Baseball Training Techniques and the T-Ball Game

Baseball Training Techniques and the T-Ball Game
By guest author: Chris Moheno

The ball is placed on an adjustable "tee" that is in the player's personal strike range, and they swing at the ball on the tee, instead of having a ball pitched to them.

This game is often played by young school age boys to learn the baseball training, such as batting positions, how to swing and the rest of the rules of baseball. The primary advantage of playing tee-ball is that the ball is automatically in the player's personal "strike zone", so they don't have to learn the hand-eye coordination that is necessary with a live pitcher. Other than that, the rules of T-ball are the same and it is primarily helpful for teaching baseball hitting skills.

If is not unusual for the young boy's tee-ball or T-ball leagues to allow the game to be played with wiffle balls and bats for safety reasons and because they are lighter. Actual T-balls are slightly larger than a baseball and softer, and there are actual bats and gloves that are used.

As the boys get older, they can learn to play with real baseballs and bats, which help them in baseball training as they enter the correct age to start learning to hit a live pitch. On some of the leagues, coaches will have them practice hitting a few live pitches to start developing the baseball training they will need later.

Because of this, the players that play tee ball or T-ball are typically between 4 and 8 years of age. There is a minimum of 12 players on each team and no more than 20, although it should be limited to 15 players. The reason for this is that each inning allows every player on each team to bat, and the inning is over after each team has allowed every player a time at bat. Games are four innings and scoring is not always used since it is to develop baseball hitting skills and learn other baseball training.

There are no strike-outs or walks and the ball must travel more than ten feet or it is a foul. Batters can't steal bases- the ball has to be hit for them to move around the bases. It teaches the players the skills necessary to play baseball and it allows all players a chance to bat and play the field.

The whole idea of T-ball is to teach the young players baseball hitting techniques and the other baseball training they will need as they graduate into playing the more difficult game of baseball. It is believed that the younger the players start, the easier it will be for them to master the game. T-ball or tee ball lets them learn baseball techniques at a slower and more enjoyable game that is not as competitive.

Many children also make the decision that they want to move into playing baseball fairly easily and on their own, as their confidence level increases and they become bored with playing tee ball. This allows the child to move easily into baseball training, which can be much more challenging and competitive. Most of the T-ball players make this transition very easily and have already mastered the hardest part of baseball hitting skills and understand the challenges they will face when they move from T-ball into baseball training.

It makes it easier for the coaches to enhance T-ball practices by throwing a few pitches for practices and the players can gradually work into this important part of judging when a live pitcher has thrown a ball in the strike zone, or out of it. Because their eyes have been trained to look for the ball in the "tee zone", it gives them an advantage over the players that have not played T-ball and decide to start playing baseball.

T-ball or tee ball, can teach young players the baseball hitting techniques they will need to know and it can also teach other baseball training, such as catching fly-balls, grounders and pop-up flies. It teaches them how to throw to base, throw to home and what the rules are as their T-ball play becomes more advanced. It is a great way for a child to transition easily into a great baseball player, when the time comes.

Chris Moheno kindly invites you to visit this comprehensive baseball training website where you will find baseball scholarship tips and answers to your general questions about baseball training and strength training, as well as a free newsletter with baseball training tips and advice.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Chris_Moheno

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Don't Forget Your (Batting) Tee Time!

Don't Forget Your (Batting) Tee Time!
By guest author: Olan Suddeth

Most experienced coaches are already quite familiar with the advice I am about to give. In their case, please forgive my restating of what might be obvious, and browse some of the other articles on this site. The new baseball coach, however, would do well to pay attention.

I am about to reveal to you the single most useful tool for improving the hitting skills of your batters. Please, take a seat. I don't want the shock to overcome you. Are you ready?

I present to you: the batting tee!

That's correct. The tee is the single most useful tool for improving the hitting skills of your batters. You may bellieve that your players are too old to benefit from a tee... and you could not be further from the truth. Did you know that major league hitters practice by hitting off of a tee every single day? Are you suggesting that your eight (or ten or twelve) year olds know more about hitting than Alex Rodriguez, Barry Bonds, Derek Lee, or other big league stars?

Now that I hopefully have your attention, I will explain why this is. Understand, there is no substitute for live pitching - tee drills cannot help with your batter's sense of timing, or his ability to pick up on or identify pitch location, pitch type, velocity, etc. But unless you have Greg Maddux pitching your batting pracice sessions, there is no way you can hope to put the ball in the same place every time, which allows you to analyze the batter's swing. With a tee, you can really watch what your hitter is doing, make suggestions, and get many, many repititions in in a reltively short period of time. This is the reason that, if you were to take your player to pretty much any professional hitting coach in the country, the first thing the coach would do would be to drag out a tee.

If your player has a hitch in his swing, you can identify it with a tee. If he needs to work on the inside pitch (or the low pitch, or the outside pitch), you can simply move the tee and give him extra repititions. If he has a loop or dip in his swing, you can place a second tee behind the one holding the ball and force him to adapt a correct swing path. With a tee, you can build the all-important muscle memory needed for a good, consistent swing.

I cannot emphasize this enough - very few practices should ever go by without your players hitting off of a tee. This is an absolutely ideal station activity, is easy to place, and if you happen to also own a net, can be done in even the smallest of spaces.

The bottom line: if you do not own a tee, and you coach a youth baseball team, go and drop a few bucks on one today. You will not regret the investment in the best hitting tool ever made.

Olan Suddeth is a little league baseball coach in the Birmingham, Alabama area. His website, Youth Baseball Info (http://www.youthbaseballinfo.com) offers free drills, articles, and tips for youth baseball coches, parents, and fans.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Olan_Suddeth

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Little League Baseball Coaching

Little League Baseball Coaching
By guest author: Joe Brockhoff

If we hold our hands up and pop our wrists, we can do that over and over again very quickly. If someone were to throw a punch at us, our hands would quickly and automatically pop up in defense.

As an infielder, we don't have to think about a ball thrown to us. Our hands will react to the direction of the ball and make the catch without having to think about it.

Think of the catcher after he gives the sign. He is taught to frame the pitch. His hands automatically go to the pitch without any thought or direction.

So the hands are auto reactors. Is this good for the hitter? The answer is: No! The hitter who allows his hands to react automatically as his first movement towards the pitch will never have full body support.

When the hands go too early, this is when we hear the coach yell out, "Wait on the pitch!"
Now, let's apply this to our baseball hitting mechanics.

These are the steps:

1. Coil (Load): The hitter collects his weight on the backside
2. Stride: a linear step towards the pitched ball (30-40% of weight transfer)
3. Body Rotation: Hips rotate toward the ball
4. Hands will then, and only then, execute the stroke

Here is one of our best little league baseball coaching tips: "HIPS TAKE US TO THE BALL. HANDS TAKE US THROUGH THE BALL."

So, when we are leaning how to hit a baseball, do we trust the hands? The answer is:

Don't trust the hands. Then, trust the hands. In other words, discipline the hands to wait until we get into the launch position, which is with the hands inside the ball and the hips rotated.

Our hands do not initiate the stroke until we rotate to the pitch. They travel in rotation with the pivot, but they do not commit to the pitch until the rotation is complete. This rotated position with the hands still back is what we call the DRIVE position. It is at this time that the hands will launch.

NOW we can trust them. Let them explode the bat to the ball.

One final note. Remember that when we hit, the hands are in a double lever system. That is, they don't personally go to the ball. They are holding the bat, which goes to the ball. The hands always end up in front of the body. They are responsible for directing the bat to the proper cut line on the pitch.

Former Tulane Hall of Fame Baseball Coach, Joe Brockhoff, fully explains his baseball hitting drills with the Super 8 Hitting System, completely demonstrated with videos and hitting drills to help you hit with more power and raise your batting average. http://www.kewego.com/video/iLyROoafMM8J.html.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Joe_Brockhoff

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Baseball Coaching Digest - 10 Recommended Safety Tips For Making Pitching Machine Use Safer

By Nick Dixon

It is important that all coaches and parents that use a pitching machine with players know the dangers involved. There are definite safety precautions that should be observed to insure the safety of all players, coaches and parents during pitching machine use. This article outlines 10 safety tips that teams and families should remember to follow to insure that no injuries occur during the use of a pitching machine.

1. Never use a pitching machine without a sturdy and safe protective "L" screen used to protect the person feeding the machine. Inspect every protective screen before you use it. Rotten or unsecured netting are dangerous. Look for holes and weak spots in the net that may allow a ball to pass through.

2. Make sure that your electrical connections are safe. An uncovered or exposed electrical wire or connection could cause shock or electrocution.

3. Always test your machine for accuracy before you start throwing pitchers to a batter. Many machines must have the speeds of the wheels set in varying speeds to prevent the ball from knuckling. Carefully read the owner manual to see recommended setting and wheel speeds for various pitches.

4. Always allow each new batter to see a pitch or two before stepping into the batter's box. A batter must have a marked or set spot to assume his stance. An unaware batter may move into the path of the ball if he does not know exactly where the machine is throwing the ball.

5. Make sure that all balls being thrown are of the same type. Different types of balls fly differently. New leather balls fly different from old and worn leather balls. Smooth or worn dimpled pitching machine balls fly different from new dimpled pitching machine balls. Test your balls to know if they fly correctly and accurately.

6. Always check your back drop or back stop area to make sure it is free of anything or anybody that a fouled ball may damage. Any backstop or screen behind the batter should also be checked for holes and weak spots.

7. Never use a new or game bat for batting practice off a pitching machine. The weight of the balls and the speed of the thrown balls can damage expensive thin walled bats.

8. Always make sure that the batter and feeder have on batting helmets. This rule should apply if a player is feeding the pitching machine.

9. When using a pitching machine in a batting cage, make sure that the cage walls on all four sides are overlapping enough on the floor or ground to contain all hit or pitched balls.

10. It is recommended that the person feeding the machine display some sort of arm movement or motion to give the batter an action that simulates live arm action. One commonly used motion is to use two balls. One ball is held in the opposite hand from the hand feeding the balls into the machine. The feeder holds the ball high above the machine feed slot. The feeder slowly drops the ball and touches the back of the hand that is actually dropping the ball into the machine. When that contact is made, the ball is dropped into the machine. This action helps the batter develop a rhythm or timing. This arm motion allows the batter to "tripper" of load and get ready to hit.

I hope these safety tips and precautions are helpful to you. Good luck to you and your team. Have a great day, Nick.

The CoachesBest Baseball Store has a great selection of 1400 Baseball Products. Check out the BatAction Hitting Machine baseball pitching simulator. This high speed training machine is 100% Guaranteed to raise Batting Averages and has a full year warranty.

Nick Dixon is the President and founder of Nedco Sports, a sports training company established in 1999. Dixon is also an active and full time high school baseball coach with over 25 years experience. Coach Dixon is better known as the inventor of the BatAction Hitting Machine, the SKLZ Derek Jeter Hurricane Hitting Machine, the SKLZ Target Trainer, the SKLZ Derek Jeter ZipnHit Pro, and the SKLZ Strikeback Trainer. Dixon is also a contributing writer for BaseballCoachingDigest, the Youth Baseball Digest, the Baseball Parent Guide, the Baseball 2Day Coaches Journal, and Blog4Coaches.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nick_Dixon

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Little League Baseball Training

By Eugene Rischall

Little league baseball is very popular. It is important youngsters start off on the right foot when starting to play baseball. This article gives very important baseball training tips that youngsters will benefit from all their baseball playing life.

To start off you need the right type of equipment. Bats come in different weights and lengths. It is important to use the bat that feels most comfortable to you. Do not use a bat that is too heavy. The speed of the bat in your swing is more important than the weight. Bat control will help you hit the ball more often and harder. You have to wear a batting helmet when batting and on deck. It is a rule. The helmet should fit snugly, but not too tight. Other than catching and first base all fielders wear a fielders glove. Outfielders should wear a glove as large as possible, infielders should use a small glove. First basemen use a large scooplike glove, and catchers gloves are big and more padded. All males must wear an athletic supporter. Catchers must wear a protective cup.

Hitters should fell as comfortable at the plate as possible. They need a good grip, stance, stride, swing, and follow-through. Also working the count is very important. One of the best ways to practice your mechanics is by hitting off a tee. The tee is a great baseball training aid. You do not have to worry about a pitch, so you can concentrate on all the little things.

Pitching is very important to determining the outcome of a game. Before the season starts a pitcher should learn the mechanics, practice without the ball, watch yourself in a mirror, and run. The stronger your legs are the better you can pitch. Before a game starts, shake arms and legs, stretch, start warm-up with easy throwing and then throw harder. There are three steps in becoming a good pitcher, learn to throw strikes, learn to change speeds, and move the ball around effectively. I hope this article gives little leaguers an idea of becoming a better baseball and softball player. Proper techniques will greatly improve your game.

Author: Eugene Rischall, Owner, Baseball Training Emporium at http://www.baseballtrainingemporium.com.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Eugene_Rischall

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