slap hitters speed?

[cshilt]

anyone have any good resources on teaching lefty bunt, slap, powerslap??? I am trying to teach DD, but quite honestly I am still learning too.

I have The Total Short Game by Larry Ray and the Slap Hitting 101 DVD on this link...

Softball Slap Hitting DVDs, Videos & Books -- Championship Productions, Inc.

Both are good videos, but I might be inclined to get the Slapping and the Short Game video as the techniques being taught to the National Team members has been refined a little bit. For example they are now going to toe touch and then crossing over with the rear foot do disguise the slap longer. I just had one of the players on my team go to a clinic with Caitlyn Lowe last weekend; this is what she is teaching the slappers.

 

[SBFAMILY]

What cshilt stated is correct. We learned this new method from Micheal Bastian. This is to keep the defense from reading the slap. If you have a kid that can hit and slap, it makes it more difficult to read the footwork. I was watching kids slap this weekend and every one of them gave it away.

 

[tmolina]

I have The Total Short Game by Larry Ray and the Slap Hitting 101 DVD on this link...

Softball Slap Hitting DVDs, Videos & Books -- Championship Productions, Inc.

Both are good videos, but I might be inclined to get the Slapping and the Short Game video as the techniques being taught to the National Team members has been refined a little bit. For example they are now going to toe touch and then crossing over with the rear foot do disguise the slap longer. I just had one of the players on my team go to a clinic with Caitlyn Lowe last weekend; this is what she is teaching the slappers.

cshilt
Would you go into more detail on the toe touch and then crossing over with the rear foot do disguise the slap longer. How is it performed? Thanks
Thomas

 

[cshilt]

Essentially the slapper stands in the batter's box as though she were preparing to hit. We teach our hitter's to stride and get to toe touch before the pitcher releases the pitch. For the toe touch I'm told that Caitlyn Lowe wants the toes pointed towards the SS. I teach the crossover step occurs at release. The crossover step should be to the front inside corner of the batter's box. We want to hit the ball when it is over the plate and drive it down into the ground within three feet of the plate.

 

[SBFAMILY]

We also bunt using this style. What the kids I was watching playing were dropping the front foot back instead of going to toe touch. Bastian stated that when the film or watch players, they look for indicators that give away what the player was doing. What cshilt stated makes it more difficult for the defense to know if the player is going to hit, slap or bunt. We teach toe touch at the top of the K position. The pitcher cannot adjust at this time. We are then in attack mode.

 

[Mark H]

Essentially the slapper stands in the batter's box as though she were preparing to hit. We teach our hitter's to stride and get to toe touch before the pitcher releases the pitch. ...

Speaking only of slappers?

 

[cshilt]

Speaking only of slappers?

No sir, I want all of my hitters to get to toe touch before the release of the ball. This way they are ready to start their swing when they recognize spin & speed.

 

[Mark H]

MPEG4 7 of 16, Fastpitch Toe touch about 1/3 of ball flight?

Photo 2 of 16, ULL vs. UNT Toe touch about 1/2 of ball flight?

I don't have a problem with what you are teaching because I don't have a problem with no stride hitting. IOW, it seems to me what you describe is no stride hitting preceded by a stride early enough it's not really part of the event in terms of momentum development? For striders, the above clips are what I find to be typical for elite hitters.

 

[cshilt]

I wouldn't term it no-stride, as we're talking about maybe a tenth of a second or so. The point of emphasis with my kids is to get to toe touch before they swing. Many times they wait too long and get blown away. The models that we use are...

Caitlyn Benyi

and...

Crystl Bustos

Caitlyn is an excellent example of how we teach the load & toe touch.

 

[Mark H]

Well heel plant would be more significant to me in terms of timing related to the swing but you have certainly chosen good models. Anyone have clips showing their swing with the pitcher in view? As far as a tenth of a second, momentum can disappear in much less time than that. Having said that, I agree a stride is not necessary for momentum development. The swing from heel plant to contact should be about a tenth and a half so a tenth of a second is significant.