Vision training

[Seattlecoach]

Any suggestions on good vision training drills or tools? Specifically cheap and/or free (with tools a normal coach would have).

 

[chrispots]

Look to train your ambient\peripheral vision NOT your focal vision...lots of good martial arts\MMA\boxing videos on youtube can help with this

As posted by FFS over on BBD

http://baseballdebate.proboards.com/post/60799

Also there is some very good info here to get you started too IMO
http://baseballdebate.proboards.com/thread/2033/babe-ruth-happy-gilmore

CP

 

[Seattlecoach]

I don't have permission to access the forum, do you need to be registered?

 

[FP26]

I don't have permission to access the forum, do you need to be registered?

At BBD, yes. I believe you can access some of the forums without being a member, but you must join to enter the hitting forum.

 

[ian]

I like to hit dried beans. You can front toss them or have the hitter spit and hit them. When you get good, use a easton thunder stick

I first heard about this in an issue of sports illustrated In the '90s. They interviewed a successful rookie with the (dastardly) dodgers. He said when he was a kid his mom didnt have money to take him to the cages so she pitched him beans. I also heard Bryce Harpers dad saying he did the same.

I feel this is good hand/ eye work, also gives you more swings!

 

[4 girl's dad]

What about using a mask that is blocked out except for line of site? Any good or bad to using this?

 

[JAD]

A swift stick (or broom handle) and a big box of plastic BBs is great for eye/hand coordination.

 

[Ken B]

I like two ball, soft toss. I call out a characteristic as I start tossing the ball into the zone: top, bottom, dirty, clean, bright, dark, etc.

 

[Ken B]

I hear parents and coaches alike tell their pitchers to focus on the glove and get frustrated if their eyes wander during their motion. Check out the following shots of Cat:



You gotta wonder how she can be so surgically accurate if she hardly focuses on her target? My point is that sometimes; less is more. Here's a clip that shows her eyes throughout her motion: https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/03/6f/04/036f04536af5298012c939b5bc035e27.jpg

Occasionally, there has been some discussion about relaxed, open focus. In skeet shooting, I think this is the key. Look at everything with a relaxed focus--not the bead and not the clay--but everything and nothing. Seems counterintuitive, but try it.

DD hasn't done it yet, but I've seen students at FFS's shop do the drill the chrispots posted above. Not sure it it's done with relaxed focus, but looking forward to it.

(Just read chrispots' post completely and totally missed that he's already covered this...)

 

[Nsanesoftball]

we use the little soft skills balls, they have blue and red stitching on them. when doing front toss with them (hitting with a broom stick) i will make DD and DS call out the color of stitching. sometimes i will toss two different color stitched balls and tell them what color they have to hit. the kids love these drills.