Hitting Technique:  Succesful Hitting requires timing, co-ordination, & focus.

Timing:  As the speed of the Pitchers increase, timing becomes vital. Starting your load and step as the pitcher is in his wind up is crucial. Many batters wait to see the look of the pitch prior to any internal decision to swing or motion in preparation to swing. By then it's too late , the batter now commited loses all semblance of technique and rushes in any way possible to put bat to ball. The results vary from swinging after the ball has crossed the plate to barely making contact. The success rate is low, the sensation of being rushed is overwhelming and the batter then comes away with an over-inflated impression in his mind that the Pitcher is a lightning quick phenom, virtually impossible to hit. 

To correct this and put the batter back on an even footing, emphasis must be put on the pre-plate thought process.
Every batter unless told to take a pitch by the coach should have the mindset that I will swing at the next pitch. He should start his batting technique process,with the load as the pitcher begins his wind up, then the soft step directly towards the pitcher, and as the ball leaves the pitchers hand he can determine to "hold off" (because it is not a good pitch) or continue because he is already started his swing. This preparation will give the batter a way better chance of success , he should no longer feel rushed, or the  sense that the pitcher is un-hitable fast.  Timing, being mentally preparred to swing and starting the process early are key tools in the hitters arsenal.         Go -- Dogs -- Go  !!

Tips & Techniques:

The Grip:  The Bat should be held in the fingertips, the old saying goes the door knocking knuckles of your hands should roughly line up together.  Do not grip it too deep in the palms of your hands. Held deep in your palms makes it more difficult to roll the wrists over. Do not squeeze the bat too tightly again it restricts the wrist turn over and it can lead to that stinging sensation when bat meets ball.

The Stance:  An atheletic stance like in all sports is suggested , slightly bent at the ankles, knees and hips.  Overly bending at any of these points would lead to a un balanced swing.  Elbows relaxed and pointing down, the front elbow holding your forearm in a 90 degree angle across your chest. Wrists naturally in the cocked position. Shoulders level, hands holding the bat at about ear level over your back shoulder. Nice and relaxed waiting for the cue to explode into your swing.

The Swing :  Is a  two part sequence. It consists of a loading action, ( a stretching back of the hands which in turn brings the front shoulder and torso back in sort of like a coiling motion. This is then followed by a short soft step directly towards the pitcher, this all happens before the ball leaves his hand.  The batter is now locked and loaded, ready to unleash the full fury of this coiled energy. The decision made to complete the swing or hold off is made, just as or just after the ball leaves his hand.  This gives the batter already loaded  the utmost time to finish the swing for a hit. Not completing the loading section in time puts the batter at a big disadvantage. This is why the timing should be, when the pitcher starts his wind-up, the batter should start his load.

The second part of the sequence is the unloading. Again the batter is already loaded and has made his short soft step. Once the ball leaves the pitchers hand and the decision is made to swing , the trigger that should start it all is the back hip. As the back hip starts the rotation towards the pitcher, the torso and arms follow naturally, the front leg begins to set acting as a brace. The back elbow naturally drops down to the side of the torso as if it was connected and follows it around, (Notice it is the body that started bringing the arms around) The hands do not lead they are still back lagging and the wrists still cocked.  The Arm & Hands now do their part near the center or front of the home plate to full extension and when they reach the apex of the swing where the ball should be, the hands and wrists turn over giving it that added bit of power. The extension is continued as it goes thru the ball and finishes with the follow thru.

Other important factors the all important front leg acts as a brace, the batter should not let his weight go over onto his front leg , again the front leg should act as a brace just like a pitcher bracing against his front leg to gain power and speed so it is the same for the batter. Bracing against the front leg assists the hips to rotate, keeps most of the weight on the back foot where it belongs.  The faster a batter rotates his back hip the faster his bat speed will be, the further the hit. Next keep your eyes on the ball all the way to the bat. We have uploaded some pictures from the web of great hitters bracing against their front foot and keeping their weight back as visual proof of the technique. You can see these in our photo section in the Test album.

Problems in the swing: happy feet , stepping out , hip slide rather than hip rotation, transfering weight to the front foot-lunge-ing, arm casting are all symptoms of a nervous batter. Having the right information on swing technique will relieve much of that excess tension and lead to a confident better than average hitter.  Baseball is 50 % offence Batting technique is a need to know.

Go -- Dogs -- Go  !!

Stepping Out:  Is when a batter rather than taking a step directly towards the pitcher in his swing process, chooses to step with his front foot to the side away from the plate.  As the speed of pitchers increase the desire to not get hit also increases, it's natures self preservation mechanism in full effect. We now know what causes stepping out, here are some results. The batter if he can make contact will likely hit it to the opposite side of the infield, if right handed it will go to the first or second base or sometimes into the shallow right outfield. This beacuse the swing path is one of a slicing nature across the ball. If lucky it may popup over the infield. Hitting power will be diminished, the ability to hit any pitch let alone a down the middle one or one on the outside corner will also diminish. Pitchers will catch on quickly and give you a steady diet of on the outside corner pitches. The safety aspect also comes into play. When standing in the normal stance if you are hit by a pitch, little real damage is likely, except for a heavy stinging sensation. When in a normal stance it is easier to avoid being hit.  By stepping out your are opening the front of your body to the pitch and potentially more severe damage is possible. By opening up, all your major internal organs (which you will need, for later on in life) are subject to a heavy shot, not to mention your face and elsewheres come into play. So stepping out on many levels is not a good thing.

To correct this the batter must feel confident that stepping out is way worse for him, than standing and swinging in a normal position. Encouragement to make the step directly towards the pitcher and his understanding of the situation is the solution. 
Go  -- Dogs  --  Go  !!

Base Running:  It's good to be agressive when baserunning. Unless gifted with natural blazing speed, there are certain techniques you can utilise to increase speed. Run on the balls of your feet, (not flat footed) that's the padded section located just behind your toes. Pumping your arms in conjunction with your legs while running also adds a bit of speed.

The Need to Knows: when running an infield grounder go in a straight line as fast as possible over the orange portion (safety bag)of first base. The rule states you can turn left or right coming back to the bag as long as no attempt was made to advance to second base you can turn either way. When running after a hit that has cleared the infield as long as you are not in jeopardy of being thrown out at first utilise the 12' arc turn technique keeping the play in front of you and possibly gaining second base. Many opportunities of advancing to second are lost by not using this technique and not paying attention.

Base stealing: In softball unlike baseball leading off is not allowed, but there are techniques that will give you a bit of an advantage. Placing your weak leg with it's heel on the front part of the base and having your strong leg behind you as the starting position is the preferred method.  The base runner should time the pitcher. As the pitcher starts his wind up leaving him no choice but going to home plate, the base runner should start his stride forward with his strong back leg still keeping his front foot on the bag until the ball leaves his hand, the base runner already has a step out and his momentum moving him quickly away from the bag. The other way the runner is flat footed till the pitch has left and no built in momentum.

Softball Bunt Coverage - No Runners on Base

With no runners on base, 1st, Pitcher, Catcher, and 3rd are going to crash the ball. The 2nd baseman has the responsibility to cover 1st base and receive the throw. The rightfielder should take an angle to about 20 - 30 feet behind 1st base and near the foul line to cut off any errant throws. It's critical for the rightfielder to maintain a safe distance behind 1st base otherwise the errant throw to 1st base could well end up in the right field corner for a homerun. The centerfielder should take an angle to be positioned behind the rightfielder to help with retrieving an errant throw. The shortstop should head to 2nd base in case of an error at 1st base. The leftfielder should take an angle to position herself behind the shortstop.

Softball Bunt Coverage - Runner on 1st Base

TAKE THE OUT AT 1ST BASE!!! Don't even consider going for the lead runner and trying to get the out at 2nd base. It's fools gold and you would be lucky to make that play 10% of the time. All of the player's positioning is the same except for the shortstop and leftfielder. This is the MOST DISCIPLINED PLAY the shortstop will have to make. His instinct is to cover 2nd base for a steal, however, if he does that and the bunt is put in play, it will turn into a foot race between him and the runner to get to 3rd base (If the runner on 1st sees the shortstop at 2nd, he just continues running to 3rd knowing it's going to be a very difficult play for shortstop to run from 2nd to 3rd and be in position to make a catch and tag). To play this correctly, position the shortstop 5 feet closer to 2nd base so he is in position to cover the steal without having to break to the base prior to knowing if the ball is successfully bunted. If the ball is not bunted, he covers 2nd base for the steal. If the ball is successfully bunted he covers 3rd base. he can't cheat to cover 3rd base either, or if the runner on 1st is stealing the shortstop will be out of position to take the throw. The leftfielder will take an angle to be about 20 - 30 feet behind 3rd base and on the left field foul line to back up an errant throw.

Softball Bunt Coverage - Runners on 1st and 2nd Base

Again, TAKE THE OUT AT 1ST BASE!!! Depending on the age and skill level of your team, it may be possible to get the lead runner at 3rd base. If the bunt is very short so the catcher can make a quick play, of if the bunt is too hard and the pitcher or 1st baseman can make a quick play, it COULD be possible to get the runner out at 3rd base. However, the odds are certainly not in your favor, and if the play is unsuccessful the result is having the bases loaded. Coverage on this play is the same as the coverage for a runner on 1st base coverage. The noted exception is the rightfielder needs to know on an overthrow she should be prepared to throw the ball home. Also, the leftfielder needs to take his backup position behind 3rd base in case the play is attempted at 3rd base.

Softball Bunt Coverage - Bases Loaded

The unique thing about this play is that either 1st base or Catcher needs to make the call as to where to throw the ball. The 3rd baseman and pitcher have a much more difficult time knowing how close the runner is to home plate. Also unique for this play, is that the catcher needs more discipline. He must immediately determine if another fielder can play the ball and toss it to him for the force out at home. If this is the case, he needs to take a 1st baseman's stance at the plate and be prepared to receive the throw and then throw to 1st base for a double play. He must also determine if he is the only player that can make a play on the ball and get the out at either home or 1st base. This is a pressure play on the defense, but with a fair amount of practice should be able to make the play at home on a fairly routine basis. If there is ever ANY DOUBT about making the out at home, the fielders must take the out at 1st base.

Softball Bunt Coverage - Look for the Double Play

When runners are on base and the bunt play is on, this is an ideal time to look for the double play. Typically the runners, especially a trailing runner, will take sizeable leadoffs on when the bunt is on. Train your players to react to a bunt that is popped up in the air. The easiest runner to double up is generally a runner on 1st base. Catch the pop up and fire the ball to 1st base for the force out. The lead runner is usually in a good enough position to be able to return to his base safely, however he probably is out of position to be able to advance when you throw to 1st for the double play.

Softball Bunt Coverage - Take the Out

Almost without exception, your team is far better off taking the out at 1st base. Considering the difficulty of getting the lead runner and the position you leave yourself in if the play is not successful, it's hardly ever worth the risk of going for the lead runner. I would submit the only time when it is imperative to get the lead runner is when the game-winning run is on 3rd base. Even if it is the game tying run on 3rd base, I would strongly consider taking the out at 1st base and allowing the runner on 3rd to score. If you go for the out at home and are unsuccessful, you have allowed the game to be tied and allowed the winning run on base or advance on the bases without getting an out. As a coach, you are finding a way to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, and that's not a good thing.

 

Remember that the key to having a successful fastpitch defense is to make a very high percentage of easy outs. You must avoid giving up big innings to your opponent. In fastpitch softball, one big offensive inning can very easily decide the game. If you repeatedly play for the lead runner, you will consistently give up big innings. Further, if you can NOT shut down your opponents bunting game, you don't have much of a chance to win. In another article on this site, I tell the story of bunting 10 batters in a row one inning. Trust me, you don't want to be the team that sees 10 bunts in a row. That means your team can't cover the bunt, and you can't win the game.