TIME. If they find they aren't getting to a good ready to hit position on time, then they need to simplify their style.

Good luck.

Ok...I'm hoping this isn't a late April Fool's Joke LOL. At this point, I'll try most anything. We're going to work high tee, low tee, matrix, and try front and side toss as well. I think we'll get there. I would like you to elaborate a bit more on the "axe" drill.

 

[straightleg]

If your coaching kids, I be real careful about hitting a tree with a bat, and getting sued by the parents.
Better get signed medical waivers first





SL

 

[FiveFrameSwing]

Ok...I'm hoping this isn't a late April Fool's Joke LOL. At this point, I'll try most anything. We're going to work high tee, low tee, matrix, and try front and side toss as well. I think we'll get there. I would like you to elaborate a bit more on the "axe" drill.

 

[BradB41]

If your coaching kids, I be real careful about hitting a tree with a bat, and getting sued by the parents.
Better get signed medical waivers first





SL

LOL...I do help with a TB team, but I'll not be having any of them hit trees....unless it works for my kid first

 

[Stonebat]

Don't be afraid. I had my DD actually chop down a Sweet Gum tree last fall. Timber It's about time for another after reading this post.

 

[softballphreak]

I would advise using a punching bag.

 

[FiveFrameSwing]

Ok...I'm hoping this isn't a late April Fool's Joke LOL. At this point, I'll try most anything. We're going to work high tee, low tee, matrix, and try front and side toss as well. I think we'll get there. I would like you to elaborate a bit more on the "axe" drill.

The basic premise that most kids are born with a natural swing is flawed and uniformed. I've dealt with enough kids that have never swung before to tell you that such a notion is pure fantasy. IMO Dixon was correct when he said a large percentage of individuals (I believe it was on the order of 90%) simply use under-the-hood actions that are non-optimal.

 

[rdbass]

Something to read;http://www.discussfastpitch.com/softball-hitting-technical/12597-critique-help-series-swings.html
:http://www.discussfastpitch.com/sof...082-critique-help-series-swings-part-2-a.html
While your DD is doing yard work. (I make joke)

 

[rdbass]

Another good thread: http://www.discussfastpitch.com/softball-hitting-technical/11783-dd-bat-drag-6.html (not saying your DD has bat drag but, this was also about learning the proper sequence.)

Before.........................................................................................After
Before

After

 

[Wellphyt]

Ok...I'm hoping this isn't a late April Fool's Joke LOL. At this point, I'll try most anything. We're going to work high tee, low tee, matrix, and try front and side toss as well. I think we'll get there. I would like you to elaborate a bit more on the "axe" drill.

Not a joke. Pull up a clip of Mel Ott hitting and you will understand how an axe swing and hitting are similar. I've been coaching and instructing for over 10 years and have never been sued or ever had a player that I was instructing get injured. When working with your own kid or someone else's kid, it pays to use common sense.

When I played ball, there was no such thing as a hitting instructor. You learned to hit doing other activities. Do you know one of the best ways to learn to swing a bat is to hit fly balls? When I grew up we used to do that all the time with our siblings or friends. How often do you see kids today at a vacant field hitting each other fly balls? How was I able to hit fly balls to my friends at a young age without going to a hitting instructor? It's because I had a natural swing. Why does every young kid I've ever seen lower their hands and tuck their back elbow to their side in preparation to swing a bat at a tossed ball? Because it's NATURAL.

Saying that kids have a natural swing is not the same as saying kids are born with a swing to hit a 70mph fastball from 45 feet. Understanding the difference is pretty important when instructing young kids because it will prevent you from coaching good natural movements out of kids; which happens all the time in my area. The goal is to enhance what the kids already do naturally.

My suggestion for your dd was meant for you and your dd. I assume you are smart enough not to demand that every player on your travel team go home unsupervised and hit a tree with a bat. What's really funny is that when I grew up it wasn't uncommon for kids to whack a tree or pole with another rigid object to make noise for fun. I never once got injured, nor did anyone else. One reason we never got injured is because we NATURALLY understood that whacking a rigid object with palms up-palms down at a 90 degree angle is a very strong position.

The point of my post was merely a suggestion to find an activity unrelated to hitting a ball that has the same basic movements used in a high level swing in order to teach the sequence. In my area, most ball players play tournaments or HS ball almost year around. Most start in mid January with travel ball. They play tournaments into July. The better teams go on to national tournaments, which means they are playing in August. We always have multiple players at our HS that miss the first few days of school because they play on teams that play deep into the ASA National tournament. Google teams like Georgia Impact, East Cobb Bullets and Atlanta Vipers, and you'll get a good idea what I mean.

They get back in town from Nationals the first or second week in August. In Georgia, HS softball starts the first day of school. Conditioning actually starts in July. So the girls go right from travel to HS ball with no break. Our HS team typically makes it to the State Tournament, which means our girls are still playing towards the end of October and perhaps into November. Then the girls typically play one or two fall ball tournaments for their travel teams sometime in November.

Basically, the girls never get a break. I have to figure out ways to change a player's swing in a way that translates to their game swings quickly, so they aren't uncomfortable at the plate and/or thinking too much about what they are doing. I do that by helping them to discover how their bodies are designed to work naturally. There are ways to teach hitting other than with using a tee or even a ball. As always, once they get the basic motion down that you are teaching, then it's hit, hit, hit in a cage with live pitching. Mainly so they can figure out their timing, because anytime a player alters their swing it affects their timing. If you are teaching proper mechanics, they are typically too early as you make changes because they have a shorter hand path and more bat speed.