Today, we are talking about the #1 mistake hitters make, and hitting drills you can incorporate to fix this common problem.
But first I want to talk abut what causes a breakdown in the swing. It usually caused by two things:
1 — You’ve got a hitter with a good mechanical swing, but the hitter makes poor choices. So if she’s swinging at bad pitches, mechanically her swing is going to break down. So as a coach, you don’t really need to breakdown the swing, but instead you have to focus on getting that hitter to be more comfortable and patient at the plate. Then the mechanics of her swing can be properly executed.
2 — You may have a hitter that has some common hitting faults.
So today, our video is going to cover common hitting problems and the solutions that can help that hitter become a more consistent factor at the plate.
Problem: Poor Pitch Selection
Poor pitch selection sometimes happens with our batters because they are making poor choices at the plate. Sometimes this happens because they are impatient. Or they’re not feeling very confident. So a good drill is to hold them accountable in practice.
Solution: Audible Decision Making Drills
The player is going to have to make a decision and call out the color of the ball as it comes into her zone. The pitcher is going to toss the ball all over the strike zone. The ball we are using in this drill has a number of colors on each panel. This forces the player to wait until the ball gets into the strike zone. She then has to call out the color and hit it at the same time. This forces the player to keep their head on the ball because they actually have to see the ball coming into the zone.
The Side Toss Drill
The Side Toss Drill is done with a regular ball and bat. The hitter is simply going to call out “Yes” and hit the strike, or “No” and hold back in the load position when pitched as a “ball”. You’ll see if the batter is calling it out too soon – you want her to wait as long as possible until it gets into her zone.
On the “No” pitches, the batter needs to keep her hands back after she’s taken her stride. That’s a key factor in being able to hit the off speed, or lay off pitches that are not in the strike zone.
Do you have hitters who experience either of these issues? If so, will you be trying these hitting drills with them? Be sure to come back and let us know how it works for you! And don’t forget to Become a Fan on Facebook, where you can discuss this and other hitting drills with softball fans around the world!