Swinging at first pitch vs working the count

[SCDad]

Great hitters in softball MAY see two good pitches to hit, per at bat. The pitchers know the great hitters.

If one of those good pitches are the first one, the great hitter MUST hit it deep.

PLUS we do not play in a vacuum. The great pitchers know the great hitters, and will always pitch a strike until that hitter makes them pay. Why not, for a pitchers goal is to get ahead in the count.

The great hitter MUST make this great pitcher PAY for a first pitch strike. Once this is done, the pitcher will throw off the plate first the next at bat, and the hitter controls the sequence of the at bat.

 

[Greenmonsters]

Great hitters in softball MAY see two good pitches to hit, per at bat. The pitchers know the great hitters.

If one of those good pitches are the first one, the great hitter MUST hit it deep.

PLUS we do not play in a vacuum. The great pitchers know the great hitters, and will always pitch a strike until that hitter makes them pay. Why not, for a pitchers goal is to get ahead in the count.

The great hitter MUST make this great pitcher PAY for a first pitch strike. Once this is done, the pitcher will throw off the plate first the next at bat, and the hitter controls the sequence of the at bat.

IMO, not all strikes are created equal. I want a hitter swinging at the pitch down the middle that they can crush, but with a 0-0 count there's no reason to swing at the strike on the outer black that clips the knees.

 

[CoogansBluff]

I used this analogy with my 13-year-old daughter, and she bought into it at the end of last season. Although she hits for high average and power, she almost never walks, and I think she could be better if she waited for better pitches. ...

So here's what I told her. Let's say you're going to the school dance. It's from 7 to 10 p.m.

From 7-8, you're going to dance only when the hot guys ask you. From 8-9, if you haven't danced yet, you're not quite as picky. Just 'cute' will suffice. Then from 9-10, it's getting late. You'll settle for 'kinda cute' or maybe even 'decent'. But if they're not even decent, you don't dance. It needs to be a strike.

So it is with the pitch count.

If it's 2-0, you're looking for 'hot'. At 2-1, cute will do. At 0-2, you have to settle for kinda cute or decent. Never swing at pitches that aren't strikes (ugly).

I'm sure the terms can be edited a little to make it more precise, but that's the gist of it. Daughter liked it.

It really helps if you can insert a particular boy's name for hot, cute and kinda cute. Maybe use the guys from One Direction. Call it the One Direction hitting method. Sometimes you're looking for Harry Styles.

 

[left-field]

I believe hitters should be looking for a certain kind of pitch (fastball, curve, drop, etc.) and in a certain location on the first pitch of the at bat. An example might be a curve ball, belt high, on the inside third of the plate. If they get that pitch, nail it. If they don't, take the pitch. Of course, there are times when the coach will want to hitter to take a pitch or two. Good pitchers will find ways to throw undesirable strikes to the hitter so that the pitcher gets ahead in the count.

 

[Scott T Scalf]

Awing if you think you can hit it

I coach at the D1 level and also NPF. No set rule about swinging at first pitch or not. We do track pitchers and what the first pitch is. By the 2nd time through the lineup we can tell if the pitcher is throwing a strike on first pitch. Cat Osterman starts the game trying to make you chase the first pitch out of the strike zone Monica Abbott throws a first pitch strike almost every time. Cat will change her approach part way through the game.

For younger pitchers they are effectively wild. They never know if it will be a ball or strike. I would just reinforce swing if they feel they can hit it. If you say "Swing at strikes" they become timid because they do not want to swing and then be told it was a ball. Swing if you think you can hit it.

 

[softballphreak]

I've often wondered, as far as analyzing what pitches to guess, should you be analyzing the catcher, the coach (if they are calling pitches), or the pitcher?

Seems to me, that most of the time the coaches are calling pitches.

 

[knightsb]

Greenmonsters post:
A Visual Approach to the Strike Zone and Go Zone by Count
A visual reference is often the most usefull tool to help the players understand the strike zone and what pitches they should be swinging at in different counts and situations.

For convenience, let's assume that a softball is 4 inches in diameter. As the plate is 17 inches wide, that equals approx 4 balls wide (forget about the 1/2" left over on each corner for now). Assuming a good sized strike zone on an average U12-U18 player, from the knees to base of sternum is approx. 24-28", which is approx. 6 or 7 balls tall. This essentially gives us a 4x6 or 4x7 grid of the strike zone. Adding a row to each side and top and bottom of the grid essentially represents the "strike zone +1 ball out", which needs to be considered with 2 strikes (and effectively picks up the 1/2" corner leftovers). Your grid is now 6 wide x 8 or 9 high. Draw this grid out, ID the strike zone as you like based on player size, print it, and give a copy to each player. (Note: you can use boxes to represent each one of the 48 or 54 grid spaces, but I find that circles representing softballs to be more relevant and memorable (you can do a down and dirty demo of the grid concept using a flat surface and actual softballs to similar effect).

Use this grid to have the girls think about or even color code the grids where: 1) they like balls to hit (their happy zone or sweet spot) and 2) don't like balls to hit and then talk about it. You may be surprised by what you do (or don't) hear. Conclude by using the graphic to discuss what area and how big an area of the grid the "Swing or Go Zone" for different counts and situations are consistent with your team's hitting approach (for example, I like a 9 grid go zone for an 0-0 count and a 4-6 grid go zone for 3-0 counts). Couple the grid visual w/ the concept of swinging at every pitch unless it's not in the "Go Zone" (for the count and situation) and your hitters will become more disciplined, aggressive, and successful.

To the graphically-gifted DFP posting pros - please feel feel to provide a grid visual!

FWIW - there was a previous thread talking about protecting the plate or expanding the zone with 2 strikes. Like anyone else, I much prefer a hitter to take matters into her own hands rather than leaving it up to the umpire on a close pitch with 2 strikes; however, just remember that expanding the plate by +1 ball in all directions almost doubles the "go zone" i.e., that 4x7 grid w/ 28 squares now just increased to 6 x 9 w/ a total of 54 squares! And, oh yeah, this all assumes a "Pitch-track" perfect umpire! Your experience may vary, adjust accordingly.

RD, I created an 8.5" x 11" MS Word Document whereby I copy/pasted 6 softball images to form a 2 ball by 3 ball grid. I then printed 9 of these sheets and glued them to a piece of cardboard. I then attached the cardboard to an old Tee I had using zip ties. This was the finished product.

I set this Tee up in front of a plate as shown to demonstrate to the hitters, the pitchers, and the catchers the defined strike zone. It has been a real eye-opener to all just how big the strike zone "can" be.

I ask the hitters to pick out an area on the grid of about 3 balls by 3 balls that is "their" pitch. This helps them visualize the "zone" where they are looking with 0 strikes, then widen it for 1 strike, then they have to protect the entire grid with 2 strikes.

 

[Jim]

I have been saying it for years. The more pitches my kids see per inning the more runs scored. The more the pitch count is worked the more the pitcher has to work. Be it baseball or softball. The more the pitcher is worked the more likely she is to make mistake pitches, if nothing else the law of averages will catch up.

It works out every time, If my team sees 115 or more pitches we are usually pretty successful and that means my hitters are looking to hit their pitches not the pitchers. On the other hand if all we see are 75 to 80 per game we are not disciplined in our hitting zone and chasing her pitches.

Pitchers have a pitching zone and strike zone they work out of. Hitters have a hitting zone they need to stay dedicated to. Just because Blue calls a pitch a strike does not mean it is in the kids hitting zone. Its all about adjustments.

If you have never seen a pitcher before, you do not know her history and or mechanics why would you jump on her first pitch. If she shows a history of throwing a first pitch strike then by all means the second time thru the line up make her pay for that pitch.

Pitchers get 5 to 7 warm up pitches before the game starts so they are already ahead in the zone at the plate. The hitters job is to use their time wisely in the on deck or timing circle to adjust to that advantage.


Tim

The only way to get pitcher's pitch counts up is to not make outs. Make the pitcher face more batters, not throw more pitches per at bat. The reason your team saw a higher total pitches when you did well is because they got more hits in those games. They probably "scared the pitcher out of the zone" and that results in more walks as well.

If the first four hitters all swung at the first pitch and got hits, there are still no outs and their team has scored at least one run. In that example the pitcher has thrown four pitches and still hasn't recorded an out yet.

You can't go up there and just hope they throw balls to get the pitch count up. I really don't even know why the term "work the count" is even used. Good hitters don't "work the count". They can't control what the pitcher throws, but they do control what they swing at and how they swing at it.

If you want the pitcher to work harder, don't make outs. In order to give yourself the best chance at that, you need to actually hit the ball hard when the pitcher makes a mistake. In order to do that you need to be 100% ready to hit every pitch they throw.

Aggressive simply means "100% Ready to attack". It doesn't mean attack everything you see. The only reaction the hitter should have is to NOT swing when they recognize a "ball" out of their zone. Otherwise they are letting it rip and making the pitcher pay for throwing anything in their zone.

Control the at-bat!

 

[Jim]

In MLB, every at bat where the ball was put in play with less than two strikes, the BA is over .300 That means the 0-0, 1-0, 2-0, 3-0, 0-1, 1-1, 2-1, and 3-1 counts all result in at least a .300 BA.

The count that results in the most HR, 2B, 3B, RBI and hits is the 0-0 count. They are ready to do damage from the first pitch of the at bat.

Every count that has two strikes with the exception of the 3-2 count (0-2, 1-2, 2-2,) the hitters hit in the .100's

On the 3-2 count they hit around .215

You only get three strikes, use them wisely!

 

[rdbass]