DD plays on a 12u Travel Team. No matter what our team does, we always seem to struggle against faster pitching. We've done a lot of front toss (I will say that I think our HC doesn't throw hard enough) and a lot of drills. We don't want to put our pitchers in the circle throwing to them because HC doesn't want our girls into a groove of just pumping strikes down the middle (I have mixed emotions, but I see where he's coming from). Short of finding a high school girl that isn't too busy (good luck with that) to come out and throw BP, someone please give me some other options. I had someone suggest cranking up a pitching machine to like 60 MPH and have them figure it out, but I'm not too crazy about that idea either.
Secret to Hitting Against Faster Pitching
- Thread starter IGDad
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You need a screen but pitch from 30' if you have too to simulate the speed.
(This has a name but it escapes me.
Start normal distance, if the batter hits the ball they move up a few feet, if they miss the ball they are eliminated or back up a few feet. You can play with the rules but that is the gist of it. )
(This has a name but it escapes me.
Start normal distance, if the batter hits the ball they move up a few feet, if they miss the ball they are eliminated or back up a few feet. You can play with the rules but that is the gist of it. )
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Why does your pitcher need to be throwing strikes down the middle? Send her and a catcher in there with the intent to get the batter out, the batters goal is to get a hit. Have 2 or 3 go at a time so a small break between at bats but also a decent amount of reps. This would need to be a part of a larger hitting workout where they are getting a lot of swings off tees, front toss, and whatever else but the best way to get better hitting off live pitching is to hit off live pitchers.
One of the few times I will use a machine. Move it up, go through pitching motion as you insert softballs and crank the speed up.
Keep instilling in them that when they are up at the plate, it's "Yes, yes, yes" until the pitch looks like a ball. They have to be prepared to hit EVERY pitch. If they decide that it looks good enough to hit and that they will swing at it, it's too late.
Keep instilling in them that when they are up at the plate, it's "Yes, yes, yes" until the pitch looks like a ball. They have to be prepared to hit EVERY pitch. If they decide that it looks good enough to hit and that they will swing at it, it's too late.
- Oct 8, 2014
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Another way of gaining bat speed is to practice front toss with lightweight softballs. These softballs, often made of foam, are lighter than regular softballs and can be tossed faster. In order to get solid contact, the batter needs quick hands through the zone (fast bat speed) and full extension. Focus on driving through each ball and hitting solid line drives.
Sorry to say that this is the absolutely the best option - and it doesn't need to be a HS girl. If you have a 14U team associated with your club that is a great place to get BP from. So are ex-college players (or even current college players when the school year ends). We even talk to local PC's to ask who might need some more circle time which was a good source of BP pitchers for us when we needed it. It isn't hard to find someone - all those third pitchers not getting their circle they think they deserve should be jumping on the opportunity to pitch to live batters.
Our org actually has this setup - our 10U pitch to our 8U teams (even though they are coach pitch they are getting ready), 12U to our 10U teams, 14U to 12U and so on. We even have our 12A team pitching to our 12-B teams. We give out service hours like candy.
And yes, we tell our practice pitchers they are there to pitch to them. No grooving middle - throw your stuff and work on your pitching. If we want to groove middle we will pull out the pitching machine for that.
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Might not be as hard as you think once summer begins. Lot of HS girls probably looking to make a few dollars.
Lots of highschool kids need some type of service hours, I went to private school, it was a requirement for graduation. Here in MO they offer your first 2 years in community college paid of you meet certain criteria, part of the requirement is service hours(I may be getting this not quite right, my kids aren't too close to HS yet and I'm a transplant) moral of this post is I think it's a good idea of advertising it as service hours.
- May 3, 2015
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After reviewing videos of our kids hitting -- I have found the root cause of a lot of our kids not being able to hit faster pitching was less about technique and more because they were waiting to see a strike vs always being prepared for every pitch to be a strike. Our saying "every pitch is a strike until it isn't" -- it seems to help.
I believe the most helpful as far as live pitching is concerned is pitching from about 25-30 ft behind a screen and then having each batter get a few looks at the #1 or #2 ... Not hitting practice---- just the visualization of seeing fast pitching while they are working on all of there pitches -- we have found excellent success in the use of visualization as a part of practice. Then --- our most important seems to be NOT overcoaching --- especially during a game. Paralysis by analysis is what our staff strives to avoid.... Trust in your training. I hope this rambling makes some type of sense. Good luck coaches !!
)
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I believe the most helpful as far as live pitching is concerned is pitching from about 25-30 ft behind a screen and then having each batter get a few looks at the #1 or #2 ... Not hitting practice---- just the visualization of seeing fast pitching while they are working on all of there pitches -- we have found excellent success in the use of visualization as a part of practice. Then --- our most important seems to be NOT overcoaching --- especially during a game. Paralysis by analysis is what our staff strives to avoid.... Trust in your training. I hope this rambling makes some type of sense. Good luck coaches !!
)Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
- Oct 4, 2014
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smddad has it right, IMO. yes, yes, yes is the mindset. I tell our girls we swing at every pitch then the only decision is to stop on bad pitches. Sue Enquist mentioned something very close to this in a speech she gave, you can find on the internet. don't know if she came up with it but it does work.
watch your hitter and if she has not moved through her progression on takes, she will never catch up to a fast pitcher.
watch your hitter and if she has not moved through her progression on takes, she will never catch up to a fast pitcher.
