Youth Baseball Hitting Tips - Drills

Youth Baseball Hitting Tips - Drills
By guest author: Jeffery A Wise

It's important that youth first learn the basic fundamentals when they begin their baseball playing careers. In a previous article we touched on a lot of these basics, including keeping your head down and eyes on the ball, how to stand in the batter's box and how to have a smooth, consistent swing. We also talked about the importance of hustling and having fun.

In order to learn the sport and become better players, youth should not just know these fundamentals; they also need to practice them in drills. Here is a list of drills that can be used for most age groups during practice.


•Hitting off a tee. This basic but essential hitting drill is used by all age groups. Even Major League Baseball players hit off a tee. Besides using a tee and a ball, you will need protective netting or a solid chain link fence to hit the ball into. Practice hitting off of a tee as often as you like but for each session strive to hit at least 25 balls. Advanced players can move the tee around to mimic different locations of the pitch. This helps for practicing hitting the ball to the opposite field, up the middle or your pull side.
•Soft toss. This fun drill was a favorite of mine during my 14 years of baseball. Again, you will either need protective netting or a solid chain link fence. It's better to hit into the protective netting because no balls will bounce back. Have someone kneel in the front and side of the hitter. He will underhand toss the balls to the hitter who will then hit the balls into the netting. The ball can be tossed to the hitter at different locations to make him adjust, wait for the ball and hit it to the appropriate area of the netting. This is a safe drill but if another player is doing the tossing make sure he wears a batting helmet for safety.
•Modified broomstick hitting drill. This is also fun because it takes you back to when you simulated games in the backyard with a brother or friend and drilled wiffle balls over the fence. Those were fun times! Find a wooden broomstick and saw it, making it the same length as the bat you use in games. You might want to tape the handle just like you would a normal bat. Then find some plastic golf balls and pitch them to the hitter. This is an excellent drill for hand-eye coordination.
•Live batting practice. Live pitches to the batter is a great finishing drill during practice. If at all possible, make sure the pitcher stands behind a protective "L" screen. Each player should get at least 20-25 hittable pitches. If you're taking batting practice alone with just you and your dad, coach or friend then 50 hittable pitches is better. Either way, divide up the pitches and hit some to the opposite field, up the middle and to your pull side as well. Don't forget to lay down a few bunts too.

Drills during practice are essential to improving young players. If time is an issue, try separating the players into groups that move from station to station. Practicing such drills and knowing the basic youth baseball hitting tips will ensure that your team will be the best it can be.

Jeffery A Wise invites you to learn the proven system of youth baseball hitting tips so that you can learn how to hit a baseball better. Start learning today at http://www.baseballhittingtipsonline.com by reading our information, watching our videos and participating in our blog.

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The Soft Toss Drill - You Will Benefit Tremendously If You Use it Properly!

The Soft Toss Drill - You Will Benefit Tremendously If You Use it Properly!
By guest author: Larry Cicchiello


The soft toss drill is one of the best baseball coaching drills around and please don't ever sell it short. It is a great time saver to break a bad habit, get into a good habit or to simply maintain your baseball swing if you are in a good groove.

Let's say you're into baseball coaching and you want to break a bad habit that one of your hitters has suddenly gotten into. It may take about 300 swings for the baseball hitter's muscle memory to take over and break the bad habit. For you to throw this player enough pitches for him to get 300 swings would take a long time. Even if you went to the park every other day and threw 50 pitches a day to the hitter and they were all strikes, it would take a couple of weeks. Now you can see the major advantage if you can accomplish the same thing in only one or two days. I would much rather have my player struggle for a day or two instead of two weeks. That's awesome.

Remember, you don't have to be in a baseball hitting slump to practice your swing. It is simply one of the outstanding baseball coaching drills and do yourself a favor and make very good use of it.

Some Benefits of the Soft Toss Drill


It doesn't even require a baseball field or a glove.
You don't need someone to round up all the balls in the outfield.
The person doing the "soft tossing' to the hitter doesn't even have to have any baseball skills at all, so you can get anybody to "soft toss" to you. Please don't take this the wrong way but your grandmother can soft toss to you. I say that with total respect.
Soft toss only requires a bat, some baseballs, a fence and an optional plastic bucket or two.

I know more than one person, including my 17 year old son, who has a setup in the garage with thick carpeting fastened to the wall of the garage and that acts as a fence. You can then soft toss any time of the day or night. It can be ten degrees outside or even raining or snowing. You can still get your swings in.

Regulation balls are not necessary and you can use a softer type of ball to practice damage control in your garage or even in your back yard if you opt to soft toss there. (And you will remain on good terms with your neighbors if a batted ball should go over the fence)

If using non regulation baseballs, you will not detract from the benefits of the soft toss drill at all, as the swing is the same no matter what type of ball is being used for the drill.

Many players, coaches and parents use this drill incorrectly. There are many variations and I've tried lots of them.

My Favorite Method:


You stand about 12 feet from a hitter who is about 8 to 10 feet in front of a high fence.
Be very careful. Make sure to avoid areas of the fence that have posts or the batted ball may come right back at the hitter. Make sure the fence you are hitting into is high enough! The person doing the "tossing" should make sure to be in a very safe position so they don't get hit by the batted ball.
Your angle to the hitter should be just about like he's in the batter's box and you're in foul territory just outside the foul line. In other words, if he's a right-handed hitter and you were soft tossing to him, imagine that you are positioned along the first base line, slightly in foul territory. Stay very safely out of the way so there is no chance that you can get hit by the batted ball.
Squat, kneel or sit down with as many baseballs as you want to use right next to you. A plastic bucket is very helpful to sit on and and an additional bucket to hold the baseballs is also very useful.

Three Easy Steps involved:


Holding the ball underhanded, show the hitter the ball.
Drop your hand with the ball in it down toward the ground and pause for about one or two full seconds. (At that point, the hitter should "load up," cocking his hips, hands and elbows.)
Softly toss the ball to the hitter, so that it has a slight arc up and then down. Aim for his back hip, or a different spot if desired and the hitter hits the ball into the fence. Repeat with the remaining baseballs.

It's very important that this drill never be rushed. The purpose is to have a good swing repeated many times until the hitter can do it in his sleep. It is one of the best baseball coaching drills for getting a hitter to break a bad habit or to develop a good habit through repetition.

Once again, be very cautious as to where you are when soft tossing the ball to someone. And make sure there is nothing in front of the hitter that can possibly have the batted ball come right back at the hitter.

The amount of time spent to break a bad habit will be at an absolute minimum because you can soft toss a hundred balls in no time at all!

Larry is the successful author of several very user friendly eBooks and CD's covering 320 topics on playing or coaching excellent baseball. ANY player, coach or parent who wants to help their child will be fully equipped! Check out some FREE baseball tips on hitting and FREE baseball pitching tips at LarryBaseball.com.

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Baseball Hitting Drills - Teaching Plate Discipline

Baseball Hitting Drills - Teaching Plate Discipline
By guest author: Hunter Sendefer

Hitting drills are very important for young players and one of the best hitting drills that a coach can utilize teach plate discipline. It is very important that a hitter learns to have an approach at the plate, rather than simply swinging away at every pitch, so this drill is vital to the hitter's overall makeup.

This drill starts with the screen close enough to the plate that the batting coach pitcher can have excellent control. Each hitter then gets up to ten pitches, although only three strikes will be permitted. Before the hitter steps up to the plate, he or she will be told how many strikes he or she currently has, as this will directly influence how the hitter handles the pitches.

If the hitter is stepping up to the plate with a fresh count, he or she will begin by showing the pitching coach where he or she likes the ball. If the pitch is in the hitter's hitting zone and he or she takes a swing, the pitch count is reduced by one. If the pitch is outside of this hitting zone, but the player still swings, the hitter not only loses that pitch, but one additional pitch. If the pitch is outside of this hitting zone and the player does not swing, the pitch does not count at all. If the pitch is outside of the strike zone altogether and the player swings, however, he or she will lose half of his or her swings remaining.

If there is one strike, the penalty for swinging at a pitch outside the strike zone is less strict, as the player will only lose that pitch plus one more. This is because when there is one strike, pitchers will tend to come after the hitter a little more, which makes these pitches a little harder to lay off.

Finally, when there are two strikes, the hitter's goal is to be as tough an out as possible. If the player swings at a pitch that is in the strike zone, he or she only loses that pitch plus one more. If a pitch that is around the strike zone is taken, it is an additional pitch penalty because umpires tend to call borderline pitches strikes when there are already two strikes. If an obvious strike is taken, that player is done completely because it is never a good idea to take a third strike.

The goal of each hitter turning this drill is to make sure that he or she gets through all ten pitches without striking out. Also make sure that your players know that each strike that you call will be a judgment call, which is exactly how an umpire will make the call. By teaching your players to have an approach at the plate based on the strike count, you can turn them into smarter hitters. You will also be giving them a better idea of where the strike zone is, so they will know which pitches to take and when to take a cut.

Hunter Sendefer is a former player and current youth baseball coach who consistently coaches his teams to the winners column including an active 26 game winning streak. He frequently contributes to http://www.Batting-Trainer.com where you can sign up for free baseball batting videos and hitting tips or learn about the revolutionary new Insider Bat batting trainer. http://www.Batting-Trainer.com/features
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Major League Hitting Drills

Major League Hitting Drills
By guest author: Jack Perconte

Major league hitters have very advanced swing fundamentals, which explain how they made it to the major leagues. However, it is important to note that fundamentals are fundamentals. The drills that are designed for little league players are the same drills that major league players perform. There are numerous baseball hitting drills with the best drills being the ones that address the particular hitter's needs. Every hitter, from the major league player to the little league player, has a weak part of their swing. When this weakness is known, hitting drills can be geared towards addressing those areas. Working on correct fundamentals is a continual process for major league players as it is for youth ballplayers.

When I played major league baseball, the off season was the time where I was more concerned with getting in great shape by gaining quickness and strength. I was not as concerned with timing the ball as much as in season. With this in mind, preseason was spent performing drills on the batting tee and with soft toss drills. The important body parts that major league baseball players want to get in shape are their hands and core muscles, including the stomach and hips. With this in mind here are a few major league hitting drills that ballplayers practice to get their hands and hips in shape.

1. One arm drill - hitters will take swings using only one arm with a lighter bat or by choking up on their regular bat. This drill will force them to use the muscles in their fingers, hands, wrists and forearms so that they develop the strength and quickness necessary to hit major league pitching. It will also help them develop the correct swing fundamentals of each hand separately. It is recommended that players take more swings in this manner with their weaker arm.

2. Another popular major league hitting drill is the self-flip drill. With this drill, players will begin by holding the bat with their lead arm only and flip a ball up in the air with their rear hand. The ball should be flipped no higher than eye level and in the hitting zone, at which time the hitter grabs the bat with both hands and hits the ball. This drill develops quick, strong hands and requires a good fundamental swing to hit line drives.

3. Fast hips can be developed with the quick swing drill. Players will swing five times in a row forward and backward as fast as they can. Players should be sure to finish their swing to the middle of their back before they reverse the bat as fast as they can. This drill can also be done with a partner who flips five balls in a row to the hitter, releasing each ball when hitter returns to hitting position. This drill will also help overall balance, which is another key ingredient to a good baseball swing. (See following drill)

4. Balance beam drill - players stand on a balance beam and take swings at game speed, with the goal of completing the swing while staying on the beam. An example of this drill and of making a usable balance beam can be found in my book, "The Making of a Hitter."

As the season begins, major league baseball players tend to work on timing and vision drills. This is mostly done with correct batting practice habits with flip drills from the coach or regular pitched balls from a batting practice coach. Good hitters will always try to hit the ball where it is pitched in the strike zone and try to watch the ball hit the bat at contact. They will not swing at pitches outside the strike zone. Following are a few more major league hitting drills that also help hitters:

5. Back knee pickup drill - hitters swing and pick up their back knee, allowing it to rotate towards the pitcher with the swing. This drill develops hitters' front side and weight transfer as they will have to keep their front shoulder going towards the ball as their weight transfers. Both of these are necessary for good contact and power.

6. No stride drill - hitters take their regular swing without the initial stride. Many hitters get in trouble when they jump at the ball. This major league hitting drill will allow them to stay back and rotate instead of lunging at the ball. Doing this drill after the previous drill is a good idea.

It is important to note that using a batting tee for taking productive swings is a must for all serious ballplayers. The batting tee is an important device for major league hitting drills as well as for young baseball players. Coaches and hitters should consult instructional manuals or a good hitting coach so they know how to use a batting tee for the best results. All hitting drills can be done on a batting tee and will help groove a perfect baseball swing. Hitting balls solidly and on the line is always the hitter's goal, whether hitting in a game or with hitting drills.

Former major league baseball player, Jack Perconte gives baseball hitting tips and batting practice advice for ballplayers of all ages. His baseball hitting lessons advice can be found at http://www.baseballhittinglessons.com/baseball Jack is the author of two books, The Making of a Hitter and Raising an Athlete - his parenting blog can be found at http://positiveparentinginsports.com

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Baseball Hitting Drills - Day 1

Baseball Hitting Drills - Day 1

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the basic batting stance, including how to practice the right style
sure to increase bat speed. Tips include taking the bottom hand
to take you to the ball, the top hand, which is the power hand that
forms a V, and how to keep your hands inside to perform the
Power V.