Baseball Drill: Hitting the 3 Basic Strike Locations - Derek Jeter Hurricane Hitting Machine

Check out the Hurricane Hitting Machine: Derek Jeter Series:
Hurricane Hitting Machine - Homepage
15 Reasons To Buy a Hurricane Trainer
6 Questions Often Asked By Customers
Message to Parents From Coach Nick
Examples of Hurricane Hitting Drills
The Highly Acclaimed 20-Minute Hurricane Batting Practice Workout
Hurricane Batting Machine Video Clips
Derek Jeter Hurricane Hitting Machine

The Coaches Best Baseball Store has a great selection of 1400 Baseball Products. Check out the BatAction Hitting Machine baseball pitching simulator. This high speed training machine is 100% Guaranteed to raise Batting Averages and has a full year warranty.

Gain a Competitive Advantage With Baseball Training Aids

Gain a Competitive Advantage With Baseball Training Aids
By Louis Seeley

Are you looking to take your baseball skills to the next level? Do you dream of throwing harder, batting better, and fielding with ease? These are skills that can be learned, honed, and perfected and baseball-training aids can make it possible.

Practice is the key to success in any athletic endeavor, and baseball is no exception.
The old adage "practice makes perfect" may be cliché, but it is true. Unfortunately, many sports, specifically a team sport like baseball, typically require a group of people to practice effectively. Conventional wisdom tells us that effective baseball training requires at least two athletes. Fortunately, this is no longer true as baseball training aids allow athletes to perform effective and efficient training without a partner or team.

Baseball and softball training aids are athletic training tools designed to develop and improve baseball specific skills. There are a variety of different training aids, each designed to perfect a specific area of your game. Each training tool improves skill-specific muscle memory; so effective training with these tools will vastly improve game performance.

Muscle memory is a form of procedural memory that stores the physical mechanics behind a specific task inside the brain. Muscle memory training is a very important part of athletic success. While it is always great to get faster and stronger, an athlete should really focus on getting faster and stronger in a way that is relevant to his or her specific sport or even his or her specific position.

Baseball training aids not only improve strength, conditioning, and hand-eye-coordination, they do so in a way that directly correlates to baseball success. For example, the Swift Stik lightweight training bat allows hitters to practice hundred of swings in one training session without the injury risks of a heavier bat. This type of repetition is the most important factor in building effective muscle memory.

Another training tool, the Arm Strong, improves throwing strength, accuracy and speed by combining light resistance training with a natural throwing motion. The benefits of this type of training are plain to see. In order to see the same results with an outdated training regimen, an athlete would have to spend hours in the gym, followed by hours playing catch and taking batting practice. That's not exactly efficient.

While no training tool can ever replace real-game experience, there is no reason to risk injury and waste time by treating skill and strength conditioning as different types of training. With baseball training aids, all of these necessary training steps can be combined into one simple program.

That's not all. The best part about these types of training tools is the fact that they can be used alone. There are no more excuses to slack off in the off-season. These training tools put success squarely in the hands of the competitor. It is time to gain a competitive edge with professional baseball and softball training aids.

Louis Seeley is an expert in the area of baseball training aids. For more information on top-of-the-line baseball training aids, visit: http://www.pikproducts.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Louis_Seeley

==============
Thanks to our Sponsors
==============

Quick Swing Trainer

Thanks to Our Sponsor:
QuickSwingTrainer.com
QuickSwingMachine.com



Joe Mauer Quick Swing Trainer
QuickSwingTrainer.com
How Does the Quick Swing Batting Trainer Work?
Joe Mauer Quick Swing Links
Video Demo of the Joe Mauer Quick Swing Baseball Batting Trainer

Baseball - Knee Drill for Pitchers

Baseball - Knee Drill for Pitchers
ClubHouseGas
On http://ClubHouseGAS.com , University of Georgia Pitching Coach, Brady Wiederhold demonstrates the knee drill.

=================
Thanks to our sponsors:



Joe Mauer Quick Swing Trainer
QuickSwingTrainer.com
How Does the Quick Swing Batting Trainer Work?
Joe Mauer Quick Swing Links
Video Demo of the Joe Mauer Quick Swing Baseball Batting Trainer


Jugs Small Ball Pitching Machine

Youth Baseball Digest - 4 Important Factors That Can Help New Little League Coaches Be Successful

HurricaneMachine.com

Youth Baseball Digest - 4 Important Factors That Can Help New Little League Coaches Be Successful
By Nick Dixon

The 4 Most Important Rules that all New Little League Baseball Coaches Should Follow

Coaching Little league is a great way for baseball and softball players to give back to your community. Every baseball player remembers his first t-ball coach, coach pitch coach, little league coach, and high school coach. Baseball coaches have a profound effect on the lives of the players they coach. Being or becoming a great youth baseball coach requires a high level of commitment and dedication. There are 3 important rules that every new little league coach must always follow. Those rules are:

1. You must be a student of the game. To be a good youth baseball coach, you must have a good knowledge of how the game is played, how the rules are applied, and how certain skills and drills are performed. If you feel uncomfortable about a certain position, skill or fundamental, look for help. You may ask another coach. You may go to your local library or book store and find a book on how to coach baseball. You have access to an enormous amount of information about every aspect of the game through your computer and the internet.

2. You must have good help. You can never have too much help when coaching a youth team. Ask your parents and friends to find other volunteers to help you coach your team. It is best to have a parent meeting. Ask for parent volunteers. The parents that volunteer to help should choose a specific area in which they concentrate their effort. You will need at least 2 good assistant coaches. One needs to have enough knowledge and patience to be the pitching coach. One should be the hitting coach.

3. You must remediate your weaker players. In you draft, you may find that you must pick children that are good at certain skills but extremely week in other areas.One often overlooked and neglected aspect of coaching is remediation/ Remediation is special attention and help given to those players that need it. This is a job for what I refer to as the remediation coach. The coach that takes one or two players to the side and works on specific areas of the game in which they are too weak to compete. They may need help with swing mechanics, throwing mechanics, or simple footwork. These kids will master these skills easier and faster when they receive one-on-one personal attention. These "tutoring" lessons pay back huge returns if you can have enough help. The theory is that you must bring every player up to a certain level or much valuable team time will be lost to working with them during team drills. It is best to take these kids aside and work them separately from the team until they get their skill levels up. These lessons should be done in such a way to not embarrass the child or players involved.

4. You must work hard and set a good example. A willingness to work hard may be the most important trait of a successful coach. They work hard at planning, organizing, and executing individual and team drills for both offense and defense. They have high energy levels and are always willing to put forth that little extra effort to make a practice or game run smother.

I hope that you found this article to be helpful. Good luck to you and your team. Have a great day, Nick

The CoachesBest Baseball Store has a great selection of 1400 Baseball Products. Check out the BatAction Hitting Machine baseball pitching simulator. This high speed training machine is 100% Guaranteed to raise Batting Averages and has a full year warranty.

Nick Dixon is the President and founder of Nedco Sports, a sports training company established in 1999. Dixon is also an active and full time high school baseball coach with over 25 years experience. Coach Dixon is better known as the inventor of the BatAction Hitting Machine, the SKLZ Derek Jeter Hurricane Hitting Machine, the SKLZ Target Trainer, the SKLZ Derek Jeter ZipnHit Pro, and the SKLZ Strikeback Trainer. Dixon is also a contributing writer for BaseballCoachingDigest, the Youth Baseball Digest, the Baseball Parent Guide, the Baseball 2Day Coaches Journal, and Blog4Coaches.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nick_Dixon

Baseball Tips for Hitting: What Every Player Needs to Know

Baseball Tips for Hitting: What Every Player Needs to Know
By Jeffery A Wise

Every great ball player knows you can't step up the plate unprepared. You've got to be focused, mentally and physically ready for any situation. Every at bat is different and you will never experience the same situation twice. But, there are some baseball tips you must know that will help with whatever circumstance you face.

To be the best hitter possible, you have to work hard. It requires more than just skill. You need to discipline yourself and focus on your goals. For hitting the ball better, here are steps you should take to make it happen:


Find at least two hitting drills that challenge you and practice them regularly.
On or off season, you should be participating in some physical conditioning to keep your body strong and in good shape.
At each live batting practice, hit at least 20 balls. Hit to all areas of the field and even bunt a few balls.
Study professional games and watch the hitters and pitchers. Follow those who have good mechanics, good work ethic and a good attitude.
Take care of your body by eating and drinking right.

None of these steps are incredibly hard and with commitment and endurance, they will make you the hitter you want to be. Growing up, I played with guys who are now in the MLB. They stood out because they worked so hard to be the best. And now you can see why they are where they are. Their hard work paid off.

You get out of hitting what you put into it. And don't be shy to ask for help from a parent, coach or teammate. Every great player has had help. Support from others, hard work and preparation will get you where you want to be.

Jeffery A Wise invites you to learn the proven system of baseball hitting so that you can learn how to hit a baseball better. Start learning today with our blog about hitting the baseball, watching our videos and following us on Twitter and Facebook.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jeffery_A_Wise

=================



Check out the Hurricane Hitting Machine: Derek Jeter Series:
Hurricane Hitting Machine - Homepage
15 Reasons To Buy a Hurricane Trainer
6 Questions Often Asked By Customers
Message to Parents From Coach Nick
Examples of Hurricane Hitting Drills
The Highly Acclaimed 20-Minute Hurricane Batting Practice Workout
Hurricane Batting Machine Video Clips
Derek Jeter Hurricane Hitting Machine

The Coaches Best Baseball Store has a great selection of 1400 Baseball Products. Check out the BatAction Hitting Machine baseball pitching simulator. This high speed training machine is 100% Guaranteed to raise Batting Averages and has a full year warranty.

Baseball Coaching Digest: The Perils of Defensive Assumption in Baseball Action

By Nick Dixon

Assuming or taking for granted certain things when your team is playing defense can lead to costly mistakes and could lead to a loss. This article outlines three things that coaches and players should never assume when you are playing defense.

Assuming Every Player Knows the Number of Outs

This is the most common mental mistake a team or coach makes. They have a player that does not know how many out there are. I have witnessed in many different forms. Several times I have seen catchers think that there were three outs and the inning was over, so they rolled the ball toward the pitcher and allowed an alert runner on third score on a mental error.

I have seen an outfielder think that there were two outs when he caught a fly ball hit shallow into center field. He assumed that there were two out when he caught what he thought was the third out. He relaxes after the catch only to realize that the runner at third base has just tagged up and scored.

Making such mental mistakes can be prevented if the middle infielders relay and communicate the number of outs to the outfielders and other players after each out is made. It should be a standard procedure that every player on the team show at least one teammate the sign for the current number of outs after each out is made.

Assuming Everybody Knows the Bunt Coverage

Assuming everyone in the infield knows what the bunt situation is and the coverage that is on at the time can lead to a costly mistake. We have all seen it happen. The first baseman charges the bunt. The pitcher bounces off to the third base side and the catcher bounces out perfectly. The catcher calls the first base man off the ball, fields it, and comes up throwing to first. However, the second baseman was napping and did not get there to field the throw. The second baseman had what we call a "brain fart". He was not mentally alert and in the game. Therefore, it is important that the catcher call time, step out in front of the plate, and signal the bunt coverage that has been called for the situation.

Coaches must not assume that every player is alert. The key is communication between coaches and players. The coach must talk to his catcher and middle infielders constantly to make sure that they are in the game. Players should be taught to talk the game between pitches and communicate the situation, likely plays by the offense, and whose "got the bag" between pitches.

Assuming a play will or will not be made
Wrong assumptions can lead to devastating results when a team is on defense. A player should always hustle to a ball or to the correct position when the ball is hit or put into play. It can be costly for an outfielder to relax on a ball in the gap because he thinks the other outfielder is going to make the play. Not getting over to back up a fellow outfielder can cost a team valuable bases and even a run, if the ball is miss-played, missed or is a base it that gets by an outfielder.

Outfielders should always hustle, talk, and communicate when the ball is hit. Even if the other outfielder calls the ball, the outfielder should hustle over the back up on the play.

Outfielders should always back up throws as if the throw is going to be missed. Defensive players should never assume a catch. Catchers should sprint to back up throws at first base when there are not runners on. Just when the catcher assumes a ball will be caught, rather than missed, the first baseman will let the tying run get to second base with a miss-played short hop. If the catcher hustles to back-up on the play as he should, the runner does not advance to second base.

I hope that you found this article to be informative. I appreciate you taking the time to read it. For more articles like it, visit the Baseball Coaching Digest, Youth Baseball Digest, and the Baseball Parent Guide websites and blogs. Good luck to you and your team.
Have a great day, Nick.

Nedco sports announces the release of a great new product for baseball teams and schools, the Batting Cage Door baseball pitching simulator. Sales for $199.95BatAction Hitting Machine Available now for just $119.95.

Nick Dixon is the President and founder of Nedco Sports, a sports training company established in 1999. Dixon is also an active and full time high school baseball coach with over 25 years experience. Dixon coaches at Boaz High in Boaz Alabama. Dixon is a member of the American Baseball Coaches Association and Alabama Baseball Coaches Association.

Dixon is better known as the inventor of the BatAction Hitting Machine, the SKLZ Derek Jeter Hurricane Hitting Machine, the SKLZ Target Trainer, the SKLZ Derek Jeter ZipnHit Pro, and the SKLZ Strikeback Trainer. Dixon is considered an expert in baseball training and skills development. Dixon also serves as an active consultant to baseball equipment companies and other sports product inventors.

Dixon is also a contributing writer for the Baseball Coaching Digest, the baseball Coaching Digest Blog, the Youth Baseball Digest, the Youth Baseball Digest Blog, the Baseball Parent Guide, the Baseball 2Day Coaches Journal, and Blog4Coaches.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nick_Dixon

=======================

Thanks to our sponsor: Xtender Batting cages and Heater Pitching Machines

XtenderBattingCages.com
Xtender Batting Cages For Home & Youth Baseball
Heater Combo Pitching Machine & Xtender Batting Cage Package
Heater Pitching Machines

Youth Baseball Digest: One Cause of Poor Hitting Performance that Often Goes Undetected

By Nick Dixon

Have you ever had a kid that had the perfect baseball swing but sometimes has difficulty hitting live pitching? In drills, the player simply kills the baseball. Every soft-toss rep is a line drive. Every front toss rep is a line drive with power. The player is perfect in every drill that your team but has difficulty hitting live pitching. The player often struggles to hit in games although he has one of the best swings on the team. What could cause a player to perform perfectly in practice but have a difficult time hitting the ball when a pitcher is pitching from regulation distances?

I am speaking from experience here. I once had a right handed player on my high school team that was absolutely a dream hitter in practice and a nightmare hitter in games and live inter-squad games. He would dominate every hitting station with his high velocity bat speed, precision bat control, and unbelievable ability to adjust to every pitch location with the perfect swing adaptation. However, when he faced live pitching he simply looked like "Ned in the First Grade". He would miss or be late on routine and average fastballs. He would be late or completely misjudge curve balls and when he should attack them.

I quickly realized that there was a problem and began to do some research. I soon found some definite performance tendencies. In day games, when he made contact, he almost always hit a ground ball to the second baseman. On ball he should pull, he nearly always got jammed. At night, he hit for 150 points less than in day games. With all these facts considered, we realized his cause for poor hitting. The cause was poor eye sight. We sent him to have his eyes checked. He had extremely poor vision in his dominate eye. He could perform well in our hitting stations and toss drills because they were all done at short distances. When the distance the pitch came from was increased, his ability to see and pick the ball up quickly was diminished. A new set of contact lens got him back on his "A" game. He quickly became as dominate in games as he was in drills.

So the moral of is that if you have a kid that is inconsistent from his hitting in practice to hitting in a game, make sure to have his vision checked. Poor eye sight may be the cause of his poor hitting performance.

I hope that you found this article to be informative and useful. I thank you for taking the time to read it. For more great articles on coaching baseball visit the Baseball Coaching Digest, Youth Baseball Digest, Little League Digest, and the Baseball Parent Guide. Good luck to you and your team. Have a great day, Nick

The CoachesBest Baseball Store has a great selection of 1400 Baseball Products. Check out the BatAction Hitting Machine baseball pitching simulator. This high speed training machine is 100% Guaranteed to raise Batting Averages and has a full year warranty.

Nick Dixon is the President and founder of Nedco Sports, a sports training company established in 1999. Dixon is also an active and full time high school baseball coach with over 25 years experience. Coach Dixon is better known as the inventor of the BatAction Hitting Machine, the SKLZ Derek Jeter Hurricane Hitting Machine, the SKLZ Target Trainer, the SKLZ Derek Jeter ZipnHit Pro, and the SKLZ Strikeback Trainer. Dixon is also a contributing writer for BaseballCoachingDigest.com, the YouthBaseballDigest.com, the BaseballParentGuide.com, the Baseball 2Day Coaches Journal, and Blog4Coaches.com.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nick_Dixon

Check out the all new Batting Cage Door by Nedco Sports.

================


www.BattingCagesDirect.com

BATTING CAGE NETS without FRAMES
Message to Baseball and Softball Parents
Recommended Blogs & Knols

Baseball Pitching Mechanics to Improve Pitching Performance

Baseball Pitching Mechanics to Improve Pitching Performance
By guest author: Bobby Woods

Over the years the most asked questions presented to me is "How do I develop more speed? How do I throw harder? How can I increase velocity? Through experience, research and study, I have found a multitude of concepts and techniques presented to increase throwing speed. Most of all professionals agree that the two main ingredients of speed development are mechanics (the basic and fundamental movement in a sequential pattern) and strength development.

In mechanics, there are various movement aspects that have to be explained. The first is arm path or the path the arm takes when it separates from the glove. This includes arm action, or the speed in which the arm is moving through its path, and arm extension which is how long the arm reaches and extends out in front of the body at release and beyond. Pitchers that have full extension of the hand and the arm will increase speed naturally.

The next factor in mechanics is the trunk or torso rotation. Through torso rotation, there is a transfer of energy to power then speed. The torso has approximately 55 to 60 percent of all the energy needed to throw with speed; therefore it is essential to rotate the torso in order to transfer this energy needed in the arm and hand to develop speed.

To achieve full extension, I am constantly teaching pitchers to have a complete stride length; to move their head out in front of their stride foot, reach out in front of home plate after release and finally, bend at the waist.

The second main ingredient to improving speed is strength development. Overall muscle strength is vital in speed development. The muscles of the legs, torso, chest, back, and arms must be strong and flexible to ensure proper movement. When developing strength in the body for increasing speed, it is imperative that with speed or acceleration there must be shock absorption or deceleration. Most pitchers train their muscles for acceleration and forget that the majority of injuries in the deceleration phase.

One way to develop speed that incorporates both mechanics and strength is by long toss throwing. Long toss will help develop proper throwing mechanics by increasing throwing distances through progressing the number of throws.

It also develops endurance for the muscles of the arm. Structured long toss programs are extremely important in improving throwing speed. There are many different programs, so be careful in choosing the proper program, depending on your level of play.

Remember, speed in pitching is the ability of the pitcher to change the reaction time of the hitter, so learn to maximize your fastball and continue working on your mechanics and strength development.

Remember, have fun and enjoy this great game!

Bobby Woods has a long time passion for sports in general and for baseball coaching more specifically.
His goal is to spread the word about effective non-fluff baseball pitching techniques for both more experienced and young baseball players, to help them perform better during the game. Discover more about baseball pitching mechanics on bobbywoodsbaseball.com


======================
Thanks to our sponsors:



Joe Mauer Quick Swing Trainer
QuickSwingTrainer.com
How Does the Quick Swing Batting Trainer Work?
Joe Mauer Quick Swing Links
Video Demo of the Joe Mauer Quick Swing Baseball Batting Trainer

Baseball Drill: Hitting the 3 Basic Strike Locations - Derek Jeter Hurricane Hitting Machine

Baseball Drill: Hitting the 3 Basic Strike Locations - Derek Jeter Hurricane Hitting Machine
Coach2winVideos
Video shows how to practice hitting all three of the basic strike locations. Batters can practice hitting the inside, middle and away strike location. Video shows a college player hitting the Derek Jeter Hurricane Baseball Trainer. For free tips, drills, and coaching articles, visit the Derek Jeter Hurricane Training Blog at http://hurricanebaseballtrainingmachi... For more product information visit http://www.HurricaneMachine.com Available at http://www.baseball2u.com/husotrmajes...