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

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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.

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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

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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

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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

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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


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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
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Baseball Hitting Tips for Motivation

Baseball Hitting Tips for Motivation
By Jeffery A Wise
There are countless stories of very successful people who were at one time told they wouldn't amount to anything. They were destined to fail in the eyes of the world, but the world was proved wrong. One such case was Babe Ruth.

Another, perhaps less extreme case, is Oakland A's Dallas Braden. He pitched a perfect game, probably the hardest thing to do in all sports, but he was never considered a prospect for great pitching. I bet he is now, though.

Examples like these should encourage and motivate you. One of the most important baseball hitting tips to remember is that you should never give up. Be determined and confident each time you go up to bat. Even if you are in a bad slump, clear your mind and be ready to attack the ball each time at bat. Forget about your last strike out and remember that you're not finished.

Even the greatest hitters in the world only get a hit one out of three or four times. Be patient and know that you can get the job done.

Believe in yourself, even if no one else does. If you are like Braden and not highly regarded by many, remember that your destiny is not sealed. You can make a difference with hard work, motivation and belief in yourself.

Work hard at practice every day and when you get your opportunity you will show them how dedicated you are. Hopefully stories like Braden's and Babe Ruth's will push you in the right direction to accomplishing your baseball goals.

Jeffery A Wise invites you to learn the proven system of baseball hitting tips so that you can learn how to hit a baseball better. Start learning today by following our baseball hitting Twitter account, reading our information and watching our videos.

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

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How to Throw a Change Up Pitch : Power Positioning for Change Up Pitches

How to Throw a Change Up Pitch : Power Positioning for Change Up Pitches
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