Baseball Zone

Practice Plans, Drills, Videos & more

Becoming a Ballplayer

  1. Joins a team
  2. Watches Games
  3. Pays Attention During Games
  4. Asks Questions
  5. Eats Right
  6. Knows When to Drink Water
  7. Goes to Bed Early Before Games
  8. Hits Off a Tee
  9. Values Teammates
  10. Has a Home Practice Regiment
  11. Communicates with Coaches
  12. Does Not Argue With Umpires
  13. Does Not Throw Equipment
  14. Runs Out Every Hit or Out Hard
  15. Hustles On and Off Field
  16. Is Ready On Every Pitch
  17. Expe

Building a Championship Team

  1. Everybody shows up
  2. Everybody shows up on time
  3. Everybody has fun
  4. You look like a baseball team
  5. Become willing to win
  6. Shows up and works harder than ever before
  7. Improves every practice
  8. Decides not to be scared
  9. Does better than ever before
  10. Listen to the coaches
  11. Ask questions
  12. Everyone works together
  13. Team has many leaders
  14. Reflects after games and practices
  15. Gets quality at bats
  16. Comes from behind

Hitting Guidelines - Set-up

Proper Hitting Stance

Your stance sets the tone for your whole swing. A proper set-up puts your body in a strong position, every time. Take your time to get it right. If it takes you a few extra seconds to get it right, then take the time. It can make a huge difference in your swing.

Hitting Guidelines - the Swing

Our stride and load are now complete and we will begin the swing. The most important thing to remember at this point is that our front foot must be down before we start our swing. That is the separation of the stride/load and the swing.

  1. Hips initiate the swing

Expect to Win

Today I had the pleasure of being part of something special with my team. We didn’t win a championship, but we did play in a tournament this weekend where there was a championship at stake. As a coach, nothing gratifies you more than watching your team perform up to and beyond their capabilities. Sometimes little victories are more than big victories. We beat one of the best pitchers we’ve faced this season.

The Approach

So we’ve made it through the long winter, the cold spring, the nice weather and finally…the dog days are upon us. By now you have undoubtedly gone through the many phases of baseball-the highs, the lows and the in-betweens. The at-bats are piling up and you are getting a good indication of how your season will end up. It is my wish that all are having a great season.

Slumps

Slumps. You hate them, but sooner or later everyone has one (or two). Before I get into them, I want to discuss different hitting philosophies out there in regards to pitch selection. The big league approach, “See as many pitches as you can, make the pitcher work,” is a great one. Then there’s the swing at the first pitch. Then there’s the take the first pitch every at-bat approach. There are several to choose from. When a slump occurs, pitch selection becomes very important.

 

 

 

 

 

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