Same but different

[mad hornet]

Saw the post about the kids swinging at high pitches and have a similar but different issue. My dd has played travel going on her fourth year now. Three years at 10u starting at age 8, now 11. Last year due to her speed and on the advice of those with experience getting kids recruited we started messing with having her go lefty as a slapper.

Over the winter, she made the transition to 100% lefty. She can hit, slap, and bunt effectively from the left side. As a righty she led her team in batting avg and OBP and as a lefty she still leads in batting avg, but not OPB and it is due to this flaw.

For some reason she has a very hard time laying off those high pitches. Two weeks ago, she had 3-1 count in a very close game, pitch over her head she popped up to first on ball four. Had she taken the walk we would have won that semi final game in regulation instead of having to go extra innings.

Yesterday, championship game, tied, bases loaded full count, she strikes out on ball four high and outside, instead of taking the walk and walking in a run.

Then on the other hand she had an at bat this weekend where she took strike three and it was knee high.

When she batted righty this was never an issue. I saw on the other thread recommendations for more reps. This kid has played over 50 games as a lefty and she gets all kinds of reps because we have our own indoor facility. I front toss her and she does fine. We do live pitching and it still seems to be a problem.

So could there be something with her eyesight that is different on that side? I'm stumped.

I was talking to her about it and she actually said "the ball goes further when I hit high pitches". I have no idea why she would think that because nothing good ever happens when she does.

So, has anyone else experienced issues with pitch selection and especially high ones when making the transition from righty to lefty?

 

[Greenmonsters]

No worries, remain patient! If she's hitting the ball well now, her pitch recognition/selection will come in time with more reps. Two things come to mind. 1) Don't forget that the # of live pitches she has seen RH probably still outnumber what she's seen LH by close to 100:1. She is still building her LH memory bank. 2) Dominant eye. Figure out which one it is - extend arm and point with the index finger at an object in the distance with both eyes open. One at a time, close each eye. The dominant eye is the one that sees the finger remain pointing at the object; when the dominant eye is closed, the extended finger will not point at the object. I would bet that her left eye is dominant. If so, its critical that she get a good "two-eyed look" at the pitcher by turning her head more toward the pitcher to make sure her dominant eye is involved in pitch tracking.

 

[mad hornet]

Well turns out she is right eye dominant. Guess we'll just keep working at it.