 |
| NJ SPORTS TRAINING |
 |
 |
|
|
|
 |
Coach Tom Hennessey's Corner
Tom Hennessey is the Colonia High School JV head coach and head coach of one of the 2 Colonia Junior American Legion teams. Each week, "Coach H" will be giving a baseball tip or stategy on this page. If you have any baseball questions for "Coach H", please email them to LMDJRX4@aol.com and he will answer one per week. Check back often.
In the next few weeks, we will focus on the 3 key elements of hitting.
"YOU ARE NO BETTER A HITTER THAN THE PITCH AT WHICH YOU CHOSE TO SWING"
Even on pitches in the strike zone, a hitter will have a higher percentage of success on a fastball down the middle than a breaking ball on the black of the plate. He should be selective and swing at only those pitches with which he can expect a high degree of success early in the count and layoff those strikes that he can NOT expect a high degree of success until later in the count. How often do you hear a slumping hitter complain of not getting any good pitches to hit after bouncing one to third and making an out on a first pitch breaking ball on the black of the plate? He never gave the pitcher a chance to make a mistake. He got himself out by by his inability to see the ball off the pitchers fingers, costing him valuable decision making time, then he committed his weight to his front foot and swung weakly at an off speed pitch out of his hitting zone. It all sounds so simple but these 3 elements are the crux of the on going struggle hitters face everyday.
"KEEP YOUR WEIGHT BACK"
Hitting is timing and pitching is destroying timing. If the pitcher can get a hitter out on his front foot, he can own him with off-speed stuff. The longer a hitter can keep his weight coiled on his back side the longer he gets to see the ball before making that critical swing/take decision.
"SEEING THE BALL"
This might seem obvious as there are no blind players in the Major League. (They all go into umpiring). But as the ball travels from the pitcher to the plate in approximately .4 of a second, and the hitter must determine the speed, spin and location and whether to swing in approximately .2 seconds, the sooner he can pick up the ball the better. When hitters are hitting well they speak of "seeing the ball well" and when they are slumping they are not "seeing the ball well". What is the difference? Those that are "seeing the ball well" are picking it up right off the pitchers fingertips. Those that are not, have not narrowed their focus from including the outfielders, the birds in the trees behind the fence or even the moon. By the time they pick up the ball it may have traveled 3 or more feet and they have lost precious hundreths of a second in the critical decision making process. Picking up the ball as soon as possible is one key element in hitting.
| |
|
| | |
|
|
|
Central Jersey Patriots Baseball Club, Inc
|
| |
| |
|
Get a FREE Web Site Powered by LeagueLineup.com
LeagueLineup can also be used for Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Fantasy Leagues, Games (Xbox, etc.) and more.
|
| | |
| | |
|
