Hitting Concepts and Techniques QUALITY AT BATS

1
Hitting Concepts and TechniquesQUALITY AT BATS

• Trojan Baseball
• Simsbury High School
• Simsbury, CT

2
The Quality At-Bat Philosophy (QAB)

• Making our own measurements of success to
  reinforce PROCESS NOT RESULTS
• QAB grades sac, two strike hitting, two-out
  RBI, hard contact, runner in from 3rd with less
  than two outs, etc. (rubric on page 9)
• sticking with it if you want them to embrace
  process, you cant fake it
• reinforcement dont embrace batting average,
  etc.
• The process can be perfect, but that does not
  guarantee perfect result. Therefore, we seek
  perfect processes, and trust enough positive end
  results will follow.
• work to eliminate FEAR of results focus on
  process

3
The Quality At-Bat Philosophy (cont.)

• Controlling the Process - ELIMINATES FEAR
• having a plan - hitting with your head
• know situation (score, outs, objective)
• know yourself and what are your
• strengths and weaknesses
• zone vs. two-strike approach
• body language
• positive self talk
• visualization
• flushing the negative
• one pitch at a time slow game down limiting
  stimuli
• making adjustments while trusting overall approach

4
The Quality At-Bat Philosophy (cont.)

• Dealing with Failure
• 7 out of 10 times
• learning from it to turn it into future success
• WHY is the result not what you wanted
• WHAT can you do next time

5
The Quality At-Bat Philosophy (cont.)

• Prepare in practice, perform in games
• game like swings all the time in practice
• quality preparation high level of confidence
  greater probability of successful outcomes
• Anxiety (FEAR) most often comes from a lack of
  quality preparation
• hands off mechanics in games from coaches FOCUS
  ON MENTAL APPROACH IN GAMES
• no cloning no two people alike, no two swings
  alike
• game speed whenever striking baseball get loose
  with dry swings
• ESTABLISH ROUTINE STAY WITH IT

6
The Quality At-Bat Philosophy (cont.)

• Mechanical Freedom with Mental Rules
• must have plan
• must be smart
• must understand the influence of the count,
  score, situation, and expectations

7
The Quality At-Bat Philosophy (cont.)

• Hitters make adjustments
• Year to year better pitching shorter swing or
  holes exposed as we progress in level
• Day to day pitcher (power guy vs. junk,
  sinker guy, etc.)
• Pitch to pitch understand the count, sequences,
  tendencies

8
The Quality At-Bat Philosophy (cont.)

• Each hitters first at-bat begins with the first
  pitch of the game
• tipping pitches p, c, coach, middle infielders
• pick-offs
• release point
• runners on vs. no runners on

9
Quantifying a QAB
10
Trojan QAB

• Game ABs 4
• Possible QAB Points 16
• Player point total 11
• Game QAB 11/16 .688
• Who is giving you QABs?

11
Mechanics before pitch

• Stance
• comfortable
• relaxed
• balanced and wide
• preferably squared
• weight on balls of feet

12
Mechanics before pitch(cont.)

• Set-up
• hands up
• grip firm but relaxed with bat in fingers
  NEVER in palms
• V wrists and forearms without tension
• high hands at top of zone
• eyes level both looking at pitcher
• HAVE A ROUTINEKEEPS FOCUS ON PLANNOT FEAR

13
Mechanics during delivery

• Trigger/Stride/Load all the same
• thing
• - lower body
• hips load without turning, knee can turn slightly
  in
• weight back for pitch identification without eyes
  moving
• stride - quiet and short stepping on thin ice
• weight load on back leg
• - upper body
• hands load too BACKWARDS CBE CAREFUL WITH
  HANDS
• NO ARM BARkeep V in elbow
• quiet shoulders
• hands get to top zone without a bat wrap
• Getting to ready position to
• let hands work
• what is staying back

14
Mechanics at pitch

• Pitch identification
• as early as possible
• be aware of count, situation, etc., but trust
  eyes (they are less likely to lie)
• Delivering bat head to hitting zone
• short and quick TO IT
• backside fires from knee to chest
• heel plant
• bottom hand knob to ball
• tall backside no collapse
• top of back hip down
• hands inside / front of sternum no
• casting or arm bar
• barrel above hands until contact

15
Mechanics at pitch (cont.)

• At contact
• eyes see bat hit ball and are still level
• karate chop/punch hand position
• palm up/palm down
• tall backside
• not fully extended ELBOW LOCKED
• firm front side is axis of rotation
• up on back toe at contact for full
• weight transfer through ball no
• squishing bug
• contact inside and top half of ball
• keep it fair with backspin (why is
• it deeper in center than left and right?)

16
Mechanics After Contact

• Maintain balance head down between
  knees knees between feet
• Low Finish stay on the plane full extension
  TOP EXTENDS THRU UNLOCKS ELBOW
• Getting out of box

17
Drill Work

• TEE
• Top Hand (Short Bat)
• Bottom Hand (Short Bat)
• Low Tee
• Net Drill
• High Tee
• Low Away
• Middle
• 2 Tee (Inside/Outside)
• 2 Tee (Front/Back)

18
Drill Work (cont.)

• Soft Toss SHORT BAT
• Top Hand (muscle memory, isolation)
• Bottom Hand (muscle memory, isolation)
• One knee top hand (muscle memory, isolation)
• One knee bottom hand (muscle memory, isolation)
• Soft Toss REGULAR BAT
• No trigger (progression 1)
• Pre-Trigger (progression 2 - isolate back knee)
• Load Trigger (progression 3)
• Hold Finish (balance)
• Top Hand Extension (extend thru ball)
• Back Side soft toss
• Self-Bounce Drill
• DROP DRILL (breaking balls)
• HIP TOSS (rotation)
• MOVING WALK (rhythm explosion)
• FROM BEHIND (timing staying back)

19
Drill Work (cont.)

• Front Toss
• Back Foot Incline (back foot)
• Bounce (offspeed)
• Two Ball (focus, concentration)
• Speed Change (decision, adjust)
• Rapid Fire (rhythm)
• Plate Coverage
• In-Down
• In-Up
• Out-Up
• Out-Down
• Mid-Up
• Mid-Down
• FAT

20
Practice Pre Game Run Scoring Practice

• Practice
• Three groups (cage, dome, tee)
• Tee work CAN/WILL be done on field and cage
• All three will have specific workout
• Workouts will change (see attached)
• Games
• Two groups
• One group on field divided into shaggers, runners
  hitters
• One group in cage divided into tees, soft toss
  front toss

21
Batting Practice Round (DOME example)

• Round 1 Bunting everyone not in cage is on
  grass in front of cage retrieving bunts
• sacrifice bunt to 3rd
• sacrifice bunt to 1st
• sacrifice bunt to 3rd
• conceal bunt for hit to 1st
• conceal bunt for hit to 3rd and get out of box
• Round 2 Execution round everyone is behind or
  on side of cage with on deck hitter close to 3rd
  base side entrance
• hit and run (runner goes on pitch, hitter must
  swing, hits it on ground)
• right side and down (runner gets read, but does
  not go)
• right side and down (runner goes after read)
• drive him in (hitter drives ball to outfield,
  runner tags, reads, gets start)
• drive him in (hitter drives ball to o.f., runner
  tags, reads, runs)

22
Batting Practice Round (cont.)

• Round 3 Opposite Round
• hitter drives pitch opposite field or middle (if
  hit pull-side, round is ended) X 5
• Round 4 Zone Round
• hitter has less than two strikes and is looking
  for a pitch over middle two thirds of plate he
  can hit hard on a line X 5
• Round 5 Two Strike Round
• hitter makes physical adjustment, and changes
  mental plan to become a defensive hitter and
  simply make contact (hitters round ends on fifth
  pitch, or if he takes borderline strike) X 5
• Round 6 See It and Hit It Round
• hitter ahead or even in count with less than two
  strikes and runners in scoring position X 5

23
HAVE NO FEAR

• Focus on the process
• Accept failure as part of the gameLEARN from
  FAILURE
• Prepare, prepare, prepare
• 100 Effort Focus SUCCESS