Quick and Effective Softball Hitting Tips

By Marc Dagenais

Whether you're a softball coach or player, you're probably aware that it takes a lot of time and dedication to be the best that you can ever be. Even the world's top coaches and players had to start from scratch like everyone else.

But we have to admit that there are also times when we simply can't spend too much time learning something. Take for example a situation wherein your best pitcher was injured, and therefore, your secondary pitcher should step up. You could spend an entire season refining her technique. But it would also help if you have a quick remedy to the situation under your sleeve.

That's why I came up with these quick yet effective softball hitting tips. I made this for coaches and players who need something quick and easy to implement to help step up their game.

1. Train with the Overload/Underload Training Protocol. Doing this training protocol helps increase your bat swing by 2-3 mph. To do this, you need 3 bats of different weights: 1 regular bat, 1 heavy bat, and 1 light bat. As a rule of thumb, the heavy and light bat should be around 15-20% more or less of the regular bat's weight.

First, you swing the heavy bat 10 times, then, the light bat 10 times. Finally, pick up the regular bat and try to replicate the bat speed you achieved with the light bat for another 10 swings. Perform this set 3 times.

To achieve maximum results, I recommend you do this training protocol 2-3 times per week for 6-8 weeks. You will, then, notice a 2-3 increase in your bat speed after that.

2. Swing with a regular bat on the deck. Contrary to popular belief, swinging with a heavy bat on the deck actually slows down your bat speed. That's why I recommend you swing with a regular bat, or a bat that's 2-3 oz. lighter than the regular one.

The reason for this is that, what you're after is to loosen your muscles before stepping on the plate, and not to strengthen your muscles. So again, swing with a regular bat when you're on the deck, not a heavy one.

3. Approach the plate with confidence. Nothing speaks louder on your lack of confidence than the way you approach the plate. If you're slouching and dragging your bat to the plate, then, you're telling the opposing team that you're an easy prey.

Therefore, I suggest that you approach the plate with an air of confidence. Stand upright and look the pitcher in the eye. Chances are, the pitcher will be more afraid of you than you are of her.

So if you're looking for quick and easy tips to improve your game or that of your players, I'm sure these three tips I shared with you will do just that.

But don't just depend on these softball hitting tips. I recommend that you also come up with a long term solution to your situation to put your game to an ever higher gear than you're playing now.

Marc Dagenais is a Softball Peak Performance Coach that helps softball players turn their athletic talent into extraordinary performances and help coaches get more out of their players, turn their struggling team around or get an edge over their opponents. Visit us to sign-up to get our FREE softball pitching tips!

Article Source: Whether you're a softball coach or player, you're probably aware that it takes a lot of time and dedication to be the best that you can ever be. Even the world's top coaches and players had to start from scratch like everyone else.

But we have to admit that there are also times when we simply can't spend too much time learning something. Take for example a situation wherein your best pitcher was injured, and therefore, your secondary pitcher should step up. You could spend an entire season refining her technique. But it would also help if you have a quick remedy to the situation under your sleeve.

That's why I came up with these quick yet effective softball hitting tips. I made this for coaches and players who need something quick and easy to implement to help step up their game.

1. Train with the Overload/Underload Training Protocol. Doing this training protocol helps increase your bat swing by 2-3 mph. To do this, you need 3 bats of different weights: 1 regular bat, 1 heavy bat, and 1 light bat. As a rule of thumb, the heavy and light bat should be around 15-20% more or less of the regular bat's weight.

First, you swing the heavy bat 10 times, then, the light bat 10 times. Finally, pick up the regular bat and try to replicate the bat speed you achieved with the light bat for another 10 swings. Perform this set 3 times.

To achieve maximum results, I recommend you do this training protocol 2-3 times per week for 6-8 weeks. You will, then, notice a 2-3 increase in your bat speed after that.

2. Swing with a regular bat on the deck. Contrary to popular belief, swinging with a heavy bat on the deck actually slows down your bat speed. That's why I recommend you swing with a regular bat, or a bat that's 2-3 oz. lighter than the regular one.

The reason for this is that, what you're after is to loosen your muscles before stepping on the plate, and not to strengthen your muscles. So again, swing with a regular bat when you're on the deck, not a heavy one.

3. Approach the plate with confidence. Nothing speaks louder on your lack of confidence than the way you approach the plate. If you're slouching and dragging your bat to the plate, then, you're telling the opposing team that you're an easy prey.

Therefore, I suggest that you approach the plate with an air of confidence. Stand upright and look the pitcher in the eye. Chances are, the pitcher will be more afraid of you than you are of her.

So if you're looking for quick and easy tips to improve your game or that of your players, I'm sure these three tips I shared with you will do just that.

But don't just depend on these softball hitting tips. I recommend that you also come up with a long term solution to your situation to put your game to an ever higher gear than you're playing now.

Marc Dagenais is a Softball Peak Performance Coach that helps softball players turn their athletic talent into extraordinary performances and help coaches get more out of their players, turn their struggling team around or get an edge over their opponents. Visit us to sign-up to get our FREE softball pitching tips!

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





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Improve Your Team's Performance With These Softball Hitting Drills

www.BatAction.com

By Marc Dagenais

Your team's offense is as important as your defense. Good defense that's not complemented by points scored by your team won't amount to anything especially if your opponent outscores you.

Thus, it's important that you should also give a significant amount of your practice time to softball hitting drills. Look for drills that will help you hit the ball further and more accurately, give you quicker reflexes and enable you to anticipate what the pitcher is going to throw at you.

So here are some softball hitting drills I have for you to use during practice. Each drill has a specific purpose to it and each of them aims to improve a certain aspect of your player's game. Read on and learn more.

Tee Drill

This is probably one of the most basic hitting drills that every coach should have. A tee drill helps your players practice the proper hitting mechanics while at the same time let them practice hitting the balls in different areas on the plate.

Partners should do this drill: a hitter and a feeder. The feeder places the ball on the tee and at the same time moves the tee to different areas on the home plate and adjusts the height to practice hitting low and high as well as inside, middle and outside pitches.

Finger Flash

While a majority of hitting drills focus on the proper mechanics, developing batting strength and speed, you should also train your players to read and find the pitcher's release point. This will help increase your batter's reaction time so she can immediately adjust accordingly the way she hits the ball.

To perform this drill, there must be a hitter and a pitcher. But instead of throwing a ball to the batter, the pitcher would flash 1,2, or 3 fingers. The batter would then call out the number the pitcher flashed.

Two-Pitch Game

More than just a training for your batters, this drill would also help your team practice particular game situations.

The two-pitch game does what its name says. Batters are only allowed two opportunities to hit the ball. When the batter hits the first pitch, she would move on to the 1st base. Otherwise, she would have to hit again. A 2nd missed hit is an out.

Pivot Rotation

You must also teach your players to hit the ball correctly by performing the proper hitting mechanics. To do this, isolating a particular area of the body involved would make it easier for you to teach the correct way of hitting the ball. In the case of doing the proper hip rotation, there's the Pivot Rotation drill.

In this drill, let your player put the bat behind her back and lock it with her arms. Let her then take her normal stance. After that, let the player pop her hips, quickly rotating her trunk while pivoting on her back foot. After doing this, the player must remain balanced and shouldn't move either feet.

There you have it, drills to help your players improve their batting by developing their reflexes, hitting mechanics and accuracy. If you want more softball drills similar to these, make sure you check out my website at http://www.Softballperformance.com.

Marc Dagenais is a Softball Peak Performance Coach that helps softball players turn their athletic talent into extraordinary performances and help coaches get more out of their players, turn their struggling team around or get an edge over their opponents. Visit us to sign-up to get our FREE softball pitching tips!

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

Softball Hitting Techniques to Improve Your Game

www.HurricaneMachine.com

By Marc Dagenais

Do you want to produce more runs for your team? Do you want to have the ability to keep the ball out of your opponent's reach every time you hit the ball?

Then you must work on your softball hitting techniques. Each player have his own unique way of approaching how to hit the ball, but there are some techniques that will help you improve your batting much better.

Want to know what these hitting techniques are? Then read on and find out more about them.

Grip

Let's begin with the grip. You might not be aware of it, but the way how you grip the bat can have a significant impact on where and how far the ball will go.

There are many players who tend to choke the bat thinking it would provide them with more control and power when they hit the ball. But that isn't the case, unfortunately. When you grip the bat too tightly, you will reduce the power of your batting, unless of course that's what you're aiming for.

But if you want to bring the ball further out of the field, your grip must be loose. You must hold the bat with your fingers and not with your palms. Also make your wrists a little more flexible to further loosen your grip on the bat.

Swing

The way you swing the bat will also affect how far out you can take the ball when you hit it. Although it may seem that swinging is largely dependent on your arms and shoulders, the foundation of a good swing begins with your legs and hips. So keep in mind how you bend your knees and rotate your hips when hitting the ball.

Of course, your shoulders do play an important role in your swing as well. When trying to hit the ball, your shoulders must remain relaxed. This will help you keep your eyes on the approaching ball better and you will have more control of your swing.

Follow Through

A lot players cut their swing short just after they've hit the ball. But you must always follow through whenever you hit the ball, as it can help you get the ball further compared to stopping your swing abruptly.

To get a good follow through with your swing, you should let your arms extend and your wrists roll over, with your hands ending near your front shoulder and your chin on the back shoulder.

If you're not practicing your follow through just yet, I strongly recommend that you do so. Because as much as it seems insignificant on how you hit the ball, the truth is that you can drive the ball further with a good follow through.

So let me sum up for you the softball hitting techniques I discussed in this article. If you want to be able to hit the ball further and harder, you should keep in mind to keep your grip on the bat loose, your swing should begin with your legs and hips, and finally, you must always follow your bat through.

Marc Dagenais is a Softball Peak Performance Coach that helps softball players turn their athletic talent into extraordinary performances and help coaches get more out of their players, turn their struggling team around or get an edge over their opponents. Visit us to sign-up to get our FREE softball pitching tips!

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

Your Simplified Guide to Softball Rules

By Marc

If you're a player who's just getting into softball or a spectator who wants to gain more appreciation for the game, then knowing the rules in playing softball would definitely help.

It could be a headache to try to understand all the rules of softball at the same time. Every year, there are minor changes being made to the game and it could be difficult for everyone to keep track of that. Some leagues also modify the rules depending on their requirements, which could make their rules even more different.

That's why I'm providing you here with some of the most basic softball rules to help you get started. These are the rules that you will see applied to most, if not all of the games so you'll be able to pick these rules out almost immediately the next time you watch a game.

Here they are.

The Players and Teams

Let's begin with the number of players. Each team must have 9 players each to play the game.

The defensive side is composed of the pitcher, catcher, 3 basemen, 1 shortstop and 3 outfielders. The pitcher is the one that throws the pitch at the catcher who's positioned behind the batter's plate. Basemen are assigned to each of the bases, while the shortstop is positioned in the middle of the 2nd and 3rd bases. Finally, the outfielders are positioned in the outfield.

The offensive side is the one that hits the ball. There is a certain batting order for each team that will be followed throughout the game.

Deciding which side a team plays first is done by a toss coin at the beginning of the game.

Game Length

There are 7 innings in a game. An inning is where both teams take turns in playing offense and defense. Some rules may limit the game further into a certain time period, while others may be limited by the number of runs a team is leading.

Scoring in Softball

There are two ways a team can score in softball. One is when a batter hits a homerun - that's when the ball is hit and goes outside the field - or when a base runner safely runs to the home plate.

Foul, Ball, Strike, Out

A foul ball is called when the ball is hit to either of the foul areas found on the right side of the 1st base and the left of the 3nd base.

When a pitch doesn't enter the strike zone, it is called a ball. Four balls would be equal to a walk, where the hitter walks to the first base. If a base runner is on the first base during a walk, she proceeds to the 2nd base.

Meanwhile, a pitch is called a strike when it comes within the strike zone. Three strikes would result in an out.

A base runner is considered out when she is tagged with the ball before reaching the base. A batter is also considered out when the defensive team catches the ball she hit before it reaches the ground.

The offensive team is only allowed three outs. After that, the teams change sides.

This is by no means a comprehensive guide of rules used in softball as some leagues incorporate some rules of their own or modify the rules depending on their own requirements.

What I have shared with you are some of the most basic softball rules that will aid you in understanding the game better. With that knowledge, I hope you'll be able to appreciate the game even further.

Marc Dagenais is a Softball Peak Performance Coach that helps softball players turn their athletic talent into extraordinary performances and help coaches get more out of their players, turn their struggling team around or get an edge over their opponents. Visit us to sign-up to get our FREE softball pitching tips!

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

Tips on Coaching Softball Hitting

By Marc Dagenais

If you want to have a well-rounded team, you must teach them how to perform all the aspects of the game well. You should teach them how to pitch and throw the ball correctly. You should also show them how to slide. And of course, you should teach them how to hit with more power and accuracy.

Unfortunately, there are a lot of so-called hitting coaches who do not have an idea on how to teach players how to hit the ball correctly. They only tell players to do this and that but never really know if that's what the particular player really needs to improve her hitting. Worse, these coaches never show players HOW to do it.

So if you want to improve your team's hitting, here are some of my softball hitting tips for you.

Before You Teach Softball Hitting Techniques

First, you should begin by looking into each of your player's hitting technique. You could do this by letting them hit the ball several times and find out what they're doing. But if you want to be more accurate in your analysis, I strongly recommend that you videotape their swings so you can review them several times, and if possible, slow it down.

Once you've nailed down what's working and not for each of your players, you should provide each of them with feedback. It eats up your time but it's something that will truly help your team become better hitters.

But what particular areas of softball hitting should you look out for?

Teaching Your Team the Proper Softball Hitting Techniques

One of the areas you should look out for is the stance. Teaching your players the proper stance is important for several reasons. For one, it helps them to keep their balance while on the plate. Another thing is that a confident or aggressive stance can also play a significant role in the mental part of the game.

You should also teach your players how to handle the bat correctly. The tendency of most players is to choke the handle of the bat, hoping that it will provide them with better grip and control. It does provide them with better grip, but gripping the bat tightly reduces the bat and ball speed. Tell them to loosen up their grip on the bat instead.

Anticipation is also important for your players to hit the ball with greater accuracy. To improve your team's anticipation and accuracy, teach them how the track the path of the ball from the time it leaves the pitcher's hand to the time it goes within their hitting range.

All in all, it's about teaching your players the correct softball hitting mechanics. When they know how to hit the ball correctly, they will be able to do it with lesser effort but with more accuracy and power. And as a coach, there's probably nothing more you could wish for from an offensive point of view.

But you should also take a scientific approach at coaching your players in doing the correct hitting mechanics. Take the time to individually analyze the way they hit the ball so you can provide each of them with specific advice on how to improve their hitting.

Marc Dagenais is a Softball Peak Performance Coach that helps softball players turn their athletic talent into extraordinary performances and help coaches get more out of their players, turn their struggling team around or get an edge over their opponents. Visit us to sign-up to get our FREE softball pitching tips!

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