Training Aids

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Ok, this question goes out to all the great coaches out there and parents of older girls who have been there.
When you first started out, way back when, when not every girl had an expensive bat, and just fundraising enough to cover tournament fees was hard, what training aids did you use? ?As a parent what were you able to use at home? ?As a coach what really worked in those first couple years? ?With all the expensive stuff on the market what were you able to come up with that seemed to really help your players. ?Have any plans for constructing homemade equipment? ?Anyone got anything good?

Great Big Thank You in advance to OFC and all involved! ?Appreciate all the advice you have!

 

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If you are talking hitting, many things we use we make ourself. Let me know and I will PM you some of
the things I have picked up that are easy to make and work.

 

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When I coached 10 & 12U (a long time ago), I bought cheap sefety glasses, put electrical tape horizontally 1/3 way up the glasses (this was to obstruct the lower view of vision), and had the girls wear them while taking ground balls. This was very effective for teaching young players to keep their heads and eyes engaged all the way to the glove. You can buy the glasses commercially now, but I made them myself very cheaply. I sometimes still use this for the older girls who are struggling.

 

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I just sent you a PM, sorry it is so long, but just giving you some. I have more, after you sort thru this batch. Most I have learned from others and all the college camps I have attended.

 

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Hey Family, could you just post what you have :-/

 

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I would , but lately It seems like we have some new OFC members that like to attack you. So I would ?rather PM them and let that person decide if it wll help them. ?If it's hitting I have picked up many from the college camps and working with some smart hitting coaches. ?Fielding , all from college camps and clinics. If you are looking for something just let me know and I can PM you.

Here are some
T Stacker very good hitting device that you can make your own with PVC pipe. ?They are cheap and I bought 3 thru softball.com

T's make you own using dry wall buckets , use concrete in bottom and PVC or steel pipe. Rubber pipe on end . You can get everything I make thru a hardware store.

Hitting disks to warm up with at a park. : Why buy them , when you can use coffee lids or the lids off of Microwave soup tops.

Fielding : many tennis ball drills kids can do in the basement by themself.

?

 

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Let them attack, if a person cant win an argument with logic and facts and start a personal attack it wont take long before people see them for what they are, this board is about sharing ideas and information, let em go to huddle and whine

 

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One of the girls favorites has been wiffle golf balls and a chopped off broom handle.
This is great practice for "eyes at the point of contact"
We usually let the girls compete to see who can hit the most out of 10 pitches.
for the young girls I usually sit on a bucket about 15 feet away and do a dart style toss.
After some practice, the girls LOVE to hit line drives and try to knock me off my bucket.
WARNING!!! I still have some pretty nasty wiffle ball welts to this day. ;D

 

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Bouldersdad: You are correct. Many of my ideas come from coaches like Howard Carrier, so I know I'm learning from the best.

 

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I really like the tee stacker's concept as I feel it promotes hitting the ball at a slight angle upwards and in the middle of the ball. We term this keeping our hands above the plane of the pitch. To try it simply get a softball whiffle ball and place it on the tee and orient it so there is a hole on top and then place a soft ball on the whiffle ball. You might want to tie a string on the ball and onto the tee so you don't have to keep chasing the ball.

When you can hit the softball off the tee without the whiffle ball coming off the tee you are stroking the ball in my opinion. With the tee stacker's you can stack three balls and do this.

What was funny was when our Brother Boulders Dad attempted this after seeing his daughter do it with little difficulty...that was a You Tube moment and thats the Truth.

To simulate low pitches you can use a two liter bottle and place the ball on top and hit it. If you think it is too low simply measure from the bottom of the knee or what is termed the hollow of the knee and it is usually 17 to 19 inches and ask yourself if the umpire has ever called a strike that low. You should be able to hit a pitch that is 5 inches in/ out or above or below the offical strike zone in my opinion.

Hope this helps...Howard

Howard

 

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Derek Jeter Zip-N-Hit Pro Baseball Training Aid has worked great for our girls and cost about $25.00

 

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My daughters' Hitting coach recommended using a 4' 2x4 to stand on when hitting from the tee. Said it will help keep them "balanced and centered" if done correctly (on the balls of their feet). The 4' section is elevated by two 1' 2x4 sections attached at 90 degress at each end. I thought I saw some negative commets about using this homemade device on this forum. Wondered what you folks on the forum thought ... particularly Howard if he wouldn't mind responding.

 

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Howard will tell you ?NO! ? Look at his post under power beam on 12-28-07 Page 4 of this section and he gives the reasons in detail. I E coaches section.

 

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Dan is correct I do not recommend this device or drill as the heels must be used through out the swing for maximum power to be generated. Being balanced is not accomplished by the heels of the shoes being off the ground. Look at the coaches corner...Difference of opinion for a post with Ifubuiltit for balance details.

Howard

Re: Power Beam Hitting Aid
Reply #12 - 12/28/07 at 12:10am Quote Modify Remove
Hitter 23 we know each other and you asked my opinion... I'm not knocking the concept however reality is not reached using this product in my opinion. First it would have to be at least 12 inches wide minimum or more for most kids not just girls. And that surface would have to be 36 inches in length to accommodate both boys and girl hitters. The front foot needs a landing area that allows the lead foot to plant so the toe and the heel can completely get down and have a place to settle down, so to speak, to create a foundation to rotate on or block the hip into rotation.

Next the back foot needs to roll inside on the inside edge of the foot so the weight of the knee is going inside the back leg or the knee being inside the back foot allows it the knee to go under and forward as you rotate. You will see a skipping action or the back foot totally leave the ground or slide forward under the hitter. Without non skid this would or could cause you to slip. Without the platform being wide enough this could not happen. This could promote squishing the bug as you could rotate on the toe because you can not keep the inside edge of your foot engaged on the platform.

As far as the balance...stepping, striding with a bent, flexed front knee has nothing to do with the surface you are actually landing on. It has to do with going to toe touch on a flexed front knee regardless of the surface you are stepping on. Without the knee being flexed the hips will not move forward and the weight will not move inside the back foot knee. Consider the surface you actually have in the batters box and what is it remotely similar to the beam or the beam flexing? Is the ground flexing while you are going to toe touch?

Consider Carol whom I know and I doubt in my opinion would use a 2x4 because she would not have the foot i.e. toe being touched down without the heel being planted as she uses RVP techniques. She would not have the hitter be on just their toe without the heel being down also. Now if this was prior to 2004 then maybe she did it but in my opinion she stopped doing it after Dec. 2004, when she met Don Slaught.

I have seen this technique of using the 2x4 being used at clinics in this area and without the heel being planted on the lead foot however how could you block the front hip and acheive rotation properly. This is promoting squishing the bug. This is as bad as promoting to swing level or down on the ball. No one I know of at the ISF or NPF level promote this and no one on TEAM USA uses or promotes this technique but we do in this area of the country.

You would think the NFCA education taking place and or Candrea or Enquist having their success by not swinging down or level on the ball we would listen and learn from the best of the best.

However they do teach swinging at a slight angle to match the plane of the incoming pitch. This is not a new concept except in this area of the country. We are still in some respects locked into the 1986 era of hitting.

A college coach here locally said, "It is not the distance between home and first base that is the greatest distance, it is the distance between your two ears," and "When you stop learning it is over as a coach!"

You want to feel balanced and flexed by bending at the waist first and then softening the knees in that sequence and step on a flexed front knee, no matter what surface you are landing on and you are on your way....but Hitter 23 you knew that...Nat Bug hit her first home run this year in college on her first at bat!

Howard

 

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Thanks SBFAMILY & thanks Howard, read the threads you directed me to & that about says it all. ?I like getting as much info as I can, pros & cons, ?to make informed decisions ... just trying to do the best I can for my girls.

Also, I do have one tool that I use more than any of the other homemade or store-bought devices that I own. ?It's the bottom half of an inexpensive rubber hitting tee with a sawed-off broom handle inserted down the middle. ?The broom handle sticks up about 12" above the top of the tee. ?My 14-yr-old ?uses it for Catcher drills. ?I sit about 15' away and underhand softballs at the stick ... we use it for tracking, blinking, foul tip, and bunting drills. ?My 16-yr-old pitcher also uses it as a target when she doesn't have a Catcher to practice with ?(and when I'm too aggravated with her to catch her myself ?> :-[). ?For pitching practice she has a bucket of balls (& a net) ?and will set the stick up behind the inside or outside corner of the plate. ?Also gives her a good visual reference of the result.

 

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Swingbuster from swingbuster.com
It teaches girls the hardest concepts that they just dont understand.
1.) To stride - before you know if its a ball or stirke,if you wait its to late- every pitch they should be striding toward the pitcher - it is also for timing - does not have to be a big stride
2.) quick bat
3.) take their hands to the ball
4.) watch the ball hit the bat

 

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I want to thank you all for the great advice! ?I've been lurking and barely posting for several years now and it is great to be able to reach out and get advice from those who know.

Hopefully the problems that make one leary of giving advice will go away...

Again thanks for all the help, I may not be an addicted member but I am truly addicted to OFC.

 

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I make my own stride boards. ?They run about $135 - $210 to purchase, I can build one for about $23 dollars painted. ?It has a 4" x 4" square with a lazy susan ?swivel to teach squishing the bug, thus getting the hips through. ?Pretty easy to make. ?I would have to pull mine down from the garage attack to provide exact measurements. ?

Hitting lentals with a broom stick cut down to 34" (handle tapped with electricians tape or replacement bat wrap) to increase the ability to see a ball by focusing on smaller items. ?Very cheap cost wise.

Also do softball/wiffle balls on a heavier nylon rope. ?Just feed eight balls onto the rope with a "D" clip. ?Take about 12 ft of rope. ?Take anything to make a handle ?and attach to rope after you have placed balls onto the rope. ?Now tie a knot about 4 inches from handle and 4 foot from "D" clip. ?Can be hooked to any chain link fence and the girls get 8 hits to warm up on. ?Compact and easy to repair.

Last thing that we did that is more of a stationary items is taking two old tires. ?Take a metal pole, like many high schools use for make shift volleyball nets and set into one tire with concrete. ?Next you drill holes in the other tire just slightly larger than the pole. ?Use cotter pins ?to hold in place by drilling hole just below and above the tire. ?(Height of tire will depend on age group using.) Use washers between the tire and the cotter pins to reduce friction. ?We use this to build the upper body by hitting with and OLD bat. ?Our goal was to have the girls hit the tire hard enough to rotate a minimum of three times for the High School girls and anything over one rotation for the Junior High age girls. ?Again a great way to build the upper body.

Just a few things to consider.

 

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Defense...put their hats in their mouths, this helps in keeping their heads down while fielding
lob balls to them on the ground in the rocks, this helps in tracking the ball

Hitting...lob a basketball to them to hit, teaches them to hit through and finish (use a real cheap plastic BB)
Get in your cabinet and get some soup beans to hit, teaches to focus on ball until impact (nob first then barrel)

Throwing...get a stuffed animal out and set it 20 to 30 yards away and make it game to see who can hit it. competition will improve their accruacy and they will follow through with their throws

I hope this helps.

 

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I have a question. I have heard a lot about not squishing the bug lately. But when googling vids of some of the best, I still see them rotating their back foot. Please help me understand this new concept.

Thanks in Advance