ࡱ> \^[% ,bjbj%% &bGG(lpppppppp<>>>>>>$s  hbpppppb<ppw<<<p.pp<<p<<<p p: lRD0 L <Be a student of hitting! Not too many years ago, I remember seeing the clean-up hitter on a good college women's team batting cross-handed. Obviously, she hit well that way or she would not have been allowed to continue, nor would she have been batting clean up. Since that time I have seen many other not quite so glaring but still intentionally "incorrect" executions of hitting fundamentals. Why? One of the toughest barriers for a hitting coach to overcome is to persuade a "good" hitter to make the necessary mechanical changes, which would allow that hitter to become a "great" hitter. The first key to being a great hitter is in the mental approach to learning and practicing. Just as a teacher or coach should be continually looking for new knowledge and new methods in order to be more effective or productive, the great hitter must be constantly pressing to be better as well. This translates into studying other hitters, studying pitchers, watching and practicing in front of a mirror, studying video tapes, and thinking about correct form in an evaluating and corrective sense. During a game, the student of hitting is preparing to bat every minute by studying the pitcher, by effective use of on-deck time, and by talking to other hitters as they come back to the plate. The student of hitting evaluates the way she is being pitched so that there are no surprises the third time up. She is actually looking for certain pitches the second and third times up to bat. To be constantly learning and striving to improve does not mean constant experimentation. It does mean knowing the how and whys for the mechanics of the swing, and it does mean knowing how to adapt to different styles of pitching, accommodating for injuries, weather or certain game situations. It does mean practicing with an open mind and being able to rise to any situation in the best manner possible and with confidence. To be learning, a batter must be constantly challenged in performance and competition and must be constantly evaluating form and results. Find a Groove! When a batter enters the batter's box, it is in a one-on-one dual with the pitcher. Other things being equal, the one who has prepared the best and most will win that duel. Do you doubt that better results occur when practicing five days a week rather than two? No. Do you doubt that better results occur when batters take 500 practice swings a day instead of 50? No, again. How about if the pitcher throws 500 pitches a day in practice, and the hitter takes 50 practice swings. Is that equal practice? Who will win? Of course, 300 or 400 practice swings a day will take a lot of time, but pitchers take that amount of time to throw each day. Why shouldn't the hitters take the same amount of time!?! To become relaxed, smooth, comfort able, confident and automatic against good competition requires much repetition in swinging the bat. One of the goals in being in a groove with the swing is making the desired swing happen by reaction and recognition to the ball rather than by thinking while batting. A great hitter does not spend the batting process in thinking about mechanics or form, but has practiced it so much that it is automatic. So toss your aspiring great hitters thousands of balls on the inside corner, thousands to the outside corner, and thousands high and low so she will recognize it and react correctly to it in the game. One of the true marks of a champion is consistency. Consistency is gained by repetition during all kinds of competition and the self-confidence that is a result of feeling prepared for each situation. Consistency will result from finding the right groove. Utilize Good Fundamental Mechanics There is not one stance or swing that is best for all persons. However, there are principles which hold true and should be applied to all swings. For example, the center of gravity during the swing should remain fairly stationary, not moving toward the pitcher in the middle of the swing. In order to accomplish this, the front leg needs to remain fairly straight throughout the swing. Here are some guidelines for some of the body parts during the swing. The eyes focus on a spot near the pitching leg where the ball will come from. The batter should attempt to focus not on the whole ball, but on a small spot in the center of it. The batter should see the bat-ball contact with intensity from both eyes or see it into the catcher's glove if taken. The head should face the pitcher, slightly turned and tilted with the chin near the front shoulder. The head should turn slightly to follow the ball and look down on the point of contact. The head should turn slightly to follow the spot of intended contact through the follow through until the chin is near or touching the back shoulder. The head should remain fairly still and the same height from the ground during the swing. The feet weight should be evenly distributed in stance, knees bent slightly to the batter's comfort. A short stride (2-8"), with weight still balanced or on the back foot, should occur just prior to the beginning of the swing. The back knee should be bent and the back foot firmly in contact with the ground during the entire swing. The body's rotation around the center of gravity should occur over the back knee. This is easily accomplished when the front leg is kept fairly straight throughout the swing. The hands should be in a comfortable position with the bottom hand, at the time of the start of the swing, even with or above the top of the strike zone. The hand position on the bat is with both wrists cocked, pinkies tightest, index fingers loosest in grip, but the hands and elbows relaxed. The elbows should be about the same height. For greater bat control, one may choke up with both hands or split the grip by choking up with the top hand. From the beginning of the swing to the point of bat-ball contact, the hands should travel in a straight line, accomplishing arm extension to the point of contact. From the point of contact on, the back hand should roll over the front hand. The front elbow and wrist should resemble a hammering action at the ball with the elbow guiding the plane of the swing. The back elbow and wrist should resemble the action of throwing and provide much of the power of the swing. At the point of bat/ball contact, the arms should be fully extended with the shoulders directly above the hips (not reaching or leaning forward). Good mechanics will allow a batter to hit the ball where it is pitched by "going with the pitch," and will also allow the batter to "wait" on a change-up. The inside strike should be contacted two to three feet in front of the lead foot, and the outside strike should be contacted even with or behind the back foot. The same body posture may be used for all pitches in the strike zone. The idea of swinging "level" is misleading: there is no non-contortion way to swing in one plane at any pitch. That plane is determined by and guided by the action of the front elbow. Utilize Relaxation and Concentration Techniques The body's parts react fastest from a relaxed state rather than a tensed one. The hands and arms, and hence the bat speed, are fastest when relaxed. This can be practiced during all the repetitions to find a groove. We have all heard or seen that athlete who seems to be performing so smoothly and effortlessly, never looking tired, and never looking like things are hard; almost gliding when running. It is a result of the ability to relax while performing. The skill of concentration for a batter is a two-step process. The first step involves shutting out all the distractions or activities, which could damage or deter the batter from the ball and good timing. This step is called "narrowing." The batter should narrow to a small rectangular area beside the pitcher's leg at the time that the pitcher is beginning the wind-up. This means shutting out the delivery motion, all fielders and all runners. An example of unconscious narrowing is the way many batters hit up the middle when batting in a batting cage. It is a result of narrowing to the length of the cage. The second step in concentration is the ability to intensify that fixation on the ball while it is in flight toward the plate. This part of concentration is called the "focus." Focusing should occur from the pitcher's release to the bat/ball contact. A batter can learn to focus on a spot on the ball about the size of a penny. While working to get the swing in a groove, that spot should be focused in the center of the ball. When facing a pitcher that throws more of a certain type of pitch, the batter can change where the spot is on the ball to the top for a riseball pitcher or to the bottom for a dropball pitcher. Between pitches the batter can increase the ability to narrow and focus when needed by a relaxing technique. Roll the head, shake the head, blink very fast, blink hard, and roll the eyes. This is similar to shaking out the arms after lifting a weight or stretching. The earliest hitting instruction I can remember is "Watch the Ball!" That is the most fundamental cause of solid contact for a hitter, and solid contact is the primary goal of a great hitter. There are many more tips and pieces of advice, which could be given for hitting in general or for specific situations. However, I am certain that in each of those cases, these four keys can help any batter to become a great hitter: 1. Be a student of hitting. 2. Get your swing in a groove. 3. Utilize good mechanics. 4. Practice relaxation and concentration techniques. Jim Webb, formerly Head Softball Coach at Southwest Missouri State, currently is head coach at Central Flordia CC   HYPERLINK "http://www.absoluteblast.com/oldstuff/u10teampage.htm"  INCLUDEPICTURE "http://www.absoluteblast.com/images/team%20page%20link.gif" \* MERGEFORMATINET  HYPERLINK "http://www.absoluteblast.com/oldstuff/u10home.htm"  INCLUDEPICTURE "http://www.absoluteblast.com/images/img18.gif" \* MERGEFORMATINET  HYPERLINK "http://www.absoluteblast.com/oldstuff/10uteamarea/u10hittingtips.htm"  INCLUDEPICTURE "http://www.absoluteblast.com/images/hit%20tip%20link.gif" \* MERGEFORMATINET  QSy{   RTvx  ACik<>x}x!z!""##'%)%M&O&(())))****I*J*K*һjB*OJQJU^Jph OJQJ^JjOJQJU^J< >*B* phZ5B* \phZ B* phZ5B* CJ$\aJ$phZGS{  Tx Ck>z{|}z!$If $$Ifa$,z!"#)%O&())*****J+, $$Ifa$$If$a$7$$IfT'634a$IfK*********E+F+G+H+I+J+K+++++++,,,,νsl\jB*OJQJU^Jph OJQJ^J*j56B*OJQJU\]^Jph!56B*OJQJ\]^Jph*j56B*OJQJU\]^Jph56OJQJ\]^J!j56OJQJU\]^JCJOJQJ^JaJjOJQJU^JjB*OJQJU^JphB*OJQJ^Jph,,,]$$IfTF7 n rr6    34a$/ =!@"@#@$@%  Dd  s AvXhttp://www.absoluteblast.com/images/team%20page%20link.gifyK yK ,../../u10teampage.htmb7 d;'+cDn  d;'+cPNG  IHDRuuG^PLTEZB)!))))1)999999JJBRRJcRRRZJkcR{cRcccssssZ!քc1ޭBR!c1k9{JRcsƭֽ\ tRNS\\bKGDH cmPPJCmp0712Hs dIDAThCZyڸu3 wվX23ssTF9^5bru"c[6C]Uĝ:lE)|3Q]U}Ӡ^UPǞ. ?[FeR7-Ѝt:B~-(Rb$o~aT\ﯷ1P1x ;;Ô!㡭ո Mbu5RuԷ Kzmbwp(W5[7uPgc1vQ̢ۆAx<cS"cM$ "'Hm~]@ŏP`|# ~9<1Bui/yƳݑQ? |RRVQƛXGO&Lqeat%Xb*LӨ E%E'6P|\bZN:'+Ci&ht*-ITujkKVe?ȟyPZlj Wv$' áGz¡9L*I%mˁY8&P;I2 *EJ(cqa2B`r#3g|Mv2v>h59<4aٴ TH#*2iIp_nYيʉ]i)ĢyԵ-M1%Pr kA9V.3F\XMX}Mzlf/lU5UAJzji0 ct)4*o0xÔVA4A^C NXfOq= :# :Cۮ~Yoͻ:lF72Nx?hi|Km'tX|[ƶr3 $7&po9V^G#HS'n~8=KΎ]}UZ##}UJ:i-9VⲪkx8ȼd\T=r&V}h=u:4SzHP$ l6Iy4(:خ{G-C įGqv (%:Jcu;CUvmV?Y 9;Rix/-&ee xXa8L -N/CsRÆq4cN "GJh#׷pI4QQaDdEʧ|qXu{[c|ݞԿP"Ic5N162I{<e X6zr8zNRz Pr?_*QOqfl>\Jm.!NB_ss nBWBCڵoprwNבc[TEGmQ|"oL/ث8fyT玦7h~&]NѵOaDE, ¾H~~`umj|͝XW2A#>ēx0nզ,NsvƐ;j@sGsBQ|D5.b[yV$Tbu@(6j!bû^́Koʚrz?#ZS-ʕ30)׵CGuڠ? &$Qu D^^b#otj CQq oc/Ovueo/)X8eQ$jsJMuW}4g-U]~}IP8}iQGb'asi*H'KqKNkt4*m35g1A:#hc7]ゲO#0r'>M28l;U'r.

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