The Baseball Coaching Digest

Baseball Coaching Digest - The Three Best Slides in Baseball and 3 Coaching Tips For Teaching Each

2011-12-19T07:42:00.000-08:00

Baseball Coaching Digest - The Three Best Slides in Baseball and 3 Coaching Tips For Teaching Each
By guest author: Nick Dixon

Baseball sliding is an important skill for baseball players to master. It is every baseball coaches responsibility to teach every player how to slide safely. Every player should know the different kinds of slides and when each type slide is used. This article explains the three safest types of baseball slides and gives coaching points for each.

Sliding is difficult to practice. I can be relatively to easy teach if the coach knows how to properly execute each slide. Until players have a chance execute slides repetitively, they do not gain the confidence they should have to use the slides in a game. The best ways to practice baseball sliding if you do not have a slide practicing mat, is to wet the grass, use nylon cloth or card board on gym floors, or practice sliding in soft loose dirt.

There are a couple of basic safety points that should be remembered when executing all baseball slides. You must start the slide at least four steps from the bag. Sliding late is a commonly cause of ankle and leg injury. Keeping the hands high also prevent injury to hands, fingers and wrist.

Pop-Up or Stand-Up Slide - This slide is the safest and most popular sliding technique. It offers one definite advantage over other slides. The pop-up slide allows runners to advance more easily should an errant throw be made by the defense.

Three coaching points for the stand-up slide:

1. The left leg is bent and is under the right leg. The right leg is extended and it should be slightly bent.
2. The runner slides evenly on both lower cheeks of his rear end or on both back pockets.
3. The runner should adjust the slide path according to the position the fielder has assumed and where the tag glove is likely to be placed. The runner can touch the bag with his foot going directly into the bag or with a hand if the runner slides away from the bag.

Hook Slide - The hook slide is so named because of the "bent or hooked" positions of the legs during the slide and the fact that the bag is "hooked" or tagged with the back foot. The slide can to the right or left of the bag as the play requires.

Three coaching points for the "Hook" slide are:

1. The runner slides on one hip pocket or the other. The body is tilted during the slide. The body should be titled toward the side of the bag on which the slide is being made.
2. The bag is tagged with the back foot.
3. The hook slide is often used by runners attempting to break up a double play. It is also a good slide to use when trying to avoid an awaiting tag by the defender.

Reach-Around or Decoy Slide - The decoy slide is the most difficult to tech, learn, master and practice. It is a slide used when the ball beat the runner to the bag by 5 steps. The decoy slide is used to fool or trick the player making the tag. The sliding runner will fake tagging the bag with one hand and use the other hand to reach around the tag. The decoy is used only as a "last resort" to try avoiding a tag when the runner find himself "dead-to-rights" and sees the ball and tag waiting on him.

Three coaching points for the "Decoy" slide are:

1. The decoy slide must be started earlier than other slides.
2. The decoy slide should be made some distance away from the bag. The distance should allow the runner to reach the bag with both hands. The distance should require the fielder to reach way from the bag to make the tag. This reaching motion gives the runner a spot to avoid and reach around. The secret is to "sucker" the defender with one hand, then withdraw that hand, and reach around the tag with the other hand avoiding a tag and reaching the bag safely.
3. The sliding technique used at the beginning of the slide is the "stand-up" slide.

Note: I intentionally did not list the "head first" slide in this article. It is illegal in most leagues. It is a slide that is considered the most dangerous and risky. It has been the cause of many serious injuries. Coaches should consider the liability risk before teaching it as a method of sliding. I personally recommend to my players that they do not slide head first.

I hope that you found this article useful and informative. Thanks for taking the time to read this article. 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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Baseball Coaching Tips - When to Put on a Defensive Shift

2011-12-13T07:05:00.000-08:00

Baseball Coaching Tips - When to Put on a Defensive Shift
By guest author: Jim Bain

Baseball players have their "Normal" fielding positions which are designed to provide the greatest amount of area coverage in which one fielder will be able to reach and field a hit baseball. These positions are tried and true from tens of thousands of ball games.

However, these "Normal" positions are just that, Normal. There's nothing set in stone as to not being able to vary the defensive set depending on the situation. Let's look at a few of these situations which could dictate you moving your defense into a shift.

The very first and most used shift involves the corner infielders. Once again depending on the score, the manager must determine if his best bet is to put the odds in his favor as far as the third baseman or first baseman fielding the ball for an out, or increase his odds of not allowing an extra base hit.

With the score close, within 2 or 3 runs of each other, and the game being in the late innings, 6th and 7th of a 7 inning game, 8th and 9th of a 9 inning game, the coach will position his corner infielders very close to the base.

The reasoning for this is quite simple. A ball hit through the infield to the left side of the 3rd baseman or the right side of the first baseman, will result in a base hit, as the outfielder will easily be able to field the ground ball and get it back into the infield, holding the runner at first base.

However, a hard hit ground ball to the right of the third baseman or left of the first baseman, which gets passed the infielder, will most likely result in a double for the hitter, placing him in scoring position. The reason for this huge difference, is a ball hit like this will have a natural spin which will take the baseball in direction towards the foul line and away from the outfielder.

Instead of waiting for the ball to reach him, he will have to go and retrieve the ball which allows the runner more time to reach second base.

Another type of shift utilized is an Over Shift, in which either the second baseman is shifted to behind second base or slightly on the shortstop side of second, or the shortstop is shifted behind second or slightly to the right field side of the base.

The reason for utilizing this shift, as we will see, is actually two fold. This shift is implemented when there is a Pull hitter, with power at the bat. Some hitters are capable of pulling (hitting) any pitch, whether it be outside or not, into a specific field, most likely left or right field.

The extra infielder is placed on the side of the field the hitter will 99% hit the baseball, giving the defense an advantage of fielding the ball for an out instead of a base hit.

Secondly, the shift is also implemented in order to induce the hitter to hit the ball to the open side of the infield, which will be his Non Power side. The team in essence is saying "I'll allow a free base hit in order to prevent a home run or extra base hit."

In a pitcher's duel, this shift and the results it produces, could have game winning or losing implications.

Jim Bain - Former Minor league baseball player, who since retiring has dedicated his life to teaching baseball to youth. Visit his exciting info packed website: http://www.Learn-Youth-Baseball-Coaching.com

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Baseball Coaching Digest - Teach Batters to Use Their New Brain When Batting

2011-11-21T09:29:00.000-08:00

Baseball Coaching Digest - Teach Batters to Use Their New Brain When Batting
By guest author: Nick Dixon

To me the hitter's brain is his eyes. If you literally try to think yourself through every at-bat, you are in trouble in today's game. The hitter must let his eye's do his thinking at the plate. I consider the eyes a batter's new brain. They must learn to properly use it. This article discusses several coaching points, tips and details related to this approach to hitting.

Teaching young hitters to swing at what they see, not what they think they see or what they think that they are going to see is one of the most important coaching responsibilities as a youth coach. What I mean about this statement is that players have to step into the box realizing that they "never know" what the pitch will be. They should not guess pitches but rather learn to keep the hands back and see what the pitch is and then react.

Several coaching points come to mind when I discuss this process. Many of these are saying that you should teach or convey to your staff and players. Those points are:

1. Always set yourself up physically to hit the fastball on the outer 3rd of the plate, and adjust to hit the fastball in. Notice, I said "physically" set your stance at the plate. I did not say, "Convince yourself that the next pitch is going to be a "fastball away". The key is getting in a position to hit it and being able to reach. Batters should always be ready to hit the fastball away first and then adjust to the fastball in, curveball away, or pitch on the middle 3rd of the plate. The batter must let his "eyes control his hands". The decision to hit or swing comes from the eyes, not the brain. Therefore, the eyes are the hitter's brain.

2. Always set yourself up physically to hit the fastball and adjust to hit off speed pitches. The batter must be able to hit the soft stuff on the outer 3rd of the plate at all times. The batter should always be ready to hit the fastball, but should keep the hands back, and adjust to hit the off speed pitch. The key here is that to be a confident batter, a batter must have confidence in his "hand or bat speed". He must know and realize that if he keeps his hands back, he can still catch up with the fastball, but if he "leaks or cheats his hands forward", he will be incapable of hitting the away fastball and the way off speed pitch. He must learn to keep his hands back and allow his eyes to do his thinking. He must see a pitches location before he reacts. Assuming a position that allows you to see, react, and hit all pitch locations is the key to hitting success.

3. The hitter should never guess. Guess hitting makes a hitter an easy target that will fall victim to good pitches. Hitting is a process of see and reacting, not guessing and swinging. The hitter must see the pitch location before he swings, not guess a pitches location before he swings. The difference is that when you guess, you start too early. When you guess, you have a tendency to start the swing prematurely. The guess hitter may be able to get it right sometimes, and crush the fastball with power. But, more times than not, he will lunge, jump or get out to quick and strike out or pop the fly ball into the air.

4. The only thing a hitter should know is that you "never know" what the pitch is going to be. The key is to trust you eyes as your brain to allow you to be a "see" hitter and not a "guess" hitter. I know that count awareness can give you the edge as a hitter in many situations. If you are ahead, you are more than likely going to get a fastball. If the pitcher is ahead, you are more than like going to get his best out pitch, which may be a breaking ball. But, more and more in today's game, we are pitching batters backwards. So, the absolute best way to hit is to make batting a "seeing, identifying and reacting process" that allows the swing to be triggered, controlled and executed by the eyes.

I hope that you found this article to be useful and informative. You can find more like it at Baseball Coaching Digest, Youth Baseball Digest, Little League Digest, and the Baseball Parent Guide. I thank you for taking the time to read this article. I wish you and your team the best of luck in the coming season. 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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Baseball Coaching Digest - Why Baseball Players Are the Most Accountable Athletes in Sports

2011-11-07T12:27:00.000-08:00

Baseball Coaching Digest - Why Baseball Players Are the Most Accountable Athletes in Sports
By guest author: Nick Dixon

Baseball players are held to a higher level of accountability than any other athletes in the world. If you compare baseball, football and basketball to see which sport holds the player athlete more responsible for mistakes and errors, you will find that baseball holds players to a higher level of accountability. This article explains my perspective on why baseball players are the most accountable athletes in sports.

I am absolutely sure that baseball players are held at a higher level of accountability than other sports athletes. Why do I feel this way? Have you ever been to a football game and seen a player miss a tackle or block that cost his team dearly? Did the official score "flash" error on the football scoreboard? The answer is no. Have you ever watched a basketball player miss a wild open layup that hurt his team? Did the score keeper or score operator flash "error" on the scoreboard? The answer is no.

On the other hand, as baseball player can bobble a hard hit ground ball and the whole world will soon be notified and an official documentation of the mistake will be made in the scorebook. The scorekeeper will write a big "E" in the scorebook that makes the error officially known. Then the scoreboard operator will also turn on the "error" light on the scoreboard to let every player and spectator in the park know that an error was made.
That is the reason I feel that baseball players are the most accountable athletes in sports.

Maybe other sports consider adding an "Error" light on their scoreboard or writing a big "E" in their scorebook when a player makes a mistake. Then maybe the next time a player fails to execute on a football field or basketball court, they will know what it's like to be held publicly accountable and responsible like a baseball player.

I hope that you enjoyed this article. Thanks for taking the time to read it. Visit the Baseball coaching Digest, Youth Baseball Digest, Little League Digest and Baseball Parent Guide for more baseball articles. Good luck to you and your team, 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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Baseball2u.com/CoachesBest.com is the ultimate online baseball training and coaching store. With over 1400 products organized into categories Baseball2u.com makes finding that baseball training product easy and simple. Order securely online or by phone. Baseball2u.com is a fully licensed company and has a full time staff available from 8:00 to 5:00 CST. Their toll free customer service number is 1-877-431-4487.

The Categories they have are: BatAction Hitting Machines, Hurricane Hitting Machines, Batting Cages, Pitching Machines, Jugs Equipment, Game and Practice Baseballs, Protective Practice Screens and Nets, Portable Pitching Mounds, Baseball DVDs & Books, Clearance Items on Sales, NEDCO Bataction Replacement Parts, Baseball Training Equipment, Youth Baseball Training Equipment, Training Bats, Pitching & Throwing Trainers, Defensive Trainers, SKLZ Hurricane Replacement Parts and Much Much More! Visit Baseball2U.com today!

Baseball Hitting Tips - 100 Swings a Day

2011-11-02T08:54:00.000-07:00

Baseball Hitting Tips - 100 Swings a Day
By guest author: Tom Read

An old baseball coach use to say after every practice, "go home and swing the bat 100 times each and every day. If you want to hit against the high level of competition we are going to be playing, swing that bat 100 times everyday". What he did not explain to the players was that doing something over and over makes it easier each time. It eventually becomes natural, second nature. So when that fastball comes flying in, and there is a half second to react, and you know where the swing needs to go, the muscle memory takes over and the swing comes naturally.

Hitting off the tee is a great baseball hitting drill. Take a 100 cuts a day off the tee and you will see your batting average start to climb. Another good baseball drill is soft toss. Here the tosser can change the location and the speed of the ball. Again, a 100 cuts a day of soft toss will bring improvement to your swing. The old coach used to tell the players that even if they did not have a tee to use, or no one was around to do soft toss with them, just go out in the yard and swing the bat thru the air. A 100 times a day. Doing this will get you comfortable with your swing. At game time, you want to be confident at the plate, and comfort brings confidence. You have swung that bat so many times, you know it is not going to let you down. You are concentrating on the pitch, not your swing. At just the right moment, you let loose with that same swing you have taken a 100 times a day.

The last thing I want to say is very important. You play like you practice. Before you start swinging a 100 time a day, you need to have found a good batting stance and good mechanics. It will not help you if each one of the 100 swings is different. Each swing needs to be identical. Find that perfect swing for you and practice it a 100 times a day.

Over the last twenty plus years, Tom Read has been a coach, parent, and a fan of organized baseball. He has shared this experience with his sons and many other players on his teams. Many have gone on to play at the college level.

Tom has recently joined with others to start a baseball website offering free baseball drills. To check out these great drills, and other great baseball information and stories, please visit Helpful Baseball Drills. It will be worth your time.

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Defensive Drills For Coaching Youth Baseball Middle Infielders

2011-10-27T09:16:00.000-07:00

Defensive Drills For Coaching Youth Baseball Middle Infielders
By guest author: Nick Dixon

Drill - DIRT LINES "Ground Ball Drill" Great Drill For Teaching Ground Ball Fundamentals.

This drill is used to teach young players to get their hands and glove out front when fielding a grounder. The young player often gets in the habit of catching grounders close to his or her feet or slightly in front of the toes. As coaches, we want infielders to extend their arms and get the glove out in front so that they can see the ball into it. The player should "lay" the glove on the ground out in front of his body. Each players distance will vary. However, a good rule of thumb is to try and extend the length from the players arm or from the tip of the fingers to the armpit. Another good measuring scale is they should be able to extend the length of the bat they use. This distance is measured on the ground from the back of his heel outward. For this drill we pair two players. The players will roll grounders to each other from about 6 to 8 feet. The coach draws two lines in the dirt about 8 feet apart. The players must catch the ball out in front of this line. The coach will then draw a second line for each player. This is the "feet" line. The feet must stay behind this line. The players roll the ball and catch it while making sure to:

•Get extension by getting the glove out in front.
•Keep the elbows off the ribs
•Funnel the ball in using the top "bare" hand.
•Work their feet as they bring the ball up to the correct "T" throwing position.
•Roll the ball back to your partner
•Repeat the process.
•Players should catch and roll 50 to 100 ground balls each practice.
•The distance can be changed to accommodate the speed of the ground ball work.

Drill - Make Believe Infield Drill Great warm-up for certain situations The teams takes perfect infield by allowing every player to make a perfect catch and throw. The way this drill is conducted is the coach does not use a ball. He hits a "make-believe" ball. Each time the player goes through the correct motion of fielding the ball and making a perfect play. Each time the player receiving the throw will pat his glove to simulate a catch. Emphasis is placed on talking, following through, and making everything look perfect. No one will mess up or make a bad mistake. I have used this drill many, many times in practice and before games. It is especially good with young kids to emphasis correct body mechanics. It is also useful if you get to a field for a game and the playing surface is too wet or rough to take a "good" round of infield. Sometimes it is better not to use a real ball in warm-up if there is a risk of the ball taking a terrible bounce. Bad infield and warm-up may bring down "team esteem". I've never had a team take "make believe" infield that was anything less than great! It's always perfect!

Drill - Ground Ball Pair Work Drill for Infielders This drill is actually a method of taking a lot of ground balls with out having your players make any throw. The drill requires 36 baseballs, two buckets and a fungo bat. The coach will be hitting ground balls to at least 3 players. 5 or 6 players can be worked at a time using this drill. The coach will place the two buckets about 45 feet apart. All of the balls are in one of the buckets. This is the bucket that the coach will get his balls from. The players are lined up single file with one behind another, on the end with the empty bucket. The coach hits grounders. The players field each ground ball and get in proper throwing position. They then sprint to the empty bucket, drop the ball in and get in the back of the line. There is no throwing of balls during this drill. When all balls have been hit, fielded and dropped in the bucket, the coach and players swap ends and the drill starts over.

Drill: Cut-off Relays Great drill for building skills, speed, accuracy and confidence This drill is a great skill builder. There will be at least 5 players on a team. They line up about 30 feet apart and stretch about 120 feet across the field. You will have two teams or "lines" competing against each other. Make sure to have you catcher, first baseman, and third baseman on one end. Have an outfielder on the opposite end. Your middle infielder should be in the middle. The drill will start for both lines at the same time. The first team to take the ball to the other end and get it back is the winner. The ball must be caught and thrown by each player in the line. Teams may not skip a man. The catchers should practice catching and tagging a runner. The middle infielders should be taught to properly "round" the ball, make a proper relay catch and quick throw. We often do this drill and the losing team must do 5 or 10 pushups or squat thrust.

Catcher-------------x--------------------x------------------x--------------------Outfielder

The distance between players should be matched to the age of the players working. You may also have the outfielder let the ball go and hit the fence, before he goes retrieves it and makes his throw to the cutoff man. You may also want to make this a "total team" drill with the whole team having to catch and throw the ball to cover a long distance. If you have the room to do this, it is great to have the team work together to beat the clock. They must beat a set time or they "pay". You may also want to have the "line" make more than one trip down and back. It is great to make each "line" take the ball to the other end three times.

Visit the Baseball Coaching Digest Blog for daily post and articles on every aspect of coaching baseball. The Baseball Coaching Digest Blog. Check out the Bat Action Hitting Machine baseball pitching simulator. This high speed training machine is 100% Guaranteed to raise Batting Averages and has a full year warranty.

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Baseball Drills - Outfield Drills for Game Day Skills

2011-10-14T09:04:00.000-07:00

Baseball Drills - Outfield Drills for Game Day Skills
By guest author: Kenny Buford

There is more to developing outfield skills than just playing catch. Outfielders need baseball drills that will prepare them for conditions they will face on game day. The following outfield drills help players become comfortable with any situation they might encounter during a game.

Sun Drill

For this drill, the players line up facing the sun and take turns catching fly balls from the coach. The players can wear sun glasses, but often the glare is still too much. Outfielders need to get used to using their gloves to block the sun while watching for the ball. Over time, the players will develop an approach for using the glove to see while also preparing for the catch and will feel confident in the outfield on sunny game days.

Fence Drill

This outfield drill teaches players how to correctly go for a catch against the fence. A lot of factors will come into play in this type of situation during a game, like where the ball is, how hard it is hit, and its elevation as it approaches the fence. However, with practice outfielders can become more comfortable going for the fence.

In this drill, the outfielders should start 10 to 15 feet away from the fence. One at a time, the coach throws high fly balls either above or against the fence. The outfielder takes his ready steps and rushes to the fence, keeping his eyes on the ball and his throwing hand outstretched to guide him and protect him from running into the fence. The player then makes the catch, jumping in front of or leaning against the fence.

Line Drive Drill

Line players up in the outfield and have them take turns running the drill. The first outfielder takes his ready step as the coach throws a line drive toward his knees. The player runs directly at the coach, keeping his palms up and his glove in basket form. When he catches the ball, the player shoots his glove up in the air to show the umpire he got it.

Backup Drill

This drill emphasizes communication in the outfield and prepares players to back each other up on fly balls.

For this drill, the players form two lines in the outfield, about 90 feet apart. The coach hits or throws a fly ball between the first two players in each line. The players have to communicate who is going for the catch, making sure not to run into each other while still watching the ball. The player going for the catch should yell "got it" and the other player should respond "take it." The second player should still back up the first player in case the ball gets through.

And if you'd like to see more free baseball drills and coaching tips, go here to watch a free video:

http://www.baseball-tutorials.com/vid/

Kenny Buford is a youth baseball coach, and the owner and publisher of Baseball-Tutorials.com, the web's #1 resource for baseball drills, tips, and practice ideas for youth and high school coaches.

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Basic Baseball Throwing Mechanics

2011-10-10T12:38:00.000-07:00

Basic Baseball Throwing Mechanics
Uploaded by thesportingspirit

How to hold and throw a baseball correctly.

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Baseball2u.com/CoachesBest.com is the ultimate online baseball training and coaching store. With over 1400 products organized into categories Baseball2u.com makes finding that baseball training product easy and simple. Order securely online or by phone. Baseball2u.com is a fully licensed company and has a full time staff available from 8:00 to 5:00 CST. Their toll free customer service number is 1-877-431-4487.

The Categories they have are: BatAction Hitting Machines, Hurricane Hitting Machines, Batting Cages, Pitching Machines, Jugs Equipment, Game and Practice Baseballs, Protective Practice Screens and Nets, Portable Pitching Mounds, Baseball DVDs & Books, Clearance Items on Sales, NEDCO Bataction Replacement Parts, Baseball Training Equipment, Youth Baseball Training Equipment, Training Bats, Pitching & Throwing Trainers, Defensive Trainers, SKLZ Hurricane Replacement Parts and Much Much More! Visit Baseball2U.com today!

Little League Baseball Practice Drills - Hitting Practice

2011-10-04T09:09:00.000-07:00

Little League Baseball Practice Drills - Hitting Practice
By guest author: Chris Campbell

If you want to get good at anything, it's usually just a question of time. A little persistence, blood, sweat, and tears may help as well. There are a number of motivational quotes I could throw at your here, but let me just use a couple. First quote: "Persistence is omnipotent". Second quote: "Success is a result of one percent inspiration, and 99 percent inspiration". I know I'm paraphrasing somewhat, and I'm not sure exactly who the original author is for those. But, I think Emerson is responsible for the first. Either way, they both apply to many sporting endeavors, and baseball is no exception.

If you or your favorite little league baseball player has the desire, and is willing to put in the time, there no reason for them or you not to become a great baseball player. Of all the roles a player undertakes in the sport of baseball, the most fun packed one has to be hitting. It requires the most focus, concentrating, nerve, timing and skill. It's much more engaging than shagging fly balls, or base running.

It's a good thing, that hitting is so much fun, since that makes hitting practice even more fun, as you get to do it for even longer. With that in mind though, there are good ways to practice, and bad ways to practice. No sense in ingraining bad habits, when a few simple points to keep in mind will make you a big league hitter in no time.

Keep Your Eyes On The Ball

The number one thing to remember in batting practice, is to keep your eye on the ball. And even before the ball is thrown, keep your eyes on the pitcher. Studying the pitcher can reveal clues as to what pitch he'll be throwing next. Knowing you've got a curve ball or change-up, or fast ball, will affect the timing and speed of your swing.

Be A Smart Batter

Know what the count is, and where the other runners on your team are. Know how many are out, and know who's coming up to bat next. It's not just the coaches job to keep track of all these things. A strategic batter is a better batter.

Get A Good Grip On The Bat

The grip on your bat is were your swing starts. Don't tense up too much my holding on too tightly. You need to start of semi-relaxed, and then "load" and tighten up as you swing through the ball. Hand placement is important, and try to line up your middle knuckles from both your right and left hand.

Little League Baseball Drills is a great resource for helping your little leaguer get the most out of his or hers favorite pastime. With a little good training, amateur or even professional ball players will see a dramatic improvement in the way they play.

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

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Baseball Coaching Digest: 5 Solid Tips for Taking Your Team From Worst to First in Batting Stats

2011-09-26T08:35:00.000-07:00

Baseball Coaching Digest: 5 Solid Tips for Taking Your Team From Worst to First in Batting Stats
By guest author: Nick Dixon

There are five things that I recommend baseball coaches do to improve a team's offensive numbers. These are changes that coaches must put into place if they are looking to take their team to a higher level in hitting statistics. This article explains those five things that I suggest that you make a part of your regular team routine.

Your team can become a better hitting team. I am 100% confident that you can be the reason that your team has a better hitting season this year than last season. The number one thing you must remember is the saying, "Stupidity is never more evident than when a coach has his team do the same thing over, and over and over, but expects different results". If you want your team to be better than they have ever been, you have got to plan, coach, instruct, teacher, work, and organize your practices better than you ever have.

Here are three things I recommend for helping a team become a better hitting team:

1. Change Your Attitude - Teams always emulate the attitude of the coach. If you expect the team to hit better and do all of the work and preparations to do so, then the players will expect better results. Make it known that "thing are changing around here". Make it known that you have a new system, a new approach, and a new commitment to getting the job done at the plate. Let the team know that "everything counts". Every practice swing must be performed, reviewed, assessed, and critiqued. Make it known that every fundamental will be given the attention necessary to make the team better. Sub-par practice will not be accepted. We will practice like we play and play like we practice, with a stated purpose and with total focus.

2. Sense of Urgency - Make sure that your team and staff know that improvement is a must. They must realize that last year's or season's numbers were bad for a reason. Those numbers are unacceptable and unexpected this year. And explain to them that the reason for those bad numbers last season was a lack of work, a lack of commitment, and a lack of performance. The players and staff must realize the importance of making improvements. When a coach becomes better at teaching a skill, the team just got better. When a player becomes more knowledgeable on a baseball task, the team just got better. All players and staff must know that they must be committed to doing more than normal to help the team improve. Players and staff should be willing to stay after practice, come in before practice, or find extra time, outside of team practices, to work and improve on fundamentals. A player must know that the team "chain" is no stronger than the "weakest link". If a player is weak at a particular skill, until that player improves, the team will not be as good as possible.

3. Repetition of Quality Swings - Practice repetition for the sake of practice repetition is useless. Swing the bat is useless if the swing is a bad practice swing of less than game speed or game quality. You team needs to have a commitment to numbers and quality if your team's hitting numbers are going to drastically improve. My "rule of thumb" is that I want every player in my program to take at least 300 practice swing a day. Those swings must be purpose driven with no tolerance for "playing around", "goofing off" or "less than perfect execution". I don't care how the swings are performed. They can be off a batting tee, a training machine, live-arm in the batting cage, or simply a soft-toss drill. The key is to take enough swings every day to allow the player's swing to become instinctive, smooth, and as powerful as possible. The more quality swing a player takes, the more confidence that player will have.

4. Improving Knowledge - To improve quality of play, improved knowledge must take place first. Player must know what a good swing looks like. They must know what makes a stance a good stance. They must know and be able to identify good and bad hitting mechanics and fundamentals. They must hear the correct words and terminology when it comes to instruction, teaching, and practice. A coach must do his homework when it comes to learning the fundamentals of playing and coaching the game. Read books, articles, and everything else that you can get your hands on. Visit the Baseball Coaching Digest, the Youth Baseball Digest or the Baseball Today Coaching Journal to access free drills, tips, and coaching articles. Watch videos on YouTube of batting drills and coaching tips.

5. Truth and Consequences - Never lie to your team. Tell them honestly when a drill is good and tell them when a drill is bad. Have a consequence for poor drill performance. I try to keep my drills and instruction periods short at no than 10 to 15 minutes. But, if a drill is done sloppy or poorly, I have told my team that I reserve the right to always to have the team do a drill over or do a "start over". I want my players to know that we have a commitment to quality not quantity.

I hope that you found this article to be informative and useful. You may read more articles like it at the Baseball Coaching Digest, Youth Baseball Digest, and the Baseball Parent Guide. Thanks for reading this article. I wish you and your team the best of luck in the coming season. Have a great day, Nick.

The Baseball2u.com Baseball Store has a great selection of 1400 Baseball Products. Check out the BatAction Hitting Machine baseball pitching simulator. Available now for just $119.95 + S&H.

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. Dixon coaches at Boaz High in Boaz Alabama. Dixon is a member of the American Baseball Coaches Association and Alabama Baseball Coaches Association.

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 considered an expert in baseball training and skills development. Dixon also serves as an active consultant to baseball equipment companies and other sports product inventors.

Dixon is also a contributing writer for the Baseball Coaching Digest, the baseball Coaching Digest Blog, the Youth Baseball Digest, the Youth Baseball Digest Blog, the Baseball Parent Guide, the Baseball 2Day Coaches Journal, and Blog4Coaches.

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

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How To Improve Your Baseball Vision And Hand-Eye Coordination (Part 1)

2011-09-23T08:34:00.000-07:00

How To Improve Your Baseball Vision And Hand-Eye Coordination (Part 1)
Uploaded by BaseballVision http://www.baseballvisionprogram.com/ -- Chris McKnight and Harvey Ratner teamed up to produce a DVD which helps baseball hitters improve their hand eye coordination through unique sports vision training drills. Chris and Harvey's techniques will help you improve your baseball vision and hand eye coordination using simple drills which have increased the batting averages of players from high school all the way to the pros.

Chris is the manager of the 2009 independent professional baseball Texarkana Gunslingers team, and he has also authored numerous articles that have appeared in "Scholastic Coach" "Coach and Athletic Director" and the American Baseball Coaches Association "Coaching Digest".

Go to the website to find out more about how Chris' information can help you improve your vision for sports.

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Baseball Hitting Drill Twist

2011-09-22T12:32:00.000-07:00

Baseball Hitting Drill Twist
By guest author: Jeffery A Wise

Baseball hitting drills are necessary for players to develop and tweak their skills. Without drills, you cannot be a great player. Recently I discovered a great drill that was demonstrated by a coach on YouTube that I had to share with others. It is easy, fun and will benefit any player who wants to be a better hitter.

This specific drill is a new twist on the soft toss hitting drill. It can improve your hitting in several areas, including bat speed. This element of hitting is very important because it generates how hard you hit the ball and how far the balls fly. What player doesn't want to hit more home runs?

What you need for this drill is someone who is willing to toss you some baseballs, whether it is a coach, a teammate or a parent. For this drill, this person should kneel on the ground several feet in front of the batter. They can also sit on a chair to do this if kneeling is uncomfortable. They should toss the balls with an underhand pitch to the batter.

What makes this drill different from the typical soft toss drill is that the person tosses three balls in a row without taking a break. Of course, the batter should have enough time to reset, but the next ball should come immediately after that. After three balls, allow the batter to rest for a minute before throwing three more. Continue to do this pattern multiple times until the batter is tired.

This baseball hitting drill is very fast, but it will help players in several ways. Since the batter must reposition so quickly, it helps them practice balancing their body. The quickness also forces the batter to generate quick bat speed, making balls fly farther. The batter has to react swiftly, which makes him more focused as if he's in the middle of a game. Finally, it helps the batter have a good whip action with the bat in the fingers instead of the palms of the hands.

This baseball hitting drill is sure to help any player become a better hitter. The more you practice it, the better results you will see, on and off the field. Of course, there are many great drills for hitting, but give this one a try to see what you think. You may even find that it creates more results than other hitting drills.

Remember that the reason to practice your baseball hitting is so that you can get better and doing a baseball hitting drill will give you skills and talent to become the baseball player you want to be. Find out why you should look into quality Cheap Baseball Bats that are comfortable in your hands which could help you out in a big way.

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Youth Baseball-Coach Pitch Fundamentals

2011-09-19T09:26:00.000-07:00

Youth Baseball-Coach Pitch Fundamentals
Uploaded by ClubHouseGas On http://ClubHouseGas.com Casey learns the art of coach pitch for baseball and softball. Also check-out http://YouthSportTravel.com

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How to Avoid Bat Drag - How The Best Hitters in Baseball Use Their Hands

2011-09-15T03:57:00.000-07:00

How to Avoid Bat Drag - How The Best Hitters in Baseball Use Their Hands

In order to swing the bat effectively and produce bat speed you need to learn to torque the handle of the bat. This video explains the hand mechanics which 95% of the best hitters in MLB use.

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Baseball Coaching Digest - The Magic of the 10 Minute Baseball Drill

2011-09-12T09:53:00.000-07:00

Baseball Coaching Digest - The Magic of the 10 Minute Baseball Drill
By guest author: Nick Dixon

One of the main reasons some kids refuse to play baseball is that baseball practice is too boring. One thing that makes it so boring is that many coaches run certain drills too long and do not break their practices into short times periods.

This article discusses the "magic of the 10 Minute Baseball Drill" and why many coaches use short time periods and drill variety to minimize boredom during baseball practice.

Why the 10 Minute Baseball Drill is Needed?

Baseball coaches and players are notorious for having short attention spans.

I have learned that I must keep our baseball drills short for two reasons. The first reason is that some of my players have short attention spans and after 10 or 15 minutes they lose interest and become bored. The second reason is that I have a short attention span and I too get bored with a drill that runs on and on without a break or change in activity.

What makes a 10 Minute Drill in Baseball a perfect drill?

I feel that three things make the 10 Minutes the perfect amount of time for a baseball drill:

1. The drill can be performed with total concentration. The kids have no trouble staying on task or focused for 10 minutes. The retention of mental skills also increases when the drill is interesting and action driven.

2. The short drill emphasizes quality not quantity. Our kids know and value the worth of a rep well done. They know when a drill has run too long. They know when a drill's value begins to diminish. They know that I would rather that they practice a skill for 10 minutes with a high level of performance quality and a true sense of urgency for rep success.

3. Total focus - Kids are more motivated to hustle, concentrate and perform a task when they know that the task will be limited to 10 minutes if the effort is adequate and the performance level is acceptable.

4. High Level of Excitement - Players of all ages can get excited about any drill or task if it is presented correctly. Coaches should show a high level of interest and excitement. A strong emphasis on why a drill is done will add to players understanding and raise their interest level.

The 4 Keys to running an effective 10 Minute Baseball drill:

1. Organization is vital to the success of the drill. It is a must to have a written practice schedule with time slots designated and allocated for each drill to be done that day. Each coach on the staff should have a copy of that schedule.

2. Player instruction in the details of the drill is important. The first time that you do it, you may have to spend a considerable amount of time explaining, demonstrating, and setting the drill up. After the first time, the players should get more and more efficient and comfortable with the drill and be able to get a lot of reps in the allotted 10 minutes.

3. Equipment must be ready to go. There can be no time used to set-up equipment or move machines, nets, and such. It is recommended that all needed equipment be prepared and arranged before practice or by other staff while the previous drill is being done elsewhere.

4. Get in a Routine - It is a good thing to establish a regular practice routine that you follow each day. You should always start with s stretch and warm-up period that is routine. Then everyday you should follow the same basic scrip as to the subject and direction of your practice. For example, you may wish to start with 2 offensive drills, and then do 2 defensive drills and alternate then until you have covered everything you have in the practice plan for that day.

At our daily practice, after warm-ups and stretches, the first thing that is done is a catchers/infielders drill that allows catchers to throw to the bases and infielders to practice catching and tags. Then we normally go into PFPs or Practice Fielding Practice. My point here is that we follow a routine that the kids know. They start each drill on their own and flow from drill to drill without wasting time.

We normally end our practice every day with one of about 4 bunting drills we use. That drill is intense and it is 10 minutes like all of our other drills.

In closing, let me make one point absolutely clear. I will deviate from the 10 minute drill schedule if the drill is sloppy or poorly done. If I have to, I will restart the clock, and make the team start the drill over. If I have to run a drill twice to get the level of performance that I expect, I will. The number focus in every drill is quality. That quality includes performing every rep at an acceptable level or standard. My kids know that I do and will start a drill, or even a practice over, if things are done poorly, sloppy, and without the right focus or energy level.

I hope that you found this article to be informative and helpful. You may find many other articles like it at Baseball Coaching Digest and the Baseball Coaching Digest Blog. Thanks for reading my articles. Have a great day, Nick.

The Baseball2u.com 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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Baseball Coaching Digest - Why Baseball Players Are the Most Accountable Athletes in Sports

2011-09-08T08:15:00.000-07:00

Baseball Coaching Digest - Why Baseball Players Are the Most Accountable Athletes in Sports
By guest author: Nick Dixon

Baseball players are held to a higher level of accountability than any other athletes in the world. If you compare baseball, football and basketball to see which sport holds the player athlete more responsible for mistakes and errors, you will find that baseball holds players to a higher level of accountability. This article explains my perspective on why baseball players are the most accountable athletes in sports.

I am absolutely sure that baseball players are held at a higher level of accountability than other sports athletes. Why do I feel this way? Have you ever been to a football game and seen a player miss a tackle or block that cost his team dearly? Did the official score "flash" error on the football scoreboard? The answer is no. Have you ever watched a basketball player miss a wild open layup that hurt his team? Did the score keeper or score operator flash "error" on the scoreboard? The answer is no.

On the other hand, as baseball player can bobble a hard hit ground ball and the whole world will soon be notified and an official documentation of the mistake will be made in the scorebook. The scorekeeper will write a big "E" in the scorebook that makes the error officially known. Then the scoreboard operator will also turn on the "error" light on the scoreboard to let every player and spectator in the park know that an error was made.
That is the reason I feel that baseball players are the most accountable athletes in sports.

Maybe other sports consider adding an "Error" light on their scoreboard or writing a big "E" in their scorebook when a player makes a mistake. Then maybe the next time a player fails to execute on a football field or basketball court, they will know what it's like to be held publicly accountable and responsible like a baseball player.

I hope that you enjoyed this article. Thanks for taking the time to read it. Visit the Baseball coaching Digest, Youth Baseball Digest, Little League Digest and Baseball Parent Guide for more baseball articles. Good luck to you and your team, 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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Baseball Defense Coaching Tips and Strategy

2011-09-05T08:20:00.000-07:00

Arizona State Head Coach Pat Murphy On Defense
Hotsed By Jeff Forner
BaseballPlayerUniversity.com

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Major League Baseball Must Expand Its Use of Instant Replay Now!

2011-09-02T04:24:00.000-07:00

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Major League Baseball Must Expand Its Use of Instant Replay Now!
By Guest Author Mickey Morgan

Major League Baseball (MLB) Umpires Are Ruining the Game

I'm tired of watching umpires taking over and ruining the beautiful game of baseball. Every umpire has his own strike zone and it is disgusting the way some pitches that are called strikes are clearly out of the strike zone. I admire the players for their restraint because it has to be so frustrating to have an "at bat" taken away or at least altered by today's umpire's version of the strike zone.

Opponents of instant replay say that it will ruin the integrity of the game. I say the umpires have already done that. They say it will lengthen the game time, I say it will it shorten it. They say it will take the "human element" out of the game and I say it will improve the human element by eliminating mistakes.

Currently baseball has agreed to use instant replay to review questionable home runs. However, the way they implemented it was all wrong. Why make the umpires walk into some room under the stadium to view tape? In a recent (8-16-11) game between the Yankees and Kansas City Royals there was a disputed home call. It took five minutes to review the play and in the end they still made the wrong call.

It wasn't replays fault that it took umpires five minutes to make a call (right or wrong), it's the way the process has been implemented. What is the sense of having three umpires walk from the field into a viewing room under the stadium, when a fifth umpire in a replay booth could have made the correct call in a matter of seconds.

I've read some opponents articles where they suggest that it could take 15 minutes to review a play. That is ridiculous. Again for you fans that watch baseball on TV, we see the replay, many times from several different angles in a matter of seconds.

This Didn't Just Start...Remember This One?

Jeffrey Maier was involved in an incident in which he deflected a batted ball hit by Derek Jeter in-play into the stands during Game 1 of the 1996 American League Championship Series between the New York Yankees and the Baltimore Orioles. His action altered the course of Game 1, as the resulting home run allowed the Yankees to tie the score. They would go on to win the game and the series, four games to one.

What is the Strike Zone?

There actually is a definition of a strike zone in the rule book; however it certainly isn't being enforced. I love the technology (e.g. ESPN's K-Zone) that television provides us showing where a pitch is in relation to the actual strike zone. One of the arguments opponents of instant replay have is that it will make the game longer. What happens today when an umpire calls a pitch that is out of the strike zone a strike; the batter backs away, adjusts his gloves, stares at the ump and finally gets back into the batter's box. How long does that take; multiplied by how many times a game this happens. Also, the use of the technology would eliminate the possibility of players and managers from being thrown out of games for arguing strike calls.

A Typical Example

Based on a true situation, K-Zone shows the pitch as a strike, but not to the umpire on this night. He calls it a ball, ball 4. The batter takes first, loads the bases. The next batter hits a blooper into left for a walk-off single. Instead of strike three the batter is given a free pass based on an arbitrary strike zone keeping the inning alive and giving the home team one more chance for victory. There are probably thousands of situations like this during the baseball season. The next night or for that matter the next batter that same umpire could call that pitch a strike.

MLB needs to incorporate replay reviews in other areas of the game where missed calls frequently arise.

Fixing baseball umpiring requires a two prong approach: (1) significantly expand the use of technology and, (2) completely redefine umpire's roles and responsibilities.

The technology has existed for 10 years. Why won't MLB use applications like ESPN's K-Zone to show the exact trajectory of the ball across, around, or outside the strike zone? The best solution here would be to have something like Pitchf/x automatically call every ball and strike. He can communicate electronically with the first, second and third base umpires to overturn a close call when that umpire misjudges a bang-bang play. If a call is simply too close to call on replay, then the on-field call will stand.

Technology will make the game better and end the bickering between players/managers and umpires. Players and fans want it and I would bet that even most of the umpires want it. They don't want to make a blunder that will hang over their heads forever.

I love baseball. But I'm fed up with the inaction. Fans deserve to have their sports judged fairly. Time moves on, baseball needs to finally move with it. Given the battle ahead for expanded replay of any kind, I don't see that day coming any time soon.

Mr. Morgan is the owner of the Blog http://sportsfantalking.com and the ecommerce website http://grandslamsports360.com.

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

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Scouting A Baseball Players Running Speed

2011-08-30T19:43:00.000-07:00

Baseball Speed

Baseball Player University
Evaluating A Baseball Player's Speed
New York Yankee's Scout Andy Stankiewicz
Arizona State Head Coach Pat Murphy

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Baseball Tips on Hitting - How to Overcome Two Very Common Baseball Hitting Problems!

2011-08-30T04:07:00.000-07:00

Baseball Hitting Machine Parts
Baseball Tips on Hitting - How to Overcome Two Very Common Baseball Hitting Problems!
By Guest Author Larry Cicchiello

Tension Is A Hitter's Worst Enemy!

I've heard this expression dozens of times and could not agree more. No, let's make that hundreds of times. If you have tension in your swing, it is next to impossible to hit the ball effectively. On the other hand, relaxing is a great asset to have.

An outstanding baseball coach I know has his hitters take a deep breath before every pitch and go into relax mode. Please note that I said outstanding coach and not good or very good. It is often referred to as "the calm before the storm." Hitting a baseball well on a consistent basis is NOT an easy chore. If you have tension before and during the swing, it makes it an almost impossible chore. A smooth and gracious swing is what you want to strive for and tension will make it very difficult.

Like I've mentioned before, sometimes a slight waggle at the plate will help you to relax. Or you can wiggle your fingers on the bat while waiting for the pitch. It's very difficult to have your body tense up if your body is moving. Learning how to relax at the plate should be very helpful to you!

You Must Be Short To The Ball!

1. You must go from point "A" where you are loaded up, to point "B" where you are making contact, in a straight line. The very beginning of the swing is NOT level at all. It is a DOWNWARD movement when going from A to B and NOT a horizontal movement. Way too many players level out their swing at the start. The reason it is such a common problem is because they have heard the words "level swing" hollered out to them since they were eight years old. I wish I had a dime for every time I've heard a coach, parent or teammate holler those two words out. Only at the point of contact should the swing level out and NOT before that. You can not lose a valuable fraction of a second if it takes a fast ball a fraction of a second to get to the catcher's mitt. Look at it as simple math.

2. Another possibility for your swing to be "long and looping" may be that you are dropping your hands at the beginning of the swing. This can cause you to be "long" to the ball and cause your bat to have a slight drag.

3. You may be pushing your hands out too far away from your body and that will create a longer swing. Remember the expression, "hands back and bat forward."

4. You must keep your front shoulder closed. If you open the front shoulder too early, it will cause your bat to drag through the hitting zone. This is often referred to as "casting" the bat and not swinging the bat. "Casting" is what you do when you go fishing and not when you swing at a baseball.

Let's face it. There are hundreds of baseball tips on hitting. Having a tension free swing, being "short to the ball" and keeping the front shoulder closed should be right near the top of your list! They are three things that are absolutely critical for successful baseball hitting.

Larry is the successful author of several very user friendly eBooks and CD's covering 320 topics on playing or coaching excellent baseball. ANY player, coach or parent who wants to help their child will be fully equipped! Check out some FREE baseball tips on hitting and FREE baseball pitching tips at LarryBaseball.com.

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Baseball Offseason Workouts That Keep You in Shape

2011-08-29T04:16:00.000-07:00

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Baseball Offseason Workouts That Keep You in Shape
By Guido Nussbaum

Many of us are interested in making sure that we keep ourselves in good shape, and one of the ways for you to be able to do this is with some offseason workouts. This is especially true whenever you take part in a sport, and you want to make sure that you're going to be ready whenever the season comes up in the next year. There are some baseball offseason workouts that can help you to do this, and to get in the shape of your life at the same time. Not only is it good for your physical fitness level, and also keeps you active during a time of year whenever you could suffer from inactivity.

The type of workout that you're going to do really depends on the position of the field in which you play. For some people, the best offseason workout is going to be working their arms, so that they are able to throw the ball faster, further or more accurately. Arm exercises are excellent for you to do this, but you also need to keep in mind that you will be working out the entire body and utilizing it effectively whenever throwing the ball. That is why a particular type of exercise may be better than isolating the arms.

The type of exercise that I am talking about is a multi-joint exercise. These are weight training workouts, in which you will be doing exercises that work multiple parts of the body at one time. For example, the bench press is a very common exercise and although many people would think that this is only for the chest muscles, it actually works out the arms and even the abdominal region. There are other multi-joint exercises that may also benefit you as well.

Cardiovascular training is also a very important part of staying in shape and being ready for the next season. In order to do this, you will need to either walk, run or bike your way to fitness. You can do this out in the open, or if weather does not permit, you may like to do so in the gym using some of their exercise equipment.

Getting more out of your cardiovascular workout in a shorter amount of time is something that all of us would like. You can do this by doing high-intensity interval training, where you go hard for a period of time and then easy for an equal period of time. You will see a boost in your fitness level when you workout in this way.

Finally, you don't need to be a baseball player in order to enjoy some baseball offseason workouts. As a matter of fact, this type of overall body training is an excellent choice for anybody that wants to shed a few pounds or simply to look better and more lean. By doing these exercises, you're not only helping to condition the body for physical activity, you are giving it what it needs to stay in shape.

Learn how Baseball Offseason Workouts can improve your game on our website

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Baseball Tips: A Base Stealing Secret

2011-08-26T04:17:00.000-07:00

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http://abdacademylive.com Former N.Y. Met, Randy Curtis, Voted Years "Outstanding Baserunner" Gives Away One Of His Base Stealing Secrets.

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Sports Psychology And Pitching: 14 Tips To Be Mentally Tough On The Mound

2011-08-25T04:11:00.000-07:00

Sports Psychology And Pitching: 14 Tips To Be Mentally Tough On The Mound
By Jay Granat

Every week, I get calls from pitchers, parents of pitchers and coaches with questions about the mental aspects of being on the mound in a pressure situation.

Pitchers at all levels of baseball can struggle with confidence, focus, relaxation and negative self-talk. This can happen to little leaguers and to major leaguers.

When a pitcher loses his ability to stay mentally tough, his mechanics, his velocity, his ball movement and his command of the strike zone can all deteriorate.

Here are a few tips to help parents of baseball players, pitchers and pitching coaches with some of the mental aspects of the pitching in a baseball game.
1. Remember that pitchers prevail over hitters seventy five to eighty per cent of the time. So, pitchers have a nice edge to begin with.
2. If you throw your first pitch as a, strike your edge goes up a bit more.
3. The most important pitch is the next pitch you throw. You have to stay in the present.
You must train your mind to remain in the here and now.
4. When you pitch, you need to have either one thought or what might be thought of as an empty mind.
5. Develop a mantra when you are about to throw to a batter. Here are a few suggestions: Throw a strike. Throw inside. Let it go. Grip it and rip it. I'm the boss. Eyes on the target. I love this game. Throw it past him. Control the plate.
6. Your relationship with your coaches and your catchers are crucial. Do what you can on and off the field to build strong connections with these people.
7. Study hitters carefully and keep accurate records on what works and what does not work against players who you face multiple times.
8. Understand and accept what you can control and what you can not control.
9. You don't have to be perfect. You have to throw strikes twice as often as you throw balls.
10. Always be developing another pitch. If you master five pitches, hitters have a tough time guessing right as to what is coming.
11. Never engage in negative thoughts on the mound. If you are not feeling confident, relaxed, focused and ready, step off the mound and gather yourself.
12. Know your strengths and your weaknesses.
13. Have a purpose with every pitch.
14. Learn how to use self-hypnosis, visualization and meditation to get yourself into your ideal performance state of mind.

Jay P. Granat, Ph.D. is a psychotherapist and the founder of http://www.stayinthezone.com. He has written several books and developed several programs to help people perform to their fullest potential at sports, at work and at school. Dr. Granat, a former university professor, has appeared in The New York Times, Good Morning America, AP, ESPN, Golf Digest, The BBC and The CBC. He can be reached at info@stayinthezone.com. or at 888 580-ZONE.

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3 Idiotic Weight Training Myths in Baseball

2011-08-24T04:16:00.000-07:00

3 Idiotic Weight Training Myths in Baseball
By Guest AuthorThomas E Wilson

There are many myths out there pertaining to weight training for baseball players. Some of them were created a while ago while others were started not too long ago with the aid of the internet. Through the years, several players have been held back in their baseball workouts as a result of these common myths. We hope that by knowing the actual facts you will know how to adapt your baseball workouts so that you can reach your full potential in the game. Please be aware that I am in no way a doctor and you should seek the advice of your doctor before starting any training plans.

Myth 1: Weight training will probably mess up a great swing.

Facts: Absolutely nothing could be more incorrect! Weight training is vital to become a better hitter! Specific things should be taken into consideration while weight training though. Make sure you're stretching before and after you train, and balance your workouts with cardiovascular training too. Another point to bear in mind is that you're a baseball player and your main training priority is to become better at baseball. This means that while you ought to be exercising, you have to dedicate the majority of your time on the baseball field practicing your baseball fundamentals.

Myth 2: Pitchers should not lift weights.

Facts: Like myth one, not much could be more wrong. If you are a pitcher who doesn't weight train, then you are going to be beaten more often than not by hitters who do lift weights! Several individuals claim that you will get hurt by lifting weights if you are a pitcher. The fact is though, that weight lifting actually keeps you from getting hurt! This is the reason why most major league pitchers commit to a year-round training program, to keep themselves conditioned for the 200+ innings they will be throwing each year.

Myth 3: Weight training is going to make an athlete a better hitter or a better pitcher.

Facts: You are probably saying to yourself "you just told me that both hitters and pitchers should lift weights but now you're telling me it will not make me a better player?" Yes, I am telling you that lifting weights will not make you a better hitter or a better pitcher...alone. While it is extremely important to incorporate a great weight training program into your workouts, you ought to be practicing your swing or your pitching motion to actually make you a better hitter or pitcher. What I'm trying to say is that you need to be spending at least as much time on the field as you are in the gym. It is all about sticking to a well-balanced workout plan.

Now that we've debunked these common baseball training myths, I hope you will find a way to fine-tune your baseball workouts and training plan to help you become the greatest player you can be!

Are you interested in improving your game and being the best baseball player you can be? If so, check out www.BestBaseballWorkouts.com to find more helpful information as well as baseball workouts and training programs for sale that will take your game to the next level!

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Baseball Coaching Digest Presents Jeff Forney & Arizona State Coach Pat Murphy Discuss The Seven Keys For Hitting Success

2011-08-23T18:59:00.000-07:00

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Strong To The Core of Your Being - The Benefits Of Core Training

2011-08-23T04:09:00.000-07:00

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Strong To The Core of Your Being - The Benefits Of Core Training
By Nick Nilsson

If you were to ask me which muscle group in your entire body you could work to get the greatest benefits in the shortest amount of time, I would tell you without hesitation, "the core." Strengthening the core can realize tremendous benefits to anyone regardless of his or her training experience and can do so very quickly.

But what is the core?

The core, as it's known in strength training circles, consists of all the muscles in your abdominal and lower back areas. This includes all the abdominal muscles (rectus abdominus, internal and external obliques, transverse abdominus and intercostals) as well as the muscles associated with the spine (the erector spinae group) and the hip flexors (iliacus and psoas, collectively known as the iliopsoas).

These muscles all work in harmony to provide stabilization for your body and to transfer power from the legs to the upper body and vice versa. The core muscles also function to keep your insides in, where they belong!

And why is strengthening the core so important?

Weak core muscles contribute to all kinds of problems in the body, the most prevalent of which is lower back pain. By strengthening the muscles that help support the spine and improve posture, you can dramatically decrease the symptoms of lower back pain.

Picture your spine as a column of soda cans stacked one on top of the other. If you wanted to keep that column standing up under stress, what do you think would work better: a "tenser" bandage (as is used for wrapping injured ankles) or Scotch tape? Sure the tape would keep the cans together but the cans wouldn't receive a whole lot support, would they?

When you strengthen the muscles of the core, you are in effect turning that Scotch tape into a nice, tight "tenser" bandage, increasing the amount of support that your spine gets.

Core training also has the potential to greatly improve sports performance. Watch a baseball pitcher throw a pitch in slow motion. The power of the throw starts at the legs, gets transferred through the abdominal area (a.k.a. the core) then ends up in the arm where the ball is released. Imagine how much speed and power would be lost from that throw if the core muscles couldn't efficiently transfer the force from the legs to the throwing arm.

The core is the one area of the body that will always give you a great return on your investment.

So how do I train my core muscles?

Exercises that work the abdominals and the lower back are the staples of core training. Also, exercises that target the stabilization and power-transfer duties of the core muscles are very effective.

The most basic abdominal training exercise is the standard crunch. You can go to the following URL to see the proper technique for this exercise:

http://www.fitstep.com/Library/Exercises/Crunches.htm

But I've got an exercise for you that blows the standard crunch right out of the water. The equipment required for this exercise: one rolled-up towel.

The exercise is known as the Abdominal Sit-Up. It uses a sit-up-like movement but focuses directly on the abdominal muscles rather than the hip flexors (which a regular sit-up does). It is also very safe for your lower back. Another advantage it has over the standard crunch is that it targets the stretched (arched back) range of motion of the abs, which is totally missed in standard floor crunch.

How To Do It:

Lie on your back on the floor. Roll up a towel or mat and slip it underneath your lower back, just above the waistband (the size of the towel affects your body position during this movement - use a fairly large towel).

Your knees should be bent about 90 degrees. Keep your feet close together and knees fairly wide apart. This prevents the hip flexors from having a direct line of pull, helping to minimize their involvement.

Do not anchor your feet or have someone hold them down. This automatically activates the hip flexors. You will get the most out of this exercise by minimizing their involvement.

The difficulty of this exercise depends on where you hold your hands. The hardest position is above your head at arms-length, then beside your head, then across your chest, then straight down between your legs or at your sides. Start with the easiest first then progress to the other positions as you get stronger.

You are now ready to begin.

•Keeping your torso straight and stiff, start the sit-up by tightening your lower abs then lifting your upper body off the floor.
•As you continue up, imagine trying to push your face up against the ceiling (think up, not around).
•When you reach about 25 to 30 degrees above horizontal, hold there for a second or two and squeeze your abs hard.
•Keep your lower back in contact with the towel at all times and always maintain tension in the abs.
•Lower yourself down slowly and under control. Do not just drop back to the ground. The negative portion of this exercise is extremely effective.
•Remember to adjust your arm position depending on the strength of your abs (see above).

You can see pictures of how this exercise is done by going to:

http://www.fitstep.com/Misc/Newsletter-archives/issue9-ab-tip.htm

Incline Ab Sit-Ups

If you are a beginning trainer, this is a good starting variation of the Abdominal Sit-up.

Set an incline sit-up board to a slight incline. If you don't have an incline sit-up board, you can use an adjustable incline bench, a decline bench, a Step platform with a riser under one of the ends or a flat bench with something under one end. You can even use a propped-up 2 x 6 board!

Your head should be on the higher end with your feet placed on the floor.

The execution is exactly the same. The only difference is that the tension on the abs is much less due to the greatly improved leverage in this position, allowing even people feel that their abs aren't strong enough to do the exercise.

Lying Superman Raises - An Exercise For The Lower Back

Though this exercise has a rather unique name, it is an excellent strengthening exercise for the lower back that you can do almost anywhere.

How To Do It:

Lie face down on the floor with your arms stretched out directly overhead (like Superman flying, hence the name).

Raise your left arm and right leg into the air at the same time, also raising your chest slightly off the floor. Hold there for a second and squeeze the muscles of your lower back. Lower your limbs back to the ground then raise your right arm and left leg and hold for a second.

You can push down with the hand that is on the ground to help raise your other arm and chest higher off the ground.

This exercise, even though it only uses your limbs as resistance, provides an excellent way to strengthen the lower back muscles.

Conclusion:

These two exercises will give you a good place to start with core training. You can begin improving your core strength by doing these exercises 3 times a week for 2 to 3 sets each.

Make core training a priority in your exercise routine and you will rapidly reap the benefits of having a stronger, more injury-proof midsection and back.

If you have any questions about core training or the exercises described here, go to: http://www.fitstep.com/Misc/Contactus.htm

About The Author

Nick Nilsson is Vice President of BetterU, Inc., an online exercise, fitness, and personal training company. Check out his latest eBook "The Best Exercises You've Never Heard Of" at http://www.thebestexercises.com or visit http://www.fitstep.com. You can contact him at betteru@fitstep.com or subscribe to BetterU News, his fitness newsletter at betterunews@fitstep.com.

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Effective Baseball Off Season Workouts

2011-08-19T04:25:00.000-07:00

Effective Baseball Off Season Workouts
By Guido Nussbaum

Many athletes like to keep themselves in shape at all times, but this is especially true whenever they are actually playing the game. It is important, however, for you to make sure that you are ready for the upcoming season and that you do not allow yourself to fall into disrepair while the game is not being played. This is true, regardless of what type of sport you play but many people that play baseball feel that exercising in the off-season gives them an edge whenever it comes time to step onto the field again. Here are some effective baseball off season workouts which you may find beneficial.

One of the most important things for you to consider in this regard is going to be the position that you play. An outfielder, for obvious reasons, is going to have to do a different type of workout than the pitcher may do. However, they can all benefit from an overall workout plan that will help to keep them lean and in shape. This is often done through a regular routine of weightlifting, along with effective cardiovascular workouts. Here is the basic way that this is done.

As far as the weightlifting is concerned, there are some considerations for the various positions that are played but almost anybody can benefit from a short routine of multi-joint exercises. The reason why this is the case, is because it allows you to effectively work out more of the body in less time and these exercises also help you to build muscle and in a much faster way. Multi-joint exercises workout more muscles of the body, unlike bicep exercises or something similar which only concentrate on one muscle group. When you do multi-joint exercises effectively, you really assist your body in growing in all areas.

Cardiovascular exercise is also a very important part of any effective baseball off season workout. The type of cardiovascular exercise that you are doing, however, may differ depending upon your position. For the most part, however, short bursts of activity are what is going to be necessary in order to get you in shape for the field and for this, you will need high-intensity interval training. This is where you go hard for a period of time, typically one minute, and then go easy for an equal or longer amount of time. Cycle through this for 8 to 10 sets on any piece of exercise equipment and you will quickly gain cardiovascular endurance.

Of course, you don't need to play baseball regularly in order to benefit from this type of baseball off season workouts. As a matter of fact, anybody that would like to lose weight, get in shape or stay in shape can benefit from doing these combination of exercises. The real key is to be consistent in your efforts and to make sure that you're constantly progressing in the exercises that you are doing. This will not only help you if you decide to step out on the field in the spring, but it will also assist you in looking good all year long.

Visit our web site to learn more about Baseball off Season Workouts

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Coaching Sports - Positive Coaching - Building Team Chemistry

2011-08-18T04:14:00.000-07:00

Coaching Youth Sports - Positive Coaching - Building Team Chemistry
By Jack Perconte

Building team chemistry is always a challenge for youth sport coaches. Trying to mold numerous personalities and different skill- level athletes into a cohesive unit is difficult, even for professional and college coaches. Expecting, often-untrained youth coaches to create great team chemistry can be asking a lot. The good news is that youth sport coaches do not have to deal with oversized egos or over paid athletes that college and professional coaches have to deal with. The bad news is that youth coaches have to deal with over-zealous parents that can put a thorn into building great team chemistry. Often, it only takes one uncooperative player or parent to disrupt team chemistry.

Team chemistry building is a process that takes time to develop. Good coaches are continually on the lookout for teaching moments that will enhance team chemistry as well as build positive character in team individuals. With that being said, there are many ways that youth sport coaches can incorporate into their coaching that leads to great team chemistry.

1. Open communication is one of the main keys to maintaining team chemistry. Coaches who clearly explain all team rules and coaching philosophy are off to a good start in developing team chemistry. Of course, following their stated rules and philosophy is always necessary, too.

2. Coaches should devote equal time to each team member, which makes every player feel like an integral part of the team. On the other hand, coaches, who display overt favoritism to some, often create factions on teams, which is detrimental to overall team chemistry. Even young players notice when teammates may be slighted with the coach's attention or negativity and this can be detrimental to team chemistry development.

3. Youth coaches should always watch for team members who comment or act negatively towards less talented players. Coaches should not allow any negativity to be displayed from one player or group of players towards others. Additionally, coaches should keep an eye out for any negativity displayed by parents towards players, coaches or towards other parents.

4. Teams often take on the attitude of their coach. Youth coaches who display an enthusiastic, fun and encouraging style will see their team display this attitude. Happy coaches often translate into happy kids, which leads to good team chemistry.

5. Coaches should teach sportsmanship and teamwork and watch for examples of these on their team, on other teams and in the news.

6. Team members that hang out together, even when not practicing or playing, often create stronger bonds. Coaches, or a designated parent, should organize team outings away from the game itself.

7. Fun is always a key - youth sport coaches, who can make things fun for kids, have a great chance of molding teams into a cohesive unit. Fun for athletes includes: overcoming challenges, activity, positive feedback, chances to compete, knowledge, winning and having the opportunity to win.

8. Coaches should teach the philosophy of "we." Explaining to players "we win as a team and we lose as a team" is key, as well as emphasizing the importance of each team member's contributions to the group.

9. Coaches should encourage players to "reach out" to all players so that cliques are not formed. Breaking up kids into groups with different players each practice is a good start to helping kids get to know each other.

10. As mentioned, it only takes one player or parent to disrupt a team so coaches should try to "get ahead" of any negativity with open communication before gossip and disruption can form.

Of course, winning teams often feel better about themselves. That should be motivation enough for coaches to the best job they are capable of to help teams win. Finally, creating an atmosphere where "kids can be kids" is important. This does not mean that coaches have to be friends with all players, but that coaches use their authority role to promote a positive experience for all, which leads to team chemistry.

"Playing major league baseball - sweet; helping kids - priceless."
Jack Perconte helps kids and their parents get through the complex world of youth sports. He shares his playing, coaching and parenting experiences in his books, The Making of a Hitter and Raising an Athlete: How to Instill Confidence, Build Skills and Inspire a Love of Sport. Learn more at http://positiveparentinginsports.com

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Unspoken Professional Courtesy In Baseball

2011-08-15T17:47:00.000-07:00

Unspoken Professional Courtesy In Baseball
By Jim Bain

When you think of "Professional Courtesies," especially unspoken ones, you may immediately think about how Japanese bow to one another, or not interrupting the Boss, even when they're totally wrong. The list would go on and on if you thought about it hard enough, but most likely it'd be geared towards the business world. Did you know Baseball also has unspoken professional courtesies which are displayed between baseball people.

One such unspoken courtesy exists between a catcher and the plate umpire. Should a foul tip or a wild pitch hit the umpire, acutely injuring him for an instance, the catcher will ask for time, usually from a base umpire if possible, and take a trip to the mound to confer with his pitcher.

The catcher has no pearls of wisdom to discuss with the pitcher, he is just professionally delaying the game in order to allow the umpire to overcome the stinger he took from the baseball. The diversion the catcher creates by going to the mound allows the umpire to save face and not delay the game due to his own injury time out and doesn't make him appear to be a wimp.

Another unspoken courtesy is between the pitcher and the batter who follows him in the line-up. If the pitcher makes an out, especially if he had to run to first base, and definitely if there are now 2 outs, the next batter will intentionally take more time going to the batters box and delaying before getting in it and getting set.

The purpose? The pitcher is paid to pitch and to that end he devotes every bit of energy he can during the game. Unlike fielders who make an out, take the field after 3 outs and rest and wait until play begins again, the pitcher immediately goes to work.

The delay the batter gives him is intended to afford him time to rest a bit, get a drink of water and refocus his mind back to his pitching duties. Unless the hitter takes an extraordinary amount of extra time, the umpire will not force play to begin realizing what is actually going on.

In baseball there are times and situations which accidentally blends professional courtesy with superstition, which ball players are notoriously guilty of being. One such issue is mentioning or talking about a pitcher in the process of throwing a perfect game. It just isn't done! Not on the field and especially not in the dugout, whether the pitcher is in the dugout or on the field.

I suppose the professional courtesy part would be not wanting to add any additional stress on the pitcher by informing him he was currently throwing a perfect game. Does anyone really think the pitcher has no idea he's pitching a perfect game? I hope not.

Then, the real menace displays itself, superstition, the fear that the baseball gods will hear what's going on and go out of their way to prevent a perfect game.

So the next time you notice something just a little bit out of the ordinary happening on the baseball diamond, check it out to see if an unspoken professional courtesy is being performed.

Jim Bain, former Minor league baseball player, who since retiring has dedicated his life to teaching baseball to youth, shares his advice on pitching baseball drills on his exciting info packed website: http://www.learn-youth-baseball-coaching.com

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

http://www.hit2win.com

Baseball Coaching Digest: Putting the Squeeze on Your Competition

2011-08-08T09:20:00.000-07:00

Baseball Coaching Digest: Putting the Squeeze on Your Competition
By guest author: Nick Dixon

The squeeze play should be a part of the playbook of every baseball team. It is important to properly teach the techniques, fundamentals, and proper timing to execute a successful squeeze play. This article covers the three common plays associated with the squeeze, the purpose of each and how each is run.

The Squeeze Play

The Squeeze Play is a play ran by offensive baseball teams consisting of a sacrifice bunt with a runner on third base. The batter bunts the ball. It is expected that the batter be thrown out at first base. The offensive team is trading an out for a run by providing the runner on third base an opportunity to score.

The Squeeze Play is rarely attempted with two strikes because a bunt attempt that is fouled off is an automatic third strike. The squeeze play is also rarely executed with two outs because there is a good possibility that the batter would make the third out of the inning by being thrown out at first base.

Safety Squeeze

This is a type of squeeze play in which the runner at third reads the contact before breaking for home. The runner makes sure that the bunt is down and in a location that makes it possible for him to safely score. These elements of caution is why this bunt is called the Safety Squeeze.

Coaching Points

The runner at third must see the ball down. He should extend his secondary lead. He should not get caught sitting still and looking. He must read the contact and immediately break for home or back to third base. The runner that hesitates or makes a slow read, may get picked off at third.

Suicide Squeeze

The Suicide Squeeze is a play in which the runner at third base break for home as soon as the pitcher begins his motion to the plate. This play, when executed properly, is impossible to stop from scoring. However, failure to get the bunt down is almost certainly going to result in an out at the plate. This is why this played is called Suicide Squeeze.

Coaching Points

The batter must bunt any pitch location no matter where it is. The batter must get the bat on the ball. The runner at third and the batter can not show the squeeze to soon. The batter will not square until the pitcher's stride foot lands. The runner at third must not break too early. When the batter or runner show the play too early the pitcher may pitch out or throw at the batter, in either case, the offensive team will find itself in a serious dilemma.

Fake Squeeze

The Fake Squeeze is play in which the offensive team puts pressure on the defensive team by faking a squeeze play. This play is used for two purposes; to draw a balk by the opposing pitcher and to safely steal second base uncontested. If the offensive team is seeking to cause a balk, the play is executed with a 3-ball count. Many coaches will opt to use this play when they have little confidence of the batter hitting the ball. The runner at third will cut his primary lead down. When the pitcher commits to the plate, the third base runner will yell "squeeze". The defensive team will think that a squeeze play is being ran, and forget about the backside runner advancing to second base.

Coaching Points

The runner at third must not get caught "looking or sitting" still after his secondary lead. The runner must break back to the bag inside the foul line to block a throw from the catcher to third base should it happen. Most defensive teams will not contest the runner moving to second base. This makes the Fake Squeeze almost a risk-free way to steal second base.

I hope that you found this article to be informative. If you would like to read more like it, please visit the Baseball Coaching Digest or the Baseball Coaching Digest Blog. Good luck to you and your team. Have a great day, Nick

The Baseball2u.com Baseball Store has a great selection of 1400 Baseball Products. Check out the BatAction Hitting Machine baseball pitching simulator. Available now for just $119.95 + S&H.

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. Dixon coaches at Boaz High in Boaz Alabama. Dixon is a member of the American Baseball Coaches Association and Alabama Baseball Coaches Association.

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 considered an expert in baseball training and skills development. Dixon also serves as an active consultant to baseball equipment companies and other sports product inventors.

Dixon is also a contributing writer for the Baseball Coaching Digest, the baseball Coaching Digest Blog, the Youth Baseball Digest, the Youth Baseball Digest Blog, the Baseball Parent Guide, the Baseball 2Day Coaches Journal, and Blog4Coaches.

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

=======================
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Baseball Game - Hitting Development - How to Use a Pitching Machine to Improve Your Hitting

2011-08-04T10:57:00.000-07:00

Improve Your Baseball Game Hitting Performance - How to Use a Pitching Machine to Improve Your Baseball Game Hitting

By Lincoln Hawk

As a developing hitter, you might not always be able to find someone who is willing to throw tons of pitches to you to help you work on your game. This can be frustrating as you are trying to get better so you can achieve your dreams of playing at higher levels. There is one way that you can still work on your hitting without having to have someone through you pitches all the time, and that's through the use of a pitching machine. Here are a few ways you can use a pitching machine to help you develop your swing and become a better hitter:

1. Hitting Against Different Pitches

Growing up, you probably only had to hit against two pitches, the fastball and the changeup. As kids get older, they learn how to throw different pitches, which you will need to be able to hit. To practice hitting against pitches like curveballs and sliders, you will need a pitching machine with two wheels. With two wheels, you can set the machine to throw you pitches with different types of movement. This will help you to focus on certain pitches you may have trouble hitting.

2. Focus on Release Point

As a hitter, you want to give yourself as much time to determine whether the pitch is hitable or not. To do this, you need to focus on the ball as soon as it is released from the pitcher. What a pitching machine will do is force the hitter to focus on the pitch as soon as it leaves the machine. By practicing being able to focus on a pitch as soon as it is released, you give yourself a better chance of recognizing what kind of pitch it is, and how you may need to adjust your swing as the ball comes toward you.

3. Reaction Time

One benefit of using a pitching machine is that you can set the speed to whatever you need. By setting the speed of the machine to be a little faster than what you will normally see in game situations, you will improve your reaction time. If the pitching machine that you have doesn't throw as fast as what you will see in a game, you could move the machine closer to home plate. This will cause you to have to increase your reaction time in order to make solid contact with the pitch.

For more information on where to find a pitching machine, check out pitchingmachines.zoostores.com.

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

Scheduling Youth Baseball Practice - Sample Schedule For Middle-School Aged Baseball Teams

2011-08-01T07:02:00.000-07:00

Scheduling Youth Baseball Practice - Sample Schedule For Middle-School Aged Baseball Teams
By guest author: Jim Bain

One of the more challenging obstacles for a brand new baseball coach is one of the very first issue he'll be required to address, baseball practice. When, Where, and How are all questions which scream for immediate attention, and can drive a new coach to the brink quickly if he lets it.

Naturally, drawing on one's own experiences is the first pool of assets in which to start putting together a practice schedule and program of drills. If your experience is limited, then draw from your coaches' advise, but think very, very hard before asking another coach.

Little leagues are notorious for being a gossip mill, and you really don't need the tongues wagging about "how you took a team and don't even know where to start." It's nobody's business, unless you're a pedophile, why you decided to coach.

With that in mind and the fact I'm all about coaching and helping others coach, I'm going to draw out a sample practice schedule guide for you to use, refer to, or throw away.

Bear in mind, practice is important throughout the season, but particularly important prior to the season starting. This is where the building blocks are laid out on which you'll build your team's skill as the season progresses and they acquire more actual game situation experience. So you'll practice more before the season than during.

I always laid out a 3 day, Monday, Wednesday and Friday practice schedule, trying to stay away from weekends for the benefit of my parents. However, if bad weather reduces practices, don't hesitate to schedule Saturday and Sunday practices.

Monday Practice:

1. Players warm up by stretching and playing catch. Do not allow the players to throw long toss until the third or fourth practice, although their arms are young, injury can still occur from "Too Much...Too Soon."

2. Infield: Position all players at an infield positions. You'll obviously see that certain players will not be suited for infield play, but it's wise for players to be exposed to different positions in the event they are forced into playing the position for some unforeseen reason.

Hit ground balls to each, (at least 4 each) having them throw to first, where the ball will be relayed to your catcher, who will flip the ball to you to hit again.

3. Batting Practice: Have the players scatter to fielding positions, the catcher will catch BP in full gear, have 1 batter hit while another stands on deck.
I strongly suggest a coach throw batting practice for control purposes.

Have each batter hit 10 hits and end with putting down a bunt. Continue to rotate batters and player on deck until all players have hit. Hopefully you'll have two catchers, who will hit then rotate to catch, getting hitting and catching experience.

Wednesday Practice

1. Always begin practice with stretching and playing catch, long toss after a couple of practices.

2. Outfield: Position a player at each base, one you will probably have playing that position, and have a catcher with you. Have the remaining players scatter throughout the outfield.

Rotating, hit fly balls to the fielders and have them throw to a base, again, on a rotating basis. Have that infielder throw the ball home to the catcher.
Hit at least three fly balls to each outfielder.

3. Go through Batting Practice.

Friday Practice:

1. Regular warm up routine, your players should be accustomed to the drill and automatically begin throwing as they arrive.

2. Place players at designated positions where you think they will be playing during the season. Never hesitate to switch or change positions and players, but you must start somewhere.

3. One coach hits infield practice, while another hits fly balls to the outfielders. All balls hit should be hit hard and not right at the player, as you are trying to push them into game condition.

4. Friday was always a new skill day. We would teach running, stealing, lead offs, there's a 100 different subjects to disgust. This is done with the entire team participating.

5. Batting Practice.

This is a very simple, yet effective practice schedule and routine, which of course you'll modify as the team's skill level grows. It addresses the basics of avoiding injury, fielding skills, both ground balls and fly balls and hitting.

Begin the season with good practices similar to these and you'll have a good year with your youth team.

Jim Bain - Former Minor league baseball player, who since retiring has dedicated his life to teaching baseball to youth. Visit his exciting info packed website: http://www.Learn-Youth-Baseball-Coaching.com

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

=======================
Thanks to our sponsors:

SoftballrUs.com/FastpitchSoftballSupply.com is the ultimate online fastpitch softball online store. SoftballrUs.com has Batting Trainers,Pitching Training, Training Bats,Defensive Training Equipment,Coaching DVDs & Books, Softball Pitching Machines, Softball Complete Net & Frame Batting Cage Packages, Batting Cage Nets, Protective Practice Screens and Nets, and BatAction Hitting Machines, and much, much more. Visit Softballrus.com now!

Access Free Basic and Advanced Hitting Drills, Tips and Articles

2011-07-21T06:11:00.001-07:00

Visit Hit2win.com for free drills, tips, and training articles.
The articles range from basic to advanced.
Make sure to click on the articles link and see if you can identify
the swing flaws shown in the batter's picture.
http://www.hit2win.com

Baseball Coaching Digest: Putting the Squeeze on Your Competition

2011-07-18T07:18:00.000-07:00

Baseball Coaching Digest: Putting the Squeeze on Your Competition
By guest author: Nick Dixon

The squeeze play should be a part of the playbook of every baseball team. It is important to properly teach the techniques, fundamentals, and proper timing to execute a successful squeeze play. This article covers the three common plays associated with the squeeze, the purpose of each and how each is run.

The Squeeze Play

The Squeeze Play is a play ran by offensive baseball teams consisting of a sacrifice bunt with a runner on third base. The batter bunts the ball. It is expected that the batter be thrown out at first base. The offensive team is trading an out for a run by providing the runner on third base an opportunity to score.

The Squeeze Play is rarely attempted with two strikes because a bunt attempt that is fouled off is an automatic third strike. The squeeze play is also rarely executed with two outs because there is a good possibility that the batter would make the third out of the inning by being thrown out at first base.

Safety Squeeze

This is a type of squeeze play in which the runner at third reads the contact before breaking for home. The runner makes sure that the bunt is down and in a location that makes it possible for him to safely score. These elements of caution is why this bunt is called the Safety Squeeze.

Coaching Points

The runner at third must see the ball down. He should extend his secondary lead. He should not get caught sitting still and looking. He must read the contact and immediately break for home or back to third base. The runner that hesitates or makes a slow read, may get picked off at third.

Suicide Squeeze

The Suicide Squeeze is a play in which the runner at third base break for home as soon as the pitcher begins his motion to the plate. This play, when executed properly, is impossible to stop from scoring. However, failure to get the bunt down is almost certainly going to result in an out at the plate. This is why this played is called Suicide Squeeze.

Coaching Points

The batter must bunt any pitch location no matter where it is. The batter must get the bat on the ball. The runner at third and the batter can not show the squeeze to soon. The batter will not square until the pitcher's stride foot lands. The runner at third must not break too early. When the batter or runner show the play too early the pitcher may pitch out or throw at the batter, in either case, the offensive team will find itself in a serious dilemma.

Fake Squeeze

The Fake Squeeze is play in which the offensive team puts pressure on the defensive team by faking a squeeze play. This play is used for two purposes; to draw a balk by the opposing pitcher and to safely steal second base uncontested. If the offensive team is seeking to cause a balk, the play is executed with a 3-ball count. Many coaches will opt to use this play when they have little confidence of the batter hitting the ball. The runner at third will cut his primary lead down. When the pitcher commits to the plate, the third base runner will yell "squeeze". The defensive team will think that a squeeze play is being ran, and forget about the backside runner advancing to second base.

Coaching Points

The runner at third must not get caught "looking or sitting" still after his secondary lead. The runner must break back to the bag inside the foul line to block a throw from the catcher to third base should it happen. Most defensive teams will not contest the runner moving to second base. This makes the Fake Squeeze almost a risk-free way to steal second base.

I hope that you found this article to be informative. If you would like to read more like it, please visit the Baseball Coaching Digest or the Baseball Coaching Digest Blog. Good luck to you and your team. Have a great day, Nick

The Baseball2u.com Baseball Store has a great selection of 1400 Baseball Products. Check out the BatAction Hitting Machine baseball pitching simulator. Available now for just $119.95 + S&H.

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. Dixon coaches at Boaz High in Boaz Alabama. Dixon is a member of the American Baseball Coaches Association and Alabama Baseball Coaches Association.

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 considered an expert in baseball training and skills development. Dixon also serves as an active consultant to baseball equipment companies and other sports product inventors.

Dixon is also a contributing writer for the Baseball Coaching Digest, the baseball Coaching Digest Blog, the Youth Baseball Digest, the Youth Baseball Digest Blog, the Baseball Parent Guide, the Baseball 2Day Coaches Journal, and Blog4Coaches.

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

====================
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Baseball Coaching Digest - Quick Baseball Coaching Tip of the Day

2011-07-15T09:14:00.000-07:00

Add an important element of competition to your baseball practice by putting a stop watch to batters leaving the batters box. You can make it their last swing of their batting practice session or set aside a time for timing your players out of the batters box.

You will want to time the following:

1 - Regular swing run to 1st
2 - Regular swing run to 2nd
3 - Regular swing run to 3rd
4 - Sac Bunt run to 1st
5 - Drag Bunt run to 1st

You will record the times. Then when the drill is done later, you have a standard that each player should meet or exceed.

You may also want to time the following:

1 - Straight steal of 2B
2 - Straight steal of 3B
3 - 1st to 3rd
4 - 1st to Home

Just a quick tip. Hope you have a great weekend. Nick

=========================

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Baseball coaching books and baseball coaching dvds recommended for baseball excellence.

2011-07-15T08:14:00.000-07:00

Baseball2u.com - Has the Baseball Coaching and Baseball Practice Books and DVDs that help coaches take their team to the next level. Check out the baseball coaching titles below found at the Baseball2u Online Book Store

Book: "The Baseball Playbook"
by Ron Polk$29.95
Book: "The Baseball Handbook"
by Bernie Walter $19.95
DVD: "Hitting Drills & Techniques" by Marty Schupak $24.95
Book - Mike Epstein on Hitting $24.95
DVD - The Mechanics of Hitting by Tony Dello $39.95
Book - 101 Championship Baseball Drills
by Glenn Cecchini $19.95
DVD Series - 6 Tape DVD Series:
"Ron Jackson's Hitting Factory" $199.99
DVD - Teaching the Mechanics of
the Major League Swing II
with Tom Emanski $29.95
Book - The Natural Hitter's Drill
Handbook-Vol 2: 101 Advanced
Hitting Drills by Luis Ortiz$19.95
6 DVD Series: Hitting For Excellence
by Dave Hudgens
Cleveland Indians Hitting Coordinator $99.95
A Youth Baseball Coaches Tool Kit $19.95
Book - Youth Baseball: A Coach's and Parent's Guide $19.95
Book: "Baseball Strategies"
with the American Baseball
Coaches Association by Wendell Kim $24.95
DVD: "Winning Baseball Strategies"
by Coach Marty Schupak $24.95
DVD: Baseball World's Dynamic
Practice Organization
with Tom Emanski $29.95
DVD: 6 Set Series
Tom Emanski Series $169.95
Book: "Coaching Baseball Successfully"
by Mike Curran $19.95
Book: "Coaching Baseball the Cal Ripkin Way"
by Cal and Bill Ripken $16.95
DVD: "Baseball Skills & Drills DVD"
by American Baseball Coaches Association $49.95
Book - 101 Defensive Baseball Drills
by Pat McMahon $19.95
Book: "Gold Glove Baseball" by the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) $19.95

Baseball Coaching Digest - The Magic of the 10 Minute Baseball Drill

2011-07-13T07:23:00.000-07:00

Baseball Coaching Digest - The Magic of the 10 Minute Baseball Drill
By guest author: Nick Dixon

One of the main reasons some kids refuse to play baseball is that baseball practice is too boring. One thing that makes it so boring is that many coaches run certain drills too long and do not break their practices into short times periods.

This article discusses the "magic of the 10 Minute Baseball Drill" and why many coaches use short time periods and drill variety to minimize boredom during baseball practice.

Why the 10 Minute Baseball Drill is Needed?

Baseball coaches and players are notorious for having short attention spans.

I have learned that I must keep our baseball drills short for two reasons. The first reason is that some of my players have short attention spans and after 10 or 15 minutes they lose interest and become bored. The second reason is that I have a short attention span and I too get bored with a drill that runs on and on without a break or change in activity.

What makes a 10 Minute Drill in Baseball a perfect drill?

I feel that three things make the 10 Minutes the perfect amount of time for a baseball drill:

1. The drill can be performed with total concentration. The kids have no trouble staying on task or focused for 10 minutes. The retention of mental skills also increases when the drill is interesting and action driven.

2. The short drill emphasizes quality not quantity. Our kids know and value the worth of a rep well done. They know when a drill has run too long. They know when a drill's value begins to diminish. They know that I would rather that they practice a skill for 10 minutes with a high level of performance quality and a true sense of urgency for rep success.

3. Total focus - Kids are more motivated to hustle, concentrate and perform a task when they know that the task will be limited to 10 minutes if the effort is adequate and the performance level is acceptable.

4. High Level of Excitement - Players of all ages can get excited about any drill or task if it is presented correctly. Coaches should show a high level of interest and excitement. A strong emphasis on why a drill is done will add to players understanding and raise their interest level.

The 4 Keys to running an effective 10 Minute Baseball drill:

1. Organization is vital to the success of the drill. It is a must to have a written practice schedule with time slots designated and allocated for each drill to be done that day. Each coach on the staff should have a copy of that schedule.

2. Player instruction in the details of the drill is important. The first time that you do it, you may have to spend a considerable amount of time explaining, demonstrating, and setting the drill up. After the first time, the players should get more and more efficient and comfortable with the drill and be able to get a lot of reps in the allotted 10 minutes.

3. Equipment must be ready to go. There can be no time used to set-up equipment or move machines, nets, and such. It is recommended that all needed equipment be prepared and arranged before practice or by other staff while the previous drill is being done elsewhere.

4. Get in a Routine - It is a good thing to establish a regular practice routine that you follow each day. You should always start with s stretch and warm-up period that is routine. Then everyday you should follow the same basic scrip as to the subject and direction of your practice. For example, you may wish to start with 2 offensive drills, and then do 2 defensive drills and alternate then until you have covered everything you have in the practice plan for that day.

At our daily practice, after warm-ups and stretches, the first thing that is done is a catchers/infielders drill that allows catchers to throw to the bases and infielders to practice catching and tags. Then we normally go into PFPs or Practice Fielding Practice. My point here is that we follow a routine that the kids know. They start each drill on their own and flow from drill to drill without wasting time.

We normally end our practice every day with one of about 4 bunting drills we use. That drill is intense and it is 10 minutes like all of our other drills.

In closing, let me make one point absolutely clear. I will deviate from the 10 minute drill schedule if the drill is sloppy or poorly done. If I have to, I will restart the clock, and make the team start the drill over. If I have to run a drill twice to get the level of performance that I expect, I will. The number focus in every drill is quality. That quality includes performing every rep at an acceptable level or standard. My kids know that I do and will start a drill, or even a practice over, if things are done poorly, sloppy, and without the right focus or energy level.

I hope that you found this article to be informative and helpful. You may find many other articles like it at Baseball Coaching Digest and the Baseball Coaching Digest Blog. Thanks for reading my articles. Have a great day, Nick.

The Baseball2u.com 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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Baseball Coaching Digest - Fake 3rd Out Defensive Trick

2011-07-11T10:42:00.000-07:00

Baseball Coaching Digest - Fake 3rd Out Defensive Trick
By guest author: Nick Dixon

The Fake 3rd Out is a trick play ran by defensive teams to trick an unsuspecting base runner. If the base runner is not alert and aware, he may step off the bag and give the defensive team a cheap out to end the inning. Coaches should make their players aware of sure plays and tactics to prevent this trick from happening to their team.

I saw this trick play pulled in a 12 and under tournament. The defensive team caught a young base runner off guard and used the play to get him to step off the bag and a quick tag was put on him to get the 3rd out in the inning.

Here is how the Fake 3rd Out trick play was ran.

The center fielder made the catch on a routine fly ball that was actually the 2nd out in the inning. The center fielder nonchalantly threw the baseball to his cut-off man who is the second baseman. The second baseman drops the ball and slowly retrieves it. The second baseman was close in behind second base.

Meanwhile, every defensive player on the field acts is if they were going to their dugout as if it were three outs in the inning. The unsuspecting and "gullible" second base runner started off the field also.

The defensive second baseman who has lagged behind, simply ran up behind the runner and tagged him out for the 3rd out in the inning. The umpire rings him up and the inning is over.

Coaches should always make sure that every base runner knows how many outs there are at all times. Coaches should tell teams about this trick in order to let them know that some teams will use this play to get a cheap out.

I hope this article will help you prepare your team for the approaching season.

Good luck till next time,
Coach Nick.

Make sure to visit the Baseball Coaching Digest to see daily post and articles on every aspect of coaching baseball. Check out the archive of over 200 articles on coaching baseball.

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U.S. Baseball Academy Baserunning Drill

2011-07-09T07:24:00.000-07:00

Teaching baseball players how to slide can be a challenge, but if they are uncomfortable with it or do it incorrectly, it can lead to an out or, worse, an injury. Heres a step-by-step guide to teaching your young players to slide effectively and safely.

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Baseball Coaching Digest - Three Things That I Feel Should Never Be Said on a Baseball Field

2011-07-07T11:14:00.000-07:00

Baseball Coaching Digest - Three Things That I Feel Should Never Be Said on a Baseball Field
By guest author: Nick Dixon

There are many things said by coaches and players during a game. Many things said provide useful information and guidance to players. There are other things that I feel are best not said during a game.

Here are three things that I feel should never be said by coaches or players during a game:

1. "We are going to lose." - Expecting to win is vital. The old saying, "Whether you expect to win or expect to lose, you are probably right!" is never truer than in coaching youth baseball. Having a positive attitude is the first step toward having a good game. I do not even use the word "lose" in any conversation during practices or game. I do not want to plant a "seed" that might grow into a team mindset.

Coaching Point: Your players are going to emulate your attitude and your frame of mind. Your words and body language are closely observed and noticed by your players. Never show negative emotion or lose control of your emotions. Players learn to handle pressure as well as their coach does. If the coach expresses too much concern or alarm when something goes wrong, the players may lose faith or panic.

2. "It is too cold...it is too hot! - Playing baseball in extreme weather temperature conditions is difficult to deal with. Playing in such conditions requires a lot of stretching and constant warm-up. I have coached in extreme cold and hot conditions. I have coached with snow falling and frost on the infield grass. I have coached when it was so hot and humid that your lineup sheet would be soaking wet with sweat before you could finish making it out. The best approach when playing in extremely weather conditions related to temperature is to not mention or discuss it. The more you speak or talk about it, the colder you will get.

Coaching Point: The wearing of high quality cold weather and hot weather under wear gear is a must for staying warm in extreme conditions. Hot hands packets in the back pocket are a common tactic for keep a players hands and fingers from going numb. A heater in the dugout may be required in extreme conditions. And most of all, remember, that cold weather is brutal on high dollar thin walled bats. It is wise to invest in a portable bat warmer. The popular models feature microwavable inserts that hold the heat and keep the bats warm for several hours.

3. "Watch out for that curve ball!" - It is best not to tell a batter what pitch to look for or to expect. Mental concentration is a part of batting success. Sometimes telling a player to what pitch you think is coming, makes the player to start guessing on pitches. The player will be more successful he is thinking or concentrating for himself.

Coaching Point: The batter should always know the count and the situation. The batter should have a good mental and physical approach at the plate. The batter should always expect the fast ball away and adjust to the fast ball in. The batter should always expect the fastball and adjust to the off-speed pitch.

I hope that you found this article informative and useful. I appreciate you taking the time to read it. Good luck to you and your team in the coming season. 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.

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Happy Independence Day - 2011

2011-07-04T08:56:00.001-07:00

Happy Independence Day - 2011
Happy Birthday America!

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Baseball Coaching Digest - The 4 Key Elements That Help a Batter Hit a Baseball With More Power

2011-06-22T11:37:00.000-07:00

Baseball Coaching Digest - The 4 Key Elements That Help a Batter Hit a Baseball With More Power
By guest author: Nick Dixon

Every baseball player loves to hit the ball hard and far. The power required to hit the baseball deep comes from the generation of maximum bat speed. The generation of bat speed is created by the correct use of the lower body, hips and hands. Four key elements are required to make the batting swing more powerful. This article outlines and explains those key elements.Those key elements are:

1) The Batter Uses the Front Leg as Leverage to Generate Maximum Bat Speed. - What is leverage in the baseball swing? Why is leverage important? How is leverage generated? Leverage in a baseball swing is a resistance point or stationary object that stops forward movement. The front foot acts as the lever and provides leverage to the swing. For this leverage to occur the batter must allow the ball pass front foot. The front foot should be closed with the toes pointed toward the plate to supply maximum leverage to the swing. This leverage is the force against which the batter rotates the hips against. The front leg must be strait and planted to allow the hips to turn.

2) The Batter Generates Maximum Rotational "Torque of the Hips". - I use the term "Hip Torque" to describe the power the hips add to the swing. Batters must rotate the hips to achieve maximum bat speed. To get the maximum hip turn the front foot should be kept in a closed position. If the front foot is allowed to rotate or is in an open position at any point during the swing, there will be a loss of hip energy and a reduction of power in the swing.

The back foot is often lifted or turned up onto the toe. Many coaches describe the action of the back foot as a turn of the "shoe laces to the pitcher". The back foot action is not nearly as important as the front foot. The one thing that must be monitored is that the back foot does not travel forward. The back foot should stay where it was at the beginning of the swing, but the heel should lift and the foot turn to free the back side and to allow for maximum hip and torso rotation.

3) The Batter Keeps of the Hands Close to the Body. The Batter Keeps the Hands on the Shortest Power Path to the Ball. - The power track for the hands is a path that starts above the ball and close to the body. The "power track" is a short compact swing that is directly to the ball. To generate great bat speed the batter must drive the knob and bury it at the power contact position. Keeping the hands closer to the body also keeps the hands inside the ball.

4) The Batter Achieves Maximum Extension Through the Ball. - The batter that keeps the bat on the ball plane as long as possible is able to generate the maximum amount of power possible. The track or path of the bat should be downward until it gets to the balls plane. When the bat gets on an even plane with the ball, the batter should then drive the hands forward through the ball. This power extension has the top hand in a palm down position and the bottom hand in a palm up position. This forward extension or drive through the baseball is a key element of generating power.

I hope that this article was informative and helpful to you. I appreciate you taking the time to read. 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.

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2011-06-20T12:29:00.000-07:00

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Baseball Coaching Digest: The Perils of Defensive Assumption in Baseball Action

2011-06-15T12:09:00.000-07:00

Baseball Coaching Digest: The Perils of Defensive Assumption in Baseball Action
By guest author: Nick Dixon

Assuming or taking for granted certain things when your team is playing defense can lead to costly mistakes and could lead to a loss. This article outlines three things that coaches and players should never assume when you are playing defense.

Assuming Every Player Knows the Number of Outs

This is the most common mental mistake a team or coach makes. They have a player that does not know how many out there are. I have witnessed in many different forms. Several times I have seen catchers think that there were three outs and the inning was over, so they rolled the ball toward the pitcher and allowed an alert runner on third score on a mental error.

I have seen an outfielder think that there were two outs when he caught a fly ball hit shallow into center field. He assumed that there were two out when he caught what he thought was the third out. He relaxes after the catch only to realize that the runner at third base has just tagged up and scored.

Making such mental mistakes can be prevented if the middle infielders relay and communicate the number of outs to the outfielders and other players after each out is made. It should be a standard procedure that every player on the team show at least one teammate the sign for the current number of outs after each out is made.

Assuming Everybody Knows the Bunt Coverage

Assuming everyone in the infield knows what the bunt situation is and the coverage that is on at the time can lead to a costly mistake. We have all seen it happen. The first baseman charges the bunt. The pitcher bounces off to the third base side and the catcher bounces out perfectly. The catcher calls the first base man off the ball, fields it, and comes up throwing to first. However, the second baseman was napping and did not get there to field the throw. The second baseman had what we call a "brain fart". He was not mentally alert and in the game. Therefore, it is important that the catcher call time, step out in front of the plate, and signal the bunt coverage that has been called for the situation.

Coaches must not assume that every player is alert. The key is communication between coaches and players. The coach must talk to his catcher and middle infielders constantly to make sure that they are in the game. Players should be taught to talk the game between pitches and communicate the situation, likely plays by the offense, and whose "got the bag" between pitches.

Assuming a play will or will not be made
Wrong assumptions can lead to devastating results when a team is on defense. A player should always hustle to a ball or to the correct position when the ball is hit or put into play. It can be costly for an outfielder to relax on a ball in the gap because he thinks the other outfielder is going to make the play. Not getting over to back up a fellow outfielder can cost a team valuable bases and even a run, if the ball is miss-played, missed or is a base it that gets by an outfielder.

Outfielders should always hustle, talk, and communicate when the ball is hit. Even if the other outfielder calls the ball, the outfielder should hustle over the back up on the play.

Outfielders should always back up throws as if the throw is going to be missed. Defensive players should never assume a catch. Catchers should sprint to back up throws at first base when there are not runners on. Just when the catcher assumes a ball will be caught, rather than missed, the first baseman will let the tying run get to second base with a miss-played short hop. If the catcher hustles to back-up on the play as he should, the runner does not advance to second base.

I hope that you found this article to be informative. I appreciate you taking the time to read it. For more articles like it, visit the Baseball Coaching Digest, Youth Baseball Digest, and the Baseball Parent Guide websites and blogs. Good luck to you and your team.
Have a great day, Nick.

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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. Dixon coaches at Boaz High in Boaz Alabama. Dixon is a member of the American Baseball Coaches Association and Alabama Baseball Coaches Association.

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 considered an expert in baseball training and skills development. Dixon also serves as an active consultant to baseball equipment companies and other sports product inventors.

Dixon is also a contributing writer for the Baseball Coaching Digest, the baseball Coaching Digest Blog, the Youth Baseball Digest, the Youth Baseball Digest Blog, the Baseball Parent Guide, the Baseball 2Day Coaches Journal, and Blog4Coaches.

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

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Baseball Coaching Digest - Stop and See - 1st & 3rd Double Steal Base Running Play

2011-06-02T07:07:00.000-07:00

Baseball Coaching Digest - Stop and See - 1st & 3rd Double Steal Base Running Play
By guest author: Nick Dixon

Name - "1st & 3rd Stop and See Steal" Play

Type of Play - Offensive

Situation - Runners at 1st and 3rd base with 2 outs.

Objective - The offense will use this play to achieve one of the following 3 results:

1. The first base runner wants to steal and draw a throw to 2B in hopes of scoring the third base runner.

2. The first base runner will advance to 2B if a throw down is not made by the catcher.

3. The first base runner will try to create a rundown if a throw down is made. The offense tries to force a defensive error or "buy time" for the third base runner to score.

Details-

The first base runner will take his normal lead. He wants to make sure that he does not get picked off by the pitcher. The offensive team wants the catcher to throw to second. The third base runner will take an aggressive but safe lead. The third base runner will make sure that the catcher's throw down clears the pitcher or any possible cut-off man. The 1B runner will execute a straight steal and will look in, like a hit and run, but he is reading the catcher's actions and not the batter's contact. The batter will be taking the pitch.

If the 1B runner sees the ball going down to second, he will stop. He will stop and retreat quickly back toward first base. If the defense quickly throws to first base, he will get in a run down. If the defense throws to home to get the third base runner who has his break for home, the 1B runner will advance on to second base. The third base runner will also read the catcher's actions. He will expect a full-arm fake and check back to third base. If the catcher releases the ball toward second base, the third base runner will make sure that the ball clears the pitcher and any possible cut-off man. If the 3B runner "reads the ball through", he breaks hard and slides hard in home.

How do you stop it?

It is hard for the defense to stop this play. They are not aware that the 1B runner may stop. The best method of defending this play is for the shortstop or second baseman to take the throw and quickly throw to home plate. The defense must communicate.

Points to Remember?

1. The 1B runner has to make sure not to get picked and that he properly reads the catcher.

2. The third base runner must take an aggressive but safe lead. He is expecting a pitcher or infield cut or a full-arm fake by the catcher.

3. The "stop and see" play is great for scoring a "cheap" run when the weak part of the batting order is up.

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Baseball Coaching Digest - Teach Batters to Use Their New Brain When Batting

2011-05-23T08:31:00.000-07:00

Baseball Coaching Digest - Teach Batters to Use Their New Brain When Batting
By guest author: Nick Dixon

To me the hitter's brain is his eyes. If you literally try to think yourself through every at-bat, you are in trouble in today's game. The hitter must let his eye's do his thinking at the plate. I consider the eyes a batter's new brain. They must learn to properly use it. This article discusses several coaching points, tips and details related to this approach to hitting.

Teaching young hitters to swing at what they see, not what they think they see or what they think that they are going to see is one of the most important coaching responsibilities as a youth coach. What I mean about this statement is that players have to step into the box realizing that they "never know" what the pitch will be. They should not guess pitches but rather learn to keep the hands back and see what the pitch is and then react.

Several coaching points come to mind when I discuss this process. Many of these are saying that you should teach or convey to your staff and players. Those points are:

1. Always set yourself up physically to hit the fastball on the outer 3rd of the plate, and adjust to hit the fastball in. Notice, I said "physically" set your stance at the plate. I did not say, "Convince yourself that the next pitch is going to be a "fastball away". The key is getting in a position to hit it and being able to reach. Batters should always be ready to hit the fastball away first and then adjust to the fastball in, curveball away, or pitch on the middle 3rd of the plate. The batter must let his "eyes control his hands". The decision to hit or swing comes from the eyes, not the brain. Therefore, the eyes are the hitter's brain.

2. Always set yourself up physically to hit the fastball and adjust to hit off speed pitches. The batter must be able to hit the soft stuff on the outer 3rd of the plate at all times. The batter should always be ready to hit the fastball, but should keep the hands back, and adjust to hit the off speed pitch. The key here is that to be a confident batter, a batter must have confidence in his "hand or bat speed". He must know and realize that if he keeps his hands back, he can still catch up with the fastball, but if he "leaks or cheats his hands forward", he will be incapable of hitting the away fastball and the way off speed pitch. He must learn to keep his hands back and allow his eyes to do his thinking. He must see a pitches location before he reacts. Assuming a position that allows you to see, react, and hit all pitch locations is the key to hitting success.

3. The hitter should never guess. Guess hitting makes a hitter an easy target that will fall victim to good pitches. Hitting is a process of see and reacting, not guessing and swinging. The hitter must see the pitch location before he swings, not guess a pitches location before he swings. The difference is that when you guess, you start too early. When you guess, you have a tendency to start the swing prematurely. The guess hitter may be able to get it right sometimes, and crush the fastball with power. But, more times than not, he will lunge, jump or get out to quick and strike out or pop the fly ball into the air.

4. The only thing a hitter should know is that you "never know" what the pitch is going to be. The key is to trust you eyes as your brain to allow you to be a "see" hitter and not a "guess" hitter. I know that count awareness can give you the edge as a hitter in many situations. If you are ahead, you are more than likely going to get a fastball. If the pitcher is ahead, you are more than like going to get his best out pitch, which may be a breaking ball. But, more and more in today's game, we are pitching batters backwards. So, the absolute best way to hit is to make batting a "seeing, identifying and reacting process" that allows the swing to be triggered, controlled and executed by the eyes.

I hope that you found this article to be useful and informative. You can find more like it at Baseball Coaching Digest, Youth Baseball Digest, Little League Digest, and the Baseball Parent Guide. I thank you for taking the time to read this article. I wish you and your team the best of luck in the coming season. 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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The Categories they have are: BatAction Hitting Machines, Hurricane Hitting Machines, Batting Cages, Pitching Machines, Jugs Equipment, Game and Practice Baseballs, Protective Practice Screens and Nets, Portable Pitching Mounds, Baseball DVDs & Books, Clearance Items on Sales, NEDCO Bataction Replacement Parts, Baseball Training Equipment, Youth Baseball Training Equipment, Training Bats, Pitching & Throwing Trainers, Defensive Trainers, SKLZ Hurricane Replacement Parts and Much Much More! Visit Baseball2U.com today!

Baseball Coaching Digest - The Catcher, Your PR Player

2011-05-16T09:35:00.000-07:00

Baseball Coaching Digest - The Catcher, Your PR Player
By guest author: Nick Dixon

This is a short article explaining one of the most important roles that your catcher will play in every game. The role is that of being the team public relations representative with the umpire staff. The attitude and behavior of a catcher can have a huge effect on the attitude of the umpires. Many times what a catcher does or does not do, has an affect on how an umpire perceives the whole team and catching staff. The best way for me to help you see what I mean is to give you several examples of how bad catcher behavior can possibly adversely affect an umpires attitude during the game. I am not saying that all umpires will react negatively to what a catcher says and does. However, more times than not, bad catcher behavior will make the umpire angry and cause a negative atmosphere.

Here are a few examples of how a behavior of the catcher can affect the attitude of the umpire.:

Example #1 - It is the first inning of the game. The pitcher throws a pitch that is "border-line" that could have been called a strike or ball. The plate umpire calls the pitch a ball. The catcher gets angry. He turns and stares at the umpire and shakes his head in "disbelief" before throwing the ball back to the pitcher. The next 6 pitches are border-line also. Every one of them is called a ball also. The atmosphere is tense. The brief stare may cost his team big time.

Example # 2 - It is the 3rd inning. The catcher has had a rough time handling the wild pitcher his team has on the mound. A lot of balls have gone to the back stop. The plate umpire has gotten hit in the shins by several pitches. The umpire tells the catcher that he has got to do a better job of blocking the ball. The catcher resents the umpires comment. He makes no attempt at all to block or stop the pitches in the dirt for the rest of the inning. When a ball bounces away or goes to the back stop, the catcher makes not effort to retrieve it. The umpire has to go and get everything. As one would expect, the atmosphere is tense. The team begins to feel that the umpire is making calls against them. The truth is that they may be correct.

Example # 3 - The catcher is a great player in his own mind. He feels that he is the worlds #1 gift to baseball. He thinks that umpires are an unnecessary evil of the game. He has little or no respect for them and that fact shows in what he says and how he acts. When the umpire tries to establish a sense of rapport, the catcher is short, impolite, and disrespectful. He often does not respond to the umpires questions. When he does respond, he answers with a "huh", "yea" or "no". The umpire senses an attitude and resentment may build. The atmosphere is tense and the team may suffer later in the game should a close call have to be made. The calls that can go against them may.

Example #4 - The pitch was called a ball. Every player, coach, and fan of the team feels that the pitch should have been called a strike. The coach yells to the catcher, "Where was that pitch? Was that a strike?" The catcher yells back to the coach, "Yes it was!". Then the catcher yells at the pitcher, loud enough for everyone present to hear, "Throw that one again, he can not miss that call two times in a row!'. What do you think the umpire's reaction is going to one? Do you think these loud verbal exchanges are helping the defensive team?

I am not saying that umpires are evil people that hold a grudge or have big chips on their shoulders. What I am saying is that umpires are human. They come and umpire sometimes after a hard 8-hour shift. They just expect to be treated with respect.

6 Things Catchers Should Do to Establish a Good Rapport with the Plate Umpire:

Always answer the umpire with a "yes sir" or "no sir" when he asks a question.
Never turn toward the umpire after a call. A hard stare or glare is not going to help your team. Do not have an "attitude"!
Make sure all comments made to the pitcher and to the coach are positive in nature and do not "show up" the plate umpire.
Be a hustler. Quickly retrieve all "passed balls". Work hard and show a willingness to go above and beyond when it comes to helping keep the game running smoothly with no delays.
Never shake your head or show negative emotion to a ball or strike call or an out or safe call.
Stay down on all pitches. Make an effort to field or block every pitch. Consider it your job to protect the umpire.

I hope this article give you some insight into how a catcher behavior and attitude can help create a positive game atmosphere and develop good rapport between your team and the umpire staff.

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

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Baseball Coaching Digest - The Swing Looks Perfect But the Batter Always Hits a Weak Ground Ball

2011-05-04T10:59:00.000-07:00

Baseball Coaching Digest - The Swing Looks Perfect But the Batter Always Hits a Weak Ground Ball
By guest author: Nick Dixon

We have all seen this scenario. The batter has above average bat speed, above average hitting skill and is always extremely aggressive at the plate, but is simply not getting on base. The swing looks great but weak or poor contact is made. The batter is in a serious hitting slump. The only pitch the batter seems able to hit hard is the fast ball on the inner part of the plate. It seems like every other ball he makes contact with is a ground ball weakly hit back to the pitcher. And when it hits it hard, it is a "worm-burner" back to the pitcher. This article offers reasons and corrections for this hitting flaw.

What causes this hitting flaw?

The answer to this question is one word, "timing". The batter is not being patience enough. The batter is attacking the baseball too quick or too soon. The bat is not making good solid contact with the baseball because the bat is already through the POWER ZONE before the ball gets there. When the batter attacks the pitch too soon, the bat has passed through the "level plane" and has started to move upward when it contacts the ball.

Many young batters and overly aggressive or impatience older batters, want to attack the ball as soon as possible. They often attack it too it early before the ball reaches the plate. No matter how hard the swing is, the batter is only making contact with the top edge or third of the baseball. This contact at the very top of the ball is forcing the ball hard downward off the bat, thus creating a "hard worm burner" back to the pitcher.

How is this batting flaw be corrected?

You may have heard a coach in the past say, "Let the Ball Get In". What this means is that the batter should let the ball get inside the front foot. The only pitch a batter should attack before it gets inside the front foot is the fast ball on the inner third of the plate. Every other pitch must be allowed to get inside the foot before the batter attacks it.

Letting the ball get in allows the bat to make contact when the bat is on a level plane. The best way to correct the flaw is to do a front toss drill and making sure that the batter waits until the ball gets inside the front foot before attacking it. Patience and timing are the two important things batters must learn to use at the plate. Having these two traits are the key to hitting line drives for base hits.

I hope that you found this article to be useful and informative. You may find other articles like it at the Baseball Coaching Digest and the Youth Baseball Digest. I thank you for taking the time to read it. 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.

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Little League Digest - 10 Base Running Tips For Little League Baseball Players

2011-04-20T08:28:00.000-07:00

Little League Digest - 10 Base Running Tips For Little League Baseball Players
By guest author: Nick Dixon

There are several important coaching points that need to be remembered when teaching Little League players to run the bases correctly. This article presents 10 coaching points for little league baseball runners related to first baseball.

Coaching Points related to base running at 1st base:

1. The batter must sprint out of the batter's box and take a straight line path toward first base. The batter base runner must "honor" the base running box. The base running box allows the umpire to determine if a base runner is inside the base line. If a runner gets inside the foul line and a throw ball makes contact with the runner, the batter base runner is out. If a ball is a slow roller in the direction of first base, the batter base runner must avoid contact with the ball. Stepping on, contacting or touching the ball in fair territory will result in an out.
2. When a batter hits the ball his approach to first base is determined by the location of the hit ball as it travels into the field. If the ball is a fielded grounder, the base runner will run through the bag at 1st.
3. If the hit ball gets by the infielder, either as a hit or error, the batter base runner should do a "hook" path as he approaches first base to give him a straighter angle to advance to second base if the first base coach sends him.
4. The batter base runner should run hard through the bag when he is attempting to beat a throw to first. The runner should concentrate on running to a spot about 15 feet past the bag. When the runner touches the bag, the runner's foot should land on the front 1/3 of the bag.
5. The batter base runner should always look to the right when he crosses the bag on a close play. This look allows the batter base runner to see if the throw was missed by the first baseman.
6. If the base runner is sent to second, the runner should only contact the inner corner of the base as he makes the turn toward second base.
7. The runner should always run everything out as if the ball is fair. The runner should hustle and assume that all fly balls will be missed.
8. The runner must run out all foul balls because of the "roll back" rule. If a foul ball hits and kicks back into fair territory between home and 1st base or between home and 3rd base, the ball is fair. The ball will be fair as long as the ball does not contact a bat, fence, dugout, or fielder.
9. The batter base runner that sees an errant throw should not immediately advance to second. The runner must listen to his coach. The coach will make sure that the catcher is not trailing the play.
10. Older or advanced runners may be taught to read the firstbaseman's footwork to detect a possible catch ad tag play. If the throw from the fielder pulls the first baseman off the bag, the only possibility for getting the runner out is a tag. If the runner sees the first baseman coming off the bag toward him, he should slide to avoid the tag.

The CoachesBest Baseball Store has a great selection of 1400 Baseball Products. Check out the Mauer Quick Swing baseball batting trainer.

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 at Boaz High School in Alabama. 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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================
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Baseball Coaching Digest - Illegal Use of the Courtesy Runner Rule

2011-04-18T07:56:00.000-07:00

Baseball Coaching Digest - Illegal Use of the Courtesy Runner Rule
By guest author: Nick Dixon

Baseball coaches must be alert for one way that opposing offensive teams may illegally use the Courtesy Runner or Speed-Up rule.

How does a team illegally use a courtesy runner? Here is the procedure outlined:

Coaches should always be alert for the opposition misusing the this base runner rule. There are a couple of ways that coaches do this.

The first way that they cheat using the "speed-up" runner rule is that they will use a designated hitter for their catcher and if the opposition does not catch it, they will use a courtesy runner to run for the designated hitter who is actually hitting for the catcher.

Sounds crazy doesn't it? Well it has been done many, many times by coaches that pull this on unsuspecting coaches and inexperienced umpires.

Another way that coaches will misuse the "speed-up" runner is that they run for a pitcher or catcher that they say is going out on defense, for the first time, in the next half of the inning. They put a substitute in the catcher's batting slot. They tell the umpire that he is catching or pitching. The player bats and gets a hit. The coach then uses a "speed-up" runner for the sub who he says is now his catcher or pitcher. The runner comes in the game and runs. However, the sub is pulled and the starting catcher is put back in the game when the defense takes the field.

These are rule violations. You must always be alert and watch for such violations by your opposition. Don't think that such trickery will not happen to you. If you do not have a good score bookkeeper to help you be alert, you may not catch it.

Check out Blogs4Coaches.com for a directory of blogs recommended for baseball coaches, players and parents.

Check out the Bat Action Hitting Machine baseball pitching simulator. This high speed training machine is 100% Guaranteed to raise Batting Averages and has a full year warranty.

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Youth Baseball Digest - What is on Base Percentage? How is on Base Percentage Calculated?

2011-04-15T09:52:00.000-07:00

Youth Baseball Digest - What is on Base Percentage? How is on Base Percentage Calculated?
By guest author: Nick Dixon

On Base Percentage (OBP) is a vital baseball statistic that tells how effectively a batter is getting his job done at the plate. On baseball percentage is often referred to the OBP. On Base Percentage is often referred to as the "on base average" or OBA.

What is On Baseball Percentage?

OBP is a statistic expressed in a three digit number that shows how often reaches first base. The OBP represents every way a batter can gets to first base for any reason other than a fielding error or a fielder's choice. On-base percentage is the measure of the number of times a player gets on base by getting on base with a hit, by drawing a base on balls, and by being hit by pitch. The expressed as a percentage of his total number of plate appearances.

How is calculate OBP?

OBP is calculated using the simple mathematical formula. To calculate the OBP you first add the total number of hits, walks and times the batter is hit by a pitch. You then divide that total by the total number of at-bats, walks, times hit by a pitch and sac flies..

OBP is calculated using this formula:

(Number of H + BB + HBP)

Divided by

(Number AB + BB + HBP + SF)

= OBP

Symbols used in the formula above:

H = Hits

BB = Bases on Balls (Walks)

HBP = Hit By a Pitch

AB = At bats

SF = Sacrifice Flies

I hope that you have a better understanding of OBP after reading this article. I really appreciate you taking the time to read it. Good luck this season, 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. Dixon is better known as the inventor of the BatAction Hitting Machine and the Derek Jeter Hurricane Hitting Machine. Dixon is a contributing writer for the Baseball Coaching Digest, the Baseball Parent Guide, the Baseball 2Day Coaches Journal, and Blog4Coaches.

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

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Baseball Coaching Digest: Defending the First and Third Early Break Play

2011-04-04T07:47:00.000-07:00

Baseball Coaching Digest: Defending the First and Third Early Break Play
By guest author: Nick Dixon

One of the plays that teams will run with runners at first and third base is to have the first base runner early break. This article outlines this play and the best ways to defend against it.

You have seen the play ran over and over. There are base runners on first base and third base. The runner at first base break early before the pitcher even begins his motion. The pitcher steps off, throws the ball to the second baseman the runner breaks back toward first base. The second baseman throws the ball to the first baseman. The runner at third, who has been creeping slowly down the line, breaks for home, when the second baseman releases the ball. The first baseman catches the ball, turns to throw to the plate, the ball arrives late, the third base runner scores. How do you stop this play?

To know defend this play you must first know why the offense runs it and what their goals are. The offensive team's goals in order of priority are:

Score the runner at third with a late throw to the plate. If your pitcher throws the ball to the middle infielder, the runner at third will in most cases break for home when the ball leaves the middle infielders hand. The offense knows that the first baseman must catch the ball, turn, and throw. In most cases, that process takes too long. The throw home will always be late.
Score the runner at third with a balk. - Another goal of the early breaking runner at first base is to force the pitcher to balk. This action would move both runners and score the run.
Get both runners into scoring position without a threat of the first base runner being thrown out. The offensive team knows that the defense will not contest the early breaking runner, so they use this tactic as a safe way to steal second and to get both runners into scoring position.

What should the defensive team do to stop the play and to prevent a run form scoring?

Here are the three recommended actions and the results each causes:

Give the base up uncontested. This is the safest method if you feel that your pitcher can get the batter out at the plate. Of course if there are no outs or one out, you may not want to let the runner move to second base without action.
Run a cut play with the pitcher throwing the ball to the second baseman. The second base man will charge toward third base. He will catch the ball throw from the pitcher and immediately throw the ball to the third baseman or run at the third base runner in an attempt to catch him off a bag and to get him out.
Pitcher throws the ball to the second baseman, after checking the runner at third base. The second baseman will not throw the ball to the first baseman but will rather, keep his shoulders turned in a position allowing a throw to the plate, and slowly walk the runner back to first base. There is no throw made thus the runner at third base does not have the opportunity to break to home.
The Pitcher full arm fakes to second base and immediately throws to the third baseman. In many cases, the runner at third base will "bite" on the full arm fake to second base and will come off a few steps toward home. This movement toward home is often enough to allow the pitcher to pick him off third or to catch him off third with an opportunity to get an out in a run down situation.

I hope that this article is helpful and informative. Thanks for taking the time to read it.

Have a great day,
Nick.

The Baseball2u.com Baseball Store has a great selection of 1400 Baseball Products. Check out the BatAction Hitting Machine baseball pitching simulator. Available now for just $119.95 + S&H.

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. Dixon coaches at Boaz High in Boaz Alabama. Dixon is a member of the American Baseball Coahes Association and Alabama Baseball Coaches Association.

To subscribe to the Baseball Coaching Digest Newsletter visit the Baseball Coaching Digest. You may also fine free baseball coaching articles, drills and tips at the Baseball Coaching Digest Blog.

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How Pitch Count Affects A Hitter's Strategy

2011-04-01T04:29:00.000-07:00

How Pitch Count Affects A Hitter's Strategy
By Jim Bain

A hitter must have a firm grasp of the situation he's walking into as he approaches the plate and should have a distinct plan of what and how he's going to hit in order to benefit the team the most.
Let's delve into some of the more common strategies which affect pitch count on a hitter and what should be going through his head.

Baseball Pitch Count-Hitter - Situation: 1st inning - lead off hitter - no outs- no base runners:
The first duty of a lead off hitter is to get on base. Doesn't matter by what means he accomplishes this, base hit, walk, hit by the pitch, just as long as he reaches base safely.

0-0 Count. There are two trains of thought in this situation. The first is to always take the first pitch. Force the pitcher to throw a strike. It's the beginning of the game and at this particular time nobody, including the pitcher, knows exactly how his control will be on that day. Should his 1st pitch be a ball, the hitter has an automatic advantage because the next pitch must be a strike or else the pitcher is quickly putting himself into a huge disadvantage.

Along those lines, the second philosophy on this count and situation is, swing at the first pitch. The assumption is the pitcher will probably throw a fastball for a strike in order to quickly get ahead in the count.
It's doubtful, especially in the younger ages, the pitcher would throw a breaking ball because it's harder to throw for a strike. Therefore, the best chance for a hitter to see a fastball strike, will be the first pitch of the game.

1-0 The batter has a little breathing room because the odds are 50/50 he has a chance of being walked as he does being struck out. This may allow the hitter a little bit more flexibility in swinging at a pitch he may not quite like.

2-0 The batter has a distinct advantage over the pitcher. The pitcher must throw a strike or all but nearly concede a possible walk to the lead off hitter, something he does not want to do. The hitter at this point can look for a specific pitch in a specific area and if the pitch isn't there, don't swing.

3-0 Unless you are an Albert Pujos or other great MLB player, it is a cardinal sin to swing at a 3-0 pitch. Remember, you are wanting to reach base and the pitcher must throw 3 strikes in a row before throwing a ball to keep you from walking if you don't swing at another pitch.

0-1 Count. As a lead off hitter you should be fearless and comfortable with hitting with any count, so hitting with 1 strike should not bother you. In fact, in reality you have accomplished the first step of your job.

You want to see as many pitches from the pitcher as possible. This is not only for you to become accustomed to his pitching motion, types of pitches he throws or any other thing you can pick up for an advantage, but your team mates are also learning the pitcher as they watch you work him.

0-2 At this point you must shift gears from an offensive hitter to a defensive hitter. Your entire focus goes to making contact, putting the bat on the ball, and not allowing the pitcher to strike you out.

You can not count on an umpire calling a close pitch, although a ball, a ball. He very well may subconsciously favor the pitcher on a close pitch as he has thrown nothing but strikes to that point.

These situations are but a very minute sampling of the 1000s of situations a hitter will encounter over his/her career and is not intended to be all inclusive, that would be nearly impossible.

Hopefully by examining the thought processes behind the strategies will help you start better understanding the complexities of the mental aspect of the game from a hitter's position. You must remember...baseball is Not all physical abilities.

Jim Bain - Former Minor league baseball player, who since retiring has dedicated his life to teaching baseball to youth. Visit his exciting info packed website: http://www.Learn-Youth-Baseball-Coaching.com

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

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Executing A Delay Steal Properly

2011-03-31T04:01:00.000-07:00

Executing A Delay Steal Properly
By Jim Bain

The Delay Steal is not usually a type of steal you can utilize successfully against a well coached team. However, even the best teams are subject to mental lapses and that's when you capitalize on it.

What is a delayed steal? Perhaps a better name for this type of steal would have been surprise steal.
It's a steal which occurs in an unusual fashion and time. Great! What does that mean?

Let's assume the opposing team's 300 lb. catcher has just drawn a walk. Would you seriously consider him a base stealing threat? Of course not. But, what if that 300 lb runner, who absolutely nobody paid any attention, suddenly took off for second base. There would be a moment of hesitation, disbelief, of what was happening. This moment may be all he needs to steal the base.

That's why a delay steal can, at times, be very effective.

A delay steal is usually attempted with only a runner on first, but does not exclude other runner being on base, especially third base.

The base runner Must be very observant of the other team's actions in between pitches. This means watching them the entire game, not just when you're on base.

Remember I said delay stealing is hard to do against a well coached team? It's because the players are always aware of what's happening on the field of play. The shortstop will take a couple of steps toward the pitcher to protect from an over throw from the catcher.
The second baseman will glance at the base runner, while the catcher and first baseman watch the runner out of the corner of their eye. All eyes are upon the base runner, there's no chance for a successful delay steal.

However, let's take a look at another scenario.

The pitcher is struggling to find the strike zone. The catcher, as they will do a lot, will fire the ball back to the pitcher, as if wanting to wake him up and correct his wildness.

The second baseman and shortstop turn their backs to the pitcher and return to their normal fielding position after moving forward with the pitch.

Everyone is either pre-occupied, frustrated or otherwise not paying attention. This is when you strike.

Confident the infielders will not change their in between pitch routine, you decide to steal. Take your normal lead off, then secondary lead off. This time instead of scurrying back to first base after the pitch, you stay at your secondary lead position.

***You must be an actor at this point. Do nothing, jerk or move towards second base, which would draw the catcher's attention.***

As the catcher releases the ball, make sure he's throwing back to the pitcher, you take off for second base. You already have a good secondary lead, your cross step has you directly in line with second base and at full speed.

The entire infield must immediately wake up and move when they realize you're stealing. 99% of the time, if you've analyzed the situation correctly, there won't even be a throw to second.

The pitcher will not be in a good throwing position when he receives the ball. The shortstop and second baseman will be out of position and unable to cover the base for a throw ahead of you. Unless you trip and fall, you have just stolen second base.

Sounds easy...it's not, but there's definitely a time and a situation which will call for using a delay steal.

Jim Bain - Former Minor league baseball player, who since retiring has dedicated his life to teaching baseball to youth. Visit his exciting info packed website: http://www.Learn-Youth-Baseball-Coaching.com

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

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6116592

======================

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Joe Mauer Quick Swing Trainer Ball Loading and Set-up Demo from QuickSwi...

2011-03-29T04:23:00.000-07:00

Youth Baseball Digest - 5 Safety Rules That Must Be Followed by Every Little League Team

2011-03-08T07:05:00.000-08:00

Youth Baseball Digest - 5 Safety Rules That Must Be Followed by Every Little League Team
By guest author: Nick Dixon

Player and coach safety must be the concern of every Little League Baseball Coach. All youth baseball coaches must establish certain team rules to insure the safety of both the players and the coaches. There are 5 basic safety rules that help protect players are coaches. This article outlines each of those 5 safety rules.

1. Players must have permission to swing a bat. The most dangerous action that takes place on a baseball field is the swing of a bat. Many injuries occur every year when a player walks into a swing zone when another player is swinging the bat. Players must understand the dangers involved if every player can swing a bat any time they want. They must understand that the only time they are allowed to swing a bat is when they are on deck, in the batter's box, or participating in a drill. At all other times their bat is to be left alone or in their bat bag.

2. Have players have eye contact with the coach before throwing a ball to the coach. Many coaches have been hit unexpectedly by a ball thrown by a player throwing a ball back in during batting practice. Players must have permission to throw a ball to a coach and call the number of throws. The coach should ask the player how many balls he has. The player should say if he gas 3 balls, 2 balls, or 1 ball before he throws the ball or balls to the coach.

3. Maintain a cleared safety zone around the batter. - No one stands behind or near the batter during batting practice. The area behind the batter should be kept clear of coaches and players. There is a constant danger of being hit by a ball or a swung bat if players and coaches do not maintain a clear safety zone around the batter.

4. Batting helmets must be worn at all times when batting or running the bases during practice. - If a coach allows a single player to bat or run the bases when live hitting is be done, that coach is asking for a liability issue or lawsuit. Player should always wear their batting helmets to prevent head or face injury from a wild throw or hit ball.

5. The floor must be kept clear of balls and bats. - The floor is the floor of the dugout and the floor of the batting box. A coach must take on the responsibility of watching for stray balls under the feet of the batter during batting practice. The walk way to and inside the dugout should be kept neat and clear of bats and balls. This rule is enforced to prevent a leg or ankle injury from occurring should a player step onto a ball or bat.

If these safety rules are made and followed by your team, they could prevent an injury or accident. I hope that you found this article informative and helpful. Thanks for taking the time to read it. Good luck to you and your team.

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

==============
Thanks to our sponsors:

www.BatAction.com

---BatAction Machine at CoachesBest.com
---BatActionMachine on Ebay.com
---BatAction Machine Video Clips
---BatAction Trainer - 15 Reasons Why You Must Own This Machine
---Message to Parents From Coach Nick
---If you are looking for BatAction Replacement Balls or Power Bands Click Here

Baseball Coaching Digest: Defending the First and Third Early Break Play

2011-03-07T04:23:00.000-08:00

Baseball Coaching Digest: Defending the First and Third Early Break Play
By: Nick Dixon

One of the plays that teams will run with runners at first and third base is to have the first base runner early break. This article outlines this play and the best ways to defend against it.

You have seen the play ran over and over. There are base runners on first base and third base. The runner at first base break early before the pitcher even begins his motion. The pitcher steps off, throws the ball to the second baseman the runner breaks back toward first base. The second baseman throws the ball to the first baseman. The runner at third, who has been creeping slowly down the line, breaks for home, when the second baseman releases the ball. The first baseman catches the ball, turns to throw to the plate, the ball arrives late, the third base runner scores. How do you stop this play?

To know defend this play you must first know why the offense runs it and what their goals are. The offensive team's goals in order of priority are:

1.Score the runner at third with a late throw to the plate. If your pitcher throws the ball to the middle infielder, the runner at third will in most cases break for home when the ball leaves the middle infielders hand. The offense knows that the first baseman must catch the ball, turn, and throw. In most cases, that process takes too long. The throw home will always be late.
2.Score the runner at third with a balk. - Another goal of the early breaking runner at first base is to force the pitcher to balk. This action would move both runners and score the run.
3.Get both runners into scoring position without a threat of the first base runner being thrown out. The offensive team knows that the defense will not contest the early breaking runner, so they use this tactic as a safe way to steal second and to get both runners into scoring position.

What should the defensive team do to stop the play and to prevent a run form scoring?

Here are the three recommended actions and the results each causes:

1.Give the base up uncontested. This is the safest method if you feel that your pitcher can get the batter out at the plate. Of course if there are no outs or one out, you may not want to let the runner move to second base without action.

2.Run a cut play with the pitcher throwing the ball to the second baseman. The second base man will charge toward third base. He will catch the ball throw from the pitcher and immediately throw the ball to the third baseman or run at the third base runner in an attempt to catch him off a bag and to get him out.

3.Pitcher throws the ball to the second baseman, after checking the runner at third base. The second baseman will not throw the ball to the first baseman but will rather, keep his shoulders turned in a position allowing a throw to the plate, and slowly walk the runner back to first base. There is no throw made thus the runner at third base does not have the opportunity to break to home.

4.The Pitcher full arm fakes to second base and immediately throws to the third baseman. In many cases, the runner at third base will "bite" on the full arm fake to second base and will come off a few steps toward home. This movement toward home is often enough to allow the pitcher to pick him off third or to catch him off third with an opportunity to get an out in a run down situation.

I hope that this article is helpful and informative. Thanks for taking the time to read it. Have a great day, Nick.

Baseball2u.com/CoachesBest.com is the ultimate online baseball training and coaching store. With over 1400 products organized into categories Baseball2u.com makes finding that baseball training product easy and simple. Order securely online or by phone. Baseball2u.com is a fully licensed company and has a full time staff available from 8:00 to 5:00 CST. Their toll free customer service number is 1-877-431-4487.

The Categories they have are: BatAction Hitting Machines, Hurricane Hitting Machines, Batting Cages, Pitching Machines, Jugs Equipment, Game and Practice Baseballs, Protective Practice Screens and Nets, Portable Pitching Mounds, Baseball DVDs & Books, Clearance Items on Sales, NEDCO Bataction Replacement Parts, Baseball Training Equipment, Youth Baseball Training Equipment, Training Bats, Pitching & Throwing Trainers, Defensive Trainers, SKLZ Hurricane Replacement Parts and Much Much More! Visit Baseball2U.com today!

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Baseball Coaching Digest - Team Making Too Many Errors? Two Great Mid Season Team Defensive Drills

2011-03-02T10:29:00.000-08:00

Baseball Coaching Digest - Team Making Too Many Errors? Two Great Mid Season Team Defensive Drills
By guest author: Nick Dixon

Team defensive baseball drills should be a daily routine for your baseball team. Team defensive drills make your players execute and perform under pressure more than regular ground ball drills. These two team defensive baseball drills are excellent ways to build defensive skills, build confidence, and to improve mental concentration. The two drills are: 1) Infield Live Batting Drill 2) Live Game Action Drill.

If you incorporate these two drills into your baseball practice routine, I am confident that you will see an improvement in your team defensive play and a reduction in errors.

Infield Live Batting Drill - Your infield players will be in their regular positions and they will be making the plays. Your outfield will be the base runners. The coach hits the ball. When the coach hits the ball, the base runners will run to first. If the runner is safe, the runner is on first base. You will keep hitting balls until the infielder record three outs. The infielders must talk during this drill to make sure they know where the runners are, how many outs there are, and where the play should be made. For example, with bases loaded and two outs, the players will say "take it to the easiest base or that the play is at one".

This baseball drill has multiple purposes. The outfielders can improve their base running skills also. You will clear the bases after each three outs. The coach can also lay down bunts to check bunt coverage. Make sure to mark a starting spot for the base runners. Make sure that the runners wear helmets during this drill.

It is recommended that you perform this drill for 21 outs at least two days a week.

Live Game Action Drill - This drill is performed with all players at their defensive positions. You will have 5 or 6 players running the bases while your infielders make plays. The coach will hit the ball in this drill with the base runners going as far as the hit ball will allow them. The players must execute, communicate, and stay alert mentally during this drill. You will clear the baseball after each three outs. Normally you will require your team to do this drill for 21 outs two days a week. Make sure to mark a starting spot for the base runners. Make sure that the runners wear helmets during this drill.

I hope that these two drills prove to be useful in helping your team improve defensive play. Thanks for taking the time to read this article. For more articles like it, you can visit the Baseball Coaching Digest, Youth Baseball Digest, and Little League Digest. Good Luck to You and Your Team. Have a great day, Nick

The CoachesBest and Baseball2u Baseball Store has a great selection of 1400 Baseball Products. Check out the Hurricane Hitting Machine baseball pitching simulator. This high speed training machine is 100% Guaranteed to raise Batting Averages. New CAT 4 Derek Jeter Model available in stores everywhere now.

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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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

Baseball Rules

2011-02-28T08:57:00.000-08:00

Baseball Rules
By guest author: Ethan D Orman

On any given weekend, one can travel to almost any local park and watch the neighborhood men and women engaged in an exciting game of basketball. This game is more important to those players, more important than the NBA championship because this game directly affects them, their pride, and their bragging rights for the next week. After the neighborhood basketball game, the players will return home to watch their favorite National Basketball Association (NBA) team on television. The two teams with the best record of wins will meet at the end of the season to play for the championship. This game, which fascinates and excited millions of fans around the world, would never have been possible, if Dr. James Naismith had not invented it over a century ago.

When Dr. Naismith began inventing basketball, it looked very different from the game that is played today. It had baskets, but they were wicker baskets without a hole in the center for the ball to drop out of and a back board to bounce a layup off of. So the object was to throw the ball into the basket without it bouncing back out of tipping the basket over. There were only 13 rules which governed the play, as opposed to today, where there is an entire book governing the play. The rules have changed greatly over the years, along with the way the game is played.

The first of the original rules seems to still be an active rule today. It stated that a player could throw the ball with either one or two hands in any direction. The second rule has become outdated in today's games. It allowed players to bat the ball away but they could never use a closed fist to accomplish this. Today, players can block the ball but must be extremely careful when they do, or they will receive a foul. The third rule has also been done away with because it did not allow players to run with the ball. They had to stay in their spot, throw the ball to a teammate, and then they could move to another spot of the court and have the ball thrown to them again. The fourth and fifth rules are still in effect. The fourth rule mainly stated that the player had to hold the ball with his hands and nothing else. The fifth rule is the modern definition of what a foul is. No player was allowed to harm any other player by any means, which included no tripping, shouldering, striking, pushing, or holding the opponent.

The sixth rule is also in effect today, which does not allow the player to punch or hit the ball with their fist. This is considered a foul. Rule seven is no longer valid today because it awarded points to the other team if the opposing side had three consecutive fouls without the other team fouling. Fouls have changed to personal and team fouls. If a player receives 5 personal fouls, they are expelled from the game. Rules eight and nine have not changed with time because when the ball foes into the basket, it is still a goal and still earns points for the team. A ball which is thrown out of bounds can be thrown back into play. Rule ten has been replaced with Rule eleven as there are no umpires but several referees who keep track of the ball, players, and points. Rule twelve has changed from two 15 minute halves of playing to 4 quarters of play with a half time break in between quarters two and three. Rule 13 is still the same: the winner has scored the most goals.

Ethan has been an online writer for nearly 2 years now. Not only does this author specialize in sports, finance, and product reviews, you can also check out his latest website on Brother TN360 which reviews and lists the best Brother TN360 Toner for your Brother printer.

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

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Baseball Coaching Digest - Coaching Young Baseball Pitchers With the 1, 2, 3 Pitching Drill

2011-02-25T10:05:00.000-08:00

Baseball Coaching Digest - Coaching Young Baseball Pitchers With the 1, 2, 3 Pitching Drill
By guest author: Nick Dixon

Quality pitching is one of the keys to winning baseball games. Regardless if you are coaching a Little League, High School or College baseball team, it is difficult to consistently win with a weak pitching staff.

Quality pitching staffs are made not made through hard work, off-season training, and a commitment to detail when it comes to baseball pitching instruction. Learning to pitch a baseball requires a lot of practice repetition and drill work. The player must learn to control both his body and the flight of the baseball. One of the best baseball pitching drills for learning body and ball control is the "1, 2, 3 Baseball Pitching Drill". This article clearly explains how this drill is performed.

The drill is best performed in a bullpen setting with a catcher at regulation distance. But it can also be performed at shorter distances. The drill can be done on flat ground, on a portable mound or on a regular pitching mound. The emphasis is on the proper execution of the three separate phases of the pitching process.

This drill teaches the proper mechanics of pitching a baseball in a three-phase or 3-step process. This drill breaks the pitching process or delivery into three clear and distinct phases. The first stage is the start of the delivery. The second phase is the balance point stage. The third stage and final stage is the follow through and finish stage. It is important that the pitcher can identify each stage and can separate the stages in his mind.

Phase #1 - Toeing the Rubber and the Start the Pitching Motion

The pitcher assumes his normal stationary position prior to his initial motion or movement. The pitcher will take his "rocker: step or step back with his stride leg. This "rocker" step allows the pitcher to rock his weight off his pivot foot so that the pivot foot can be turned parallel with the pitching rubber.

The pitcher begins the drill by doing only phase 1. The pitcher will do the phase 1 movement process very, very slow. After several slow motion reps, he will begin to do the body actions at regular game speed. The player should freeze at the point when he has completely all of the phase one movements of the body.

Phase #2 - Achieving a Perfect Balance Point & Separation

This phase allows the pitcher to get the feel of reaching his perfect balance point. The lift leg thigh should be parallel to the ground. The hands should begin to part when the lifted leg begins to drop. This parting of the hands is called "Separation". Once the hands part, both the ball hand and the glove hand swing smoothly downward in an arch. The hands will continue upward in a perfect arch until the elbows reach the "T" position.

During this phase the pitcher will also practice taking the ball back to the "top" position in his delivery. This is the point at which the ball is at its highest point and pointed away from the body. The pitcher should also take his stride leg forward during this stage. The key is that his stride leg should land at the same time the ball hits its highest point. Special attention should be given to making sure that the stride foot land on the ball of the foot or flat. The pitcher should start performing this stage in slow motion. The pitcher should freeze at the completion of this stage. The pitch should practice putting phase 1 and phase 2 together in slow motion. After several slow motion reps, the pitch should begin doing phases 1 and 2 together at game speed. The pitcher should freeze when the ball gets to the "cock" position at its highest point and directed away from the body.

Phase #3 - The Throw, the Follow Through and Final Finish Position

The final phase drives the pitchers body toward the plate. The stride foot should have landed before this phase begins. The stride foot should be in a landed position on a straight line or slightly closed to the plate.

The pitcher should finish with the head down, chin in front of the stride toe, and with the throwing hand finishing outside and below the stride leg knee.

I appreciate you taking the time to read this article. I hope that you found it to be informative. 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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Baseball - First & Third Double Steal Defensive Strategy

2011-02-17T04:14:00.000-08:00

BattingCageDoor.com
Baseball - First & Third Double Steal Defensive Strategy
By Nick Dixon

The "First and Third Double Steal" situation is when the batting team has a base runner at first base and a base runner at third base. Often times the offensive teams will put on a base running play to attempt and confuse, fool, or trick the defensive team into making a mistake that will cost them a run.

Before a team can defend this situation, you must know all variations of plays that an offensive team can employ. The two most common plays used by the offensive team in this situation are, 1) Early break by the first base runner off first to attempt to get in a run down to distract the defense long enough for the 3rd base runner to score. 2) Straight steal of 2nd by the first base runner. If the catcher throws down, the 3rd base runner will go home.

Every team must have a "First & Third Double Steal" defensive plan. Most teams have at least 3 or more defensive plays that they can call and execute to counter the offensive team's actions.

The 4 most common defensive plays for defending the "Double Steal" situation are:

Throw to 2nd base by the catcher with a read and cut action by a middle infielder. The catcher will throw down as usual. The 2nd baseman or shortstop, depending on whether a right-handed or left-handed batter is batting, will come early and get into a position to execute a cut of the throw and a quick throw to home plate if the 3rd base runner attempts to steal home. Most times the cut man will sneak a peek to read the 3rd base runners action or the 3rd baseman will make a loud "CUT!" call to let the middle infielder know to cut the ball because the 3rd base runner to going home. If no cut call is made, the middle infielder will let the ball go through to get the out at 2nd.
A middle infielder comes early and fakes a cut to hold the runner at 3rd base while the runner is tagged out at 2nd base.
The catcher will make a quick throw to the pitcher that will immediately checks the runner at 3rd to try and pick the runner off or get him out while attempting to steal home.
The catcher will make a full-arm fake to 2nd base and then makes a snap throw to 3rd in an attempt to catch the 3rd base off the bag far enough to get an out.

Coaching Points:

If a tag is made at 2nd base, the middle infielder must make a swipe tag and come up checking the runner at third. Sometimes the runner at third will make a late decision to break for home when he sees a play being made on the runner at 2nd base.
When the catcher executes the full arm fake and throw to 3rd, he must come out in front of the plate a step or two to make sure that the throw will clear the runner.
If a throw is going to be made to 2nd, sometimes you can hold a runner at third by having the pitcher fake a cut.
When the middle infielder is faking a cut at 2nd, make sure that he comes early enough to clear the throwing lane. This allows the other infielder a clear view of the bad and will not block his vision during the throw.
Remember, when a fake cut call is made at 2nd, you must have the center fielder backing up the throw at 2nd because both infielders are in the box without a back up at 2nd.

I hope that you find this article useful. Have great day, Nick.

There are other calls and variations that I will cover in later articles.

Visit the Baseball Coaching Digest Blog for daily post and articles on every aspect of coaching baseball. The Baseball Coaching Digest Blog. Check out the Bat Action Hitting Machine baseball pitching simulator. This high speed training machine is 100% Guaranteed to raise Batting Averages and has a full year warranty.

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Coaching Youth Baseball - Team Building Ideas

2011-02-16T08:42:00.000-08:00

Coaching Youth Baseball - Team Building Ideas
By guest author: Jake Wyatt

When coaching youth baseball, you often end up with a bunch of boys who may not know each other. Team building is very important to ensure a cohesive team, one where the players support each other rather than compete with each other.

At the first practice, you need to break the ice with the players. Some will be very outgoing, some will be shy. Try to gently get all the boys to introduce themselves and share something simple about why they like to play baseball, or perhaps what position they like to play. This will help you get a feel for the boys as well.

Here are some great ideas to help the boys become a team that plays well together:

1. Have activities outside of practice. One or two pizza parties or hot dog picnics gets the families together and lets the boys get to know each other outside of baseball. Have a few gifts (packs of baseball cards) to hand out for drills that center on knowledge of the sport. During the event, ask questions to generate conversation.

2. Pay particular attention to boys who are not fitting into the team during practice. Figure out ways to gently include them into the practice routines. For instance, if you are doing hitting drills, make this boy catcher for the day. Or put him in charge of counting or measuring. This can be difficult to do without being obvious, but with some thought a good coach can make it happen.

3. Have a rule that during games, the players in the dugout pay attention to the game. They should be making a lot of noise in support of team members who are on the field.

4. Make it clear, in your initial meeting with the boys, that you will not tolerate whining, bullying, or meanness. Point out that in order to win, all the players must support each other. Establish the consequences for unacceptable behavior right away, and stick to it.

5. Have some team-building activities during practices. For instance, have the players stand in a circle and pass the ball around the circle. Time how long it takes. Then ask them to try again and beat their time. Watch them work together to figure out how to go faster.

In coaching youth baseball, if you successfully build a strong team spirit, your team will play better and have more fun during games!

In order to be the best possible baseball player, training should happen year-round and be a joint effort between the coach, the player and the parents. Get more free tips to improve baseball performance, reviews of e-products related to baseball, and links to training resources at http://youth-baseball-training.com.

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

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The Categories they have are: BatAction Hitting Machines, Hurricane Hitting Machines, Batting Cages, Pitching Machines, Jugs Equipment, Game and Practice Baseballs, Protective Practice Screens and Nets, Portable Pitching Mounds, Baseball DVDs & Books, Clearance Items on Sales, NEDCO Bataction Replacement Parts, Baseball Training Equipment, Youth Baseball Training Equipment, Training Bats, Pitching & Throwing Trainers, Defensive Trainers, SKLZ Hurricane Replacement Parts and Much Much More! Visit Baseball2U.com today!