throwing the bat drill

[iMlearning]

When doing the throwing the bat drill...does the bat fly towards the Pitcher? I was thinking about using our swift stick with it reversed, so the handle doesn't get in the way. About how far should I expect a 14 yr old to throw it if using a good sequence (5"7, 165)? I have an old bat I could use also if that would be better for the weight. Thanks

 

[rdbass]

iMlearning,
The object or purpose of throwing the bat is to get the feeling of throwing the barrel at the ball.The pitcher is throwing the ball at the batter so the batter should get the feeling of throwing the bat back at the pitcher.Chris Yeager has a good free video on throwing the bat.He also explains why and how.Your DD would do her normal hitting sequence ,but she should finish with the bat going towards right field(RHT batter) or second base.The drill isn't about how far you can throw the bat,but she wants to throw the bat as hard as she would normally swing.You are looking for the bat to spin like a helicopter blade.You don't want it spinning end over end.Make sure you explain to your DD why she is doing this drill.Throw the bat easy at first untill she gets the feel of the knob going through her hand.

 

[RichK]

Throw isn't for distance but direction, and then for feel and optimizing sequence and a nice easy release.

Rdbass, why toward right field? (I guess I'll look for that Yeager video).

User name: MTS had some good video on this site of throwing bats, he was a big advocate. He doesn't seem to be around any more.

Things to throw so knobs won't get in the way: buy some cheap used wood bats, cut off the knobs. buy some cheap PVC pipe, weight the (barrel-side) end of it by wrapping duct tape around it to simulate a bat.

 

[iMlearning]

Thanks. I thought part of it was for distance to get the lower half involved more. I'll check out the video when I get a chance.

 

[RichK]

Hi IM, I wouldn't focus on distance I think mechanics would probably break down as they try to really heave it!

For me, first thing it does is show a girl her bat path and hand path, which very often will be "around" the ball or casting and thus sending the bat flying to left field. That's a very valuable thing to learn and understand. Next, they can begin to get a feel for how to lag and release the wrists.

Finally, as rdbass said, you can really work on them getting feeling of throwing the barrel early with hands at shoulder and behind the driving leg/hip rather than pushing it through the zone.

 

[rdbass]

Best tips to Learn how to throw the baseball bat
Best tips to Learn how to throw the baseball bat like the best professional baseball players. The action of throwing a baseball is very much like the action of hitting a baseball
The best professional hitters don’t swing the bat, they throw the barrel. One of the best ways to get on the fast track to develop a high level throwing pattern is to know and understand that the swing is really a throw.

Learning to throw the bat and not swing the bat is the foundation of Dr. Yeager’s Iso-Hitting training program. Throwing the bat head is also the first thing you must do to develop your swing.


You have to learn to feel that throwing action in your top hand. You must feel the top hand throw or whip the bat head through the hitting zone. As the ball is being delivered towards home plate, you should think about throwing the barrel behind the baseball. When the pitcher is throwing the ball at you, you should throw the barrel back at the ball.


Compare the throwing motion of the professional infielder to the hitting motion of an elite level hitter. It’s easy to see that the best hitters are using a throwing motion. The back arm and the footwork of the infielder thrower and hitter are very similar. It is vitally important to you as a hitter that you perfect your back arm action and your footwork.


The batter and infielder use a step or stride in the direction of their target. This footwork enhances the player’s ability to load and unload the back leg when hitting a baseball and throwing a baseball. The unloading of the back leg will result in energy and momentum creation to be transferred into the throw and swing.
Watch clips of elite level players that demonstrate how the batter and thrower lift the front leg to load the back leg and then drive toward their target to unload the back leg.
It’s important to know that both the infielder and batter have driven off of the back foot before contact. You can see that an elite hitter’s back foot is un-weighted well before contact when watching video clips of great players.
Like most great hitters, the entire back foot is slightly off the ground before contact. Not all great hitters have the entire back foot off the ground but all great hitters have a virtually un-weighted back foot well before and during contact of the baseball.


The foot work as well as the back arm movement are also very similar between the thrower and the elite hitter.


An obvious and very important difference that you should understand between the two throwers is that the hitter must stay leveraged behind the front side. This is because the batter throws against the front side to create rotational speed in the bat head as opposed to the thrower who continues forward with the primary goal of imparting linear speed to the baseball.

If you are a baseball coach or developing baseball or softball player, understand the hitter must get off of the back side but stay behind the front side.

Pointer:
All of the hitter’s pressure is felt on the front foot and the body’s weight or center of gravity stabilizes behind the front side at contact of the baseball. The Iso Baseball Leverage Trainer will help you develop this pattern.
A final and essential similarity between the two throwers(hitter and infielder) is that both utilize uninterrupted fluid movements. The hitter should not exhibit a discernable pause between the time his front foot touches down and the completion of his swing. Foot down early methods of instruction by some coaches interrupt this fluid motion seen in the greatest hitters. For the highest level pattern, the hitter’s footwork should flow smoothly with his other movements. This is very similar to the way the infielder incorporates his footwork into his throw.


Pointer:
We can make the barrel of the bat move faster by throwing it compared to swinging it.
In order to make that bat head move really fast, we have got to move our legs and our arms and the rest of our body in a way that allows us to make an effective throw of the bat head at the ball.

 

[rdbass]

More info fro Chris Yeager;Learning to Throw-the-Bat-Head (NOT "swing" the bat) is the foundation of a professional baseball-training program. It is also the 1st thing that you should do to develop your swing.
Top Hand:
You should learn to feel that throwing action from the top hand. You should feel the top hand throw or whip the bat head through the zone. As the ball is being delivered towards home plate, you should think about throwing the barrel "behind" the baseball. The pitcher is throwing the ball at you and you've got to throw the barrel back at the ball.
There are three movements that you must perfect when working on your top hand movements.
1. The first is throwing the barrel along the golf plane; truly feeling your hands whip the zone.
2. The second is throwing the barrel along the baseball plane and feeling the same whip in your hands through the zone.
3. The third is actually throwing the bat down the opposite field line.
Perform these three movements with both a regular grip as well as a split grip. A split grip means your hands are slightly separated an inch or so. These are simple movements and should be easy to learn, but doing them right is very important in developing your feel for throwing the barrel.
A brief review each of these movements:
1. Golf Plane:
The first movement you should use to develop this thrower's feel is to take the bat along the golf plane. Using the golf plane keeps the bat light and this allows you to stay loose and relaxed. At the bottom of your swing, you simply throw your top hand past your bottom.
-When performing this drill, you just want to take that lead arm up and then just allow it to fall straight down. Before your lead arm gets to your front foot, you should feel your hands start to work and feel the bat whip through the zone.
- Notice how the lead arm stops before it gets to the foot and then all that's working through there are the hands and the bat.
-It's very important that you feel this whipping sensation and as that lead arm is going to stop before the foot, the lead hand works under, the top hand works over, as the bat head whips through and then the lead arm begins to move.
-When doing this drill and, in general as a hitter, you want to have a good, firm grip on the bat, but you always want to have nice, loose, relaxed wrists - - good grip, loose wrists.
Split grip:
It's often a good idea to separate the hands an inch or two so that you can really feel what each hand is doing independently. If you do this, you really become aware how the top hand is throwing the barrel past the bottom hand.
Add stride to movement:
Once the hands are feeling good and you can really feel the throw in the hands, you can add some footwork, i.e. add a stride or a step into your throw.
- Throwing the barrel along the golf plane is a great movement to use in the on-deck circle or between pitches. It helps keep the batter stay relaxed and ensures that the hands are working properly.
2. Baseball plane:
The next movement you should master to feel the throw of the barrel is to simply take the same movement from the golf plane up to the baseball plane.
-Again, it is important that you get a good grip on the bat and keep very loose wrists.
- You should also feel the lead arm get to a point behind the front foot, and then it stops moving forward and allows the top hand to throw past the bottom to create that whip effect.
Note: When performing these dry swings, hitters should incorporate the top-hand release. It gives the batter the sensation of getting rid of the barrel, throwing the barrel at the ball and not "hanging onto it" afterwards. Hanging onto the bat throughout the entire swing can sometimes give the batter a very spinning, turning feel to his movement, which you don't want.
A Major point of emphasis: don't release until the top hand finishes. By finish, we mean contact with the ball AND the movement of the top-hand over-and-past the bottom-hand. We will also see the back-arm finish extension just after contact as the top hand gets over and past the bottom. We will not want to release the top-hand until we have completed these movements of the back arm/hand.
Split grip: again, just like on the golf plane, it's a good idea to separate the hands an inch, maybe even two. The split grip allows you to feel what each hand is doing. Isolating the top-hand accentuates the throwing "feel".
3. One arm throws:
Removing the bottom-hand and throwing the barrel along the baseball plane with just one arm can really help a player develop a feel of throwing the bat at the ball.
- Just attach the lead hand at the back-shoulder and feel the barrel in your top hand. Then simply step and make a side-arm throw of the barrel along the baseball plane. Start with dry swings.
-You will want to feel your hand whip through the zone. That whipping is felt as the top hand goes over the top just after what would have been contact with the ball.
-When performing a one-arm barrel throw, you want to try to stay square on the front side. Attaching the lead hand to the back shoulder would help with that.
-We really want to feel more tilt than turn on that front shoulder.
Note: In the early stages, however, it's much more important that we concern ourselves with feeling the throw as opposed to developing perfect form. It's a great movement for feeling side-arm throwing action of the high-level hitting pattern.
After we've developed a feel of the top hand throwing the barrel of the ball and the hand whipping the barrel through the zone, we can move on to the final movement for developing a feel and belief that we are "Throwing the Barrel".
4. Throw the bat itself.
You want to make sure that you set up in a safe area in an open field or perhaps a position in front of the net. Be sure that anyone with you is not in front or to the side of you, but rather well behind you.
-The first time we throw bats, we're not concerned with our mechanics. The purpose of this movement is to feel and see that the actions that you use to swing a bat are highly similar to the actions that you would use to throw it.
-Focus on the step and throw aspect of the movement.
-So that we don't feel too much spin in these throws, we want to throw our bats down the opposite field line and as we release the bat, our hands and our body should be in the direction of the throw, again, down the opposite field line.
- Focus on feeling the one fluid movement aspect of the throw. It's one fluid movement. In other words, we don't start and stop when we throw. We don't want to do that when we swing either. It's one fluid movement.
Note: The step you take and the movements that the rest of your body makes, including your arms, all act to give speed to the bat head. The highest-level swing patterns most closely align with the high-level throwing patterns.
Again, don't worry about perfect form on these throws. This is not an every session drill, but rather a movement to help you understand that the swing is essentially a throw. You can go back to it from time to time, especially if you feel yourself getting away from the smooth throwing pattern

 

[rdbass]

Hope this helps paying it forward.

 

[iMlearning]

Hope this helps paying it forward.

Thanks everyone for helping me understand this better. I'll try working on it before I have her do it. Rdbass, soon people may pay you for private lessons!

 

[rdbass]

That is my goal.My DD is my advertisement.I offer free advice all the time,but parents who don't understand the proper hitting sequence think I'm nuts.Well it started this year with their DD's at the 14u level.Most of their DD's on my DD's team had alot of trouble with the fast pitchers.The bat drag,armzy swings ect... don't hold up to the better pitchers.My DD still hit them.Last tourney of the year(played up 16u) DD went 4 for 6 with1 walk in 2 games.(small tourney).3 singles and a homerun.The 2 outs were linedrives to the ss and 2b.Sorry to brag.I try to help who ever asks.Love to talk hitting.