Hitting is the most difficult skills in sports and to teach it to a group of young softball players is a challenge.
There is a lot of discussion in the softball world about how to teach hitting but there are certain mechanics that are not in dispute and these are what we are going to focus on for our young players.
1) Rule 1 – See the ball
– The head starts on the front shoulder and finishes on the back shoulder
– Any mechanic that does not let our player track the ball is bad for her hitting.
2) Hit through a big zone
– This means keep the bat going through the hitting zone as long as possible to maximize the chance of contact.
3) Hit the ball hard
Practice Organization
- Avoid having 1 player hitting and all the other players waiting in the field as it will hurt the pace of your practice. Players will get bored and disengage.
- Invest in a few good teaching tools
- A good batting T
- The Insider Bat
- A Chuck-It
- Tennis Balls
- Wiffle Balls – baseball size is fine
- Multiple home plates – you can cut these our of a piece of carpet
- The swivel vision goggles
All of these tools can be purchased through USA Elite Training Florida – email kim@usaelitetraining.com for more information
- Have players rotate in groups through multiple stations. Keep the stations under control with an adult coach giving voice commands when needed. Have stations that have a clear objective for the player.
- Do front toss not side toss. The ball comes from the front. Hitting a ball from the side changes the mechanics. You can have one group hitting wiffle balls with 3B being the home plate and another group hitting wiffle balls with 1B being the home plate.
- Always use a home plate so batters get used to were to stand and they learn the strike zone
For those interested in more advanced hitting technique, I have attached a file to download. But remember, for 8U and 10U players stressing the basics with proper repetitions is the key.
