Hitting and Hitters Discussion Switch hitting, should Coaches be teaching all players? To switch hit.

[Admin]

Coaches are your Girl Fastpitch Softball Teams, still learning how to switch hit?

I've heard allot of pro and cons for teaching your players to switch hit.

Is teaching switch hitting, something you let your girls hitting instructor teach?

If your not teaching your whole Team how to switch hit. Why?


#TeamTSZ

 

[CARDS]

Switch hitting is an art that requires a lot of fundamental practice. If it was easy to train the body and mind to switch hit more would be able to do it. (Look at MLB)?I can only recall two teames we have faced over the past 14 years where they had several players that could do this in a game.

You also have to ask why are you learning to do it, do you plan to let the players do it in a game is there a need to do it in a game?

My thoughts are for the player to be proficient/productive from their natural side unless, they are learning how to slap from the left side because it suits their skills EX: very fast, not a strong hitter currently.
If one is going to be proficient or good at slapping forget about trying to swing away from the right side and get really good at the art of soft slapping, power slapping and drag bunting or hitting away from the left side.
Over the years I have seen a ton of players that said they were slappers but had poor footwork or approach to the ball or called a swinging/push bunt a slap and generally had an average around.200...When they would go to the right side to swing away ( when they would have two strikes already) their form there was also bad. Get good at one or the other...

As the players develop and are seeking additional challenges then having them work on seeing the ball from the other side can be a benefit however; very few players develop to a point where they can go up to the plate and take advantage of the skill in a game situation.

 

[fastpitchdad]

I have periodically wondered about this and come to the conclusion at my daughters level -
* No. Learn to hit well from one side *
But am interested to hear what the premier level players/coaches parents think.
(I wish i had paid more attention to the WCWS on this as a case study. do they switch hit at that level?)

In my experience , I have not seen the righty - lefty matchup advantage gained by baseball players translate to fast pitch softball. My overarching proof of this is even with the renetry substitution rules in softball, when i see quality teams with both a Lefty and Righty Ace, I do not see coaches switching pitchers based on batter handedness - nor the batters switching sides based on pitcher handiness. Instead I see many fast pitch players who throw right naturally bat left and only left.. I believe a major factor is the shorter base distance in softball and the importance of home to first time in fast pitch, the fewer steps from left side outweigh switch hitting advantages.

 

[Hilliarddad3]

No, if you're going to commit to switching, commit! You will lose average the first year, but after that one you will be fine. You need to continually practice though!

 

[coachjwb]

While a lot of advantage can possibly be gained from teaching a right with speed how to slap from the left side, I don't believe their is anywhere near the kind of advantage that we see in baseball from being able to bat from both sides. I think the overhand pitching motion and throwing from a mound in baseball make the righty/lefty thing much more important. I would teach a son to bat from either side, but not a daughter playing fastpitch.

 

[Louuuuu]

FPdad & CoachJWB - I agree 100%.

But yet we still see coaches advertising their need for a lefthanded pitcher... Let me guess, coach: You played baseball in your youth.

 

[coachjwb]

Lol ... a little bit ... but I consider myself more a student of both the baseball and softball games ... I love the strategy involved and how it affects the stats and eventually outcomes. I just think that a fastpitch hitter would be better off using their instructional and practice time on improving their dominant swing, instead of splitting up the time between the two sides, while I think the baseball hitter can benefit in the long run from hitting from both sides.

As far as teams advertising for left hand pitchers, I think the biggest advantage is that lefthanders do provide an advantage of a different look, and the pitches spinning the opposite directions. But while a baseball coach might prefer a lefthander who is say 25% less effective than a righty because of the righty/lefty thing, my premise is that I am always going to take the pitcher who is the most effective, regardless of which hand she happens to throw with.

 

[joboo1drew]

If you could hit from the left side, why on earth would you ever want to switch to the right? You are that much closer to first. Pitchers seem to have a harder job pitching to lefties. The box is never destroyed like the other side. My dd throws right handed, but hits from the left (not a slapper). She got up on the "wrong" side at tee-ball when she was 4. I went to correct her, but noticed her hands were positioned for a lefty hitter. I knew it would help later on in life. Never changed her.

 

[Louuuuu]

... a little bit ...

Not you, Jeff. The coaches seeking southpaws. (I know you get it.)

 

[coachjwb]

Ahhhhh ... I actually didn't get it your first post!

 

[SMc4SMc]

I'm of the mind that coaches should invest time determining who can and is willing to switch hit (or convert fulltime to lefty). Our varsity coach suggested we give it a try, at the past tryouts every coach inquired about hitting from both sides, and a bunch of teams on TSZ are looking for lefties so the investment of our time and a coaches seems to be trending up. I'd guess every coach is onboard with pairing high aptitude and team first attitude to the players benefit. SO yes, coaches teach switch hitting. Maybe its just another fun tool to break the monotony of hitting practice while discovering another gem.