Anyone have any good hitting drills that will help the kids hit a fastball at 80-84?
I have tried moving my pitching ramp up closer and throwing harder in BP so they start their hands quicker.
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Originally Posted by Passion4baseball:
1) I have tried moving my pitching ramp up closer and throwing harder in BP
2) so they start their hands quicker.
2) so they start their hands quicker.
1) You're kind of doubling up that way. Have you calculated the BP speed and distance that you need in order to duplicate 84mph? Ex. 42 mph from 30 feet?
2) You want him to start his front foot sooner, not his hands You'll ruin his swing that way. Make sure his foot is down when the ball is halfway. Make sure he strides on every pitch.
Try soft-toss (medium-toss?) from behind the plate...they have to wait until ball is past them and then quickly get hands through zone to drive the ball with any authority. Drill we do a lot.
Keep in mind that moving closer isn't really enough, depending on how hard you actually through. For instance, you can simulate the reaction time difference if you throw 40 by throwing from 30' (please use an L-screen, though 
), but the ball is still only going to be going 40, which will make the split second adjustments that result in squaring the ball up easier than they will be vs a real 80.
The best thing is to get them more reps vs a real 80. Easier said than done, of course.
I really like Dave Hudgen's "hitting for excellence" hitting program. A comprehensive plan on DVD from a former player and current MLB coach. It might be worth checking out.