I'm a HUGE proponent of swinging at first strikes. But that's only if it's in a zone the hitter likes to hit from on strike one. You won't be successful swigning at first pitch strikes that are on the black. When that happen's you need to lay off not swing.
Watching 3rd strike
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I'm a HUGE proponent of swinging at first strikes. But that's only if it's in a zone the hitter likes to hit from on strike one. You won't be successful swigning at first pitch strikes that are on the black. When that happen's you need to lay off not swing.
Perfect answer. I've been telling my girls at U14 for 6 months that they should NEVER swing at a change until two strikes and then try foul it off.
- Oct 25, 2009
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You should practice so that you can hit many areas of the zone well. Know the situation, what is needed to help the team--before you step in the box. If you get two strikes on you before you hit one well, then you have to deal with what you're thrown.
After two strikes, be the batter--not the umpire. Total focus on hitting the ball.
After two strikes, be the batter--not the umpire. Total focus on hitting the ball.
You have to go to the plate with a plan. If your plan is to not strike out, well, that's a bad plan. Plan to hit the ball. On your 1st at bat you plan to hit a good pitch. If that means taking a borderline pitch that's called a strike, so be it. If you get behind in the count, it's time to give in to the pitcher a little and hit what you can get the bat on. Usually you will get more than one at bat durring a game, so use your 1st at bat to get a good look at what the pitcher is throwing. Next at bat, if you made an out 1st time, you can look for the pitch she used to get you out. If you got a hit 1st time, you can bet she will use something else. This type of thinking will keep you focused on what you WILL do (hit), not whether or not you will strike out.
obbay
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This thread's so old I don't know if the OP is going to read this but...
I agree with what pretty much everyone has said re: don't punish a kid for making a mistake.
The consequence is they strike out. Period!
How we deal with it is working with the batter. make sure she gets ample BP and explain that she can be fussy on the first pitch, then with 1 strike you are a little less fussy, then with 2 strikes, you need to find any pitch you can get the bat on. we work with them explaining what we mean by the last comment so they understand expanding the strike zone.
also, in BP they are not to "take" any pitches, even the bad ones. it helps them learn to get the bat on the ball. then they can learn to take pitches because they don't like them, not because they can't hit them or think it could be called a ball.
Doing this throughout the season helps them improve and by the end of the season will lower the incidence of watched 3rd strikes, but they will still happen- but not because the kids are afraid to swing.
DD#1 has an excellent eye. her first year playing U16 her coach was a jackass. In a playoff game she was called out on strikes one time-it was her 2nd strikeout of the season and she was an excellent 2-strike hitter. Coach ripped her a new one for watching it go by. From that point on with two strikes she would swing at almost anything because the coach would praise her for "going down swinging" and this was a kid who had already proved she could hit at u16.
there is no place for negative reinforcement in youth sports.
I agree with what pretty much everyone has said re: don't punish a kid for making a mistake.
The consequence is they strike out. Period!
How we deal with it is working with the batter. make sure she gets ample BP and explain that she can be fussy on the first pitch, then with 1 strike you are a little less fussy, then with 2 strikes, you need to find any pitch you can get the bat on. we work with them explaining what we mean by the last comment so they understand expanding the strike zone.
also, in BP they are not to "take" any pitches, even the bad ones. it helps them learn to get the bat on the ball. then they can learn to take pitches because they don't like them, not because they can't hit them or think it could be called a ball.
Doing this throughout the season helps them improve and by the end of the season will lower the incidence of watched 3rd strikes, but they will still happen- but not because the kids are afraid to swing.
DD#1 has an excellent eye. her first year playing U16 her coach was a jackass. In a playoff game she was called out on strikes one time-it was her 2nd strikeout of the season and she was an excellent 2-strike hitter. Coach ripped her a new one for watching it go by. From that point on with two strikes she would swing at almost anything because the coach would praise her for "going down swinging" and this was a kid who had already proved she could hit at u16.
there is no place for negative reinforcement in youth sports.
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Sometimes a good pitcher will fool a hitter. You have three strikes to get your hit and if they take two good cuts and then get fooled why would you punish the hitter. Do you run to the foul pole when you call a bad pitch or send a runner that ends up being out? All you will do is drive the kids to another team or worse, they will leave the game.
Teach them to be aggressive and don't yell at them when they swing at a bad pitch. Have fun and they will too.
Teach them to be aggressive and don't yell at them when they swing at a bad pitch. Have fun and they will too.
Every situation is different and every batter is different. A coach knowing his batters is paramount to success at the plate. A coach learning the pitchers the team faces is just as important. With this knowledge, a coach can have his batters take pitches from a struggling pitcher until she throws a strike, for example. (Sounds like a plan don't it?) What I don't like is letting the Umpire decide if it was a strike or a ball. What we teach is technique and expanding your strike zone. I recall someone said a batter has three good pitches to swing at and I agree with that. A batter cannot depend on the pitcher to throw a perfect ball every time nor can she depend on the pitcher to get her on base. The only sure fire way to get on base is to hit the ball yourself and you have three good chances to do that. Only by swinging the bat AT STRIKES do you increase your odds of getting on base. Sometimes a batter gets fooled and that's OK. If blue calls it and they look at it, in games, I just say something like you cheated yourself out of one chance to hit it to let them know it's ok but don't look at a strike go by, especially strike three.
Now, as for the punishment part, I don't use running as punishment, per se. Running is a tool to help build endurance and stamina but we use it in practice to reinforce technique (we make sure to explain and reinforce this concept as well). For example, in practice, if girl isn't performing proper technique, I might say (mostly to my DD) "If you drop your bat again so-and-so going to run. It is amazing to see how they concentrate on proper technique so they don't make their friends run. LOL
I can see some of both sides of this and I agree with a great deal of what has been said in this thread to some extent or the other. Running without incentive (e.g., running 10 laps, foul poles, etc) just to run isn't productive. But running to reinforce technique is quite practical and can be made fun by incorporating things like base-running relays while teaching base-running technique.
Now, as for the punishment part, I don't use running as punishment, per se. Running is a tool to help build endurance and stamina but we use it in practice to reinforce technique (we make sure to explain and reinforce this concept as well). For example, in practice, if girl isn't performing proper technique, I might say (mostly to my DD) "If you drop your bat again so-and-so going to run. It is amazing to see how they concentrate on proper technique so they don't make their friends run. LOL
I can see some of both sides of this and I agree with a great deal of what has been said in this thread to some extent or the other. Running without incentive (e.g., running 10 laps, foul poles, etc) just to run isn't productive. But running to reinforce technique is quite practical and can be made fun by incorporating things like base-running relays while teaching base-running technique.
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- Oct 19, 2009
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I have a question: Are these kids taking thier "cruise" during the game or at the next practice?
On our 10u team we got so tired of kids getting upset (and sometimes crying) that we required her teammates to give her a high five when she gets back in the dugout. Keep in mind an upset player won't be worth much when she goes back on defense.
On our 10u team we got so tired of kids getting upset (and sometimes crying) that we required her teammates to give her a high five when she gets back in the dugout. Keep in mind an upset player won't be worth much when she goes back on defense.
- Oct 19, 2009
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Just don't do it in front of the opposing team. That ain't cool.
