- Apr 8, 2019
- 118
- 28
Only if you can't get out the waySomewhere along the line of the thread the discussion has morphed from "do you want your players trying to move out of the way of a pitch" to coaches "instructing players to lean into a pitch."
There is absolutely a difference here. Never in my life would I tell a batter to intentionally position herself to take a pitch.
That being said, I am also specifically instructing players on how to properly turn and take a HBP. Sometimes that is far better (and less likely to cause injury) than trying to jump out of the way. Reaction time is minimal on a fastball, teach them to get HBP properly.
Now if the pitch is at your knees/ankle/feet/head, yes get out of the way by any means possible