Try these two softball batting drills to improve your players batting skills. I have used both of these now and noted marked improvement throughout the season.
Bunting Drill Game
This is one of my favorites and the ladies seem to enjoy it a lot. I usually do this towards the end of practice. Once they see me drawing circles or squares in the dirt they start talking smack to each other; quite funny to listen too.
Draw sections in the dirt in front of home plate. In each section, I write a number representing a point value based on what I consider a good bunt.
For example: a two-foot diameter circle or square in no-man’s land between the pitcher, catcher and either 1st or 3rd base.
I divide my players into teams. Each girl takes a turn bunting, (8 pitches, 4 practice and 4 live). She is awarded the points value of the section that the balls stops in.
After every one has taken a turn, total up the points and the winners get to leave practice when this is done and conditioning is complete.
The loosers put all the gear and bases away in the storage POD behind the dug-out.
Batting Cage Practice
One of the most useful tools that I use during one of my batting cages practice is the numbering of the balls.
I put a 1-9 on the balls, and I begin practice with the girls NOT EVEN swinging the bat.
All they do is watch the ball and tell me which number I just pitched them. Once they get this down, I begin to tell them to hit the ball and then tell me the number I pitched them.
This drill really gets the girls concentrating on watching the ball. I’m sure this drill has been used many times before, but this is the first year that I implemented it, and I can see a drastic improvement with the girls hitting the ball.