Baseball Tips On Hitting: Are You Swinging Late At Pitches
Having a hard time catching up to the “heater?” Here are seven very good baseball tips on hitting that should make you quicker to the ball. Any player, coach, or baseball parent who wants to help their son will benefit.
When looking to solve a baseball hitting problem, always look for the easiest “fix” first. Here is a list of some possible solutions if you are swinging late and not catching up to the pitch:
1) Make sure you are not using a bat that is too heavy for you. Like I said, we look for the easiest solution first.
2) Make sure you are loading up early enough and giving yourself enough time to get the bat into the hitting zone. You never want to load up late so if needed, load up earlier. I’ve seen many 10 to 12 year olds going back toward the catcher when the pitch is already on its way. This makes baseball hitting impossible. Watch for this with younger players. Many are swinging late at pitches simply because they are loading up too late. I’ve seen it many, many times.
3) Many youngsters in particular, have the bad habit of loading up twice. You go back once, not twice. They load up once and then they make the common mistake of loading up a little bit more. You can’t be going back toward the catcher when the pitch is on its way. It’s similar to what we mentioned above, but it’s not loading up late, it’s actually loading up twice.
4) You are possibly taking too long a route to the ball. Be more direct when going from point A, where you are “loaded up,” to point B, where you make contact. The first movement after you are loaded up should be down toward the ball and the bat should level out only at the point of contact. It definitely makes my top five list of baseball tips on hitting! Many of the weaker baseball hitters at all levels of play have the bat parallel to the ground at the beginning of the baseball swing and this is wrong.
5) Another possibility for swinging late at pitches is the bottom of the knob of the bat is facing toward the catcher when you are loaded up. This will cause the bat to have to travel a much greater distance to get to the ball and make you late on your swing. And be careful that the bat is not wrapped too far around your head. Again, the bat will have to travel too far and you will be late on the pitch.
6) When swinging, you don’t want to have your hands too far away from your body, which causes the front arm to straighten out too soon. This will cause a longer and indirect swing, causing you to be late on the pitch.
7) Maybe you are gripping the bat too tightly. It’s a known fact that you can swing the bat more efficiently and quicker by not gripping it too tightly.
One of the best baseball tips on hitting you will ever hear is that you go from point A, where you are loaded up, to point B, where you make contact, in a straight line. The ONLY way this is possible is if you have your front elbow pointing down at the very start of your swing. Contrary to what many believe, the swing levels out only at the point of contact! Baseball parents, players and youth coaches, I post a new FREE baseball article on hitting, pitching or fielding every Monday at LarryBaseball.com that you can add to your favorites now. Iโm quite sure you and other baseball people you share them with will benefit by reading them and I promise you will be raising a few eyebrows!
