ipl-logo

Softball Drill Research Paper

783 Words4 Pages

Attention all girls softball coaches and hitters. This will explain why performing softball drills with pitching machines hinder more than help. Due to pitching machines, most girls softball hitters never really reach their greatest hitting potential!
Girls softball teams use pitching machines because it is very difficult to throw strikes from a live hand in batting practice. A pitching machine is the tool most used in softball drills for helping hitters practice their swing mechanics. The reality is that the machine alters a players swing and timing more than it helps.
It is commonly known to most, if not all, baseball hitters and coaches, to stay away from pitching machines. Pitching machines do not have the same action that a live hand …show more content…

The machine "spits" the ball harder when the machine is turned up and causes even more deception. Most hitters have to change the mechanics of their normal swing just to be able to contact the pitch. Because of this, hitters tend to throw their hands at the ball and do not have the time to adjust to the timing of the machine. This can only lead to improper use of their body and hips, not to mention, the hitter is practicing incorrect swing mechanics that will not be used during a game. Over time, continued use of pitching machines in softball drills will train a hitter's muscles to consistently swing the wrong way, even during games. This results in decreased levels of performance as well as …show more content…

Just pitching under hand close up with the L-screen at a slow pace will greatly improve the confidence and skills of the hitter. If you have no choice but to use a pitching machine for softball hitting drills, please adhere to the following proper use guidelines.
Proper Use Guidelines for Pitching Machine Drills
When using a pitching machine for softball drills, set the machine between 30-40 mph depending on the age of the player. Place the machine 3-5 strides ahead of the pitching rubber. This will simulate the right pace that a hitter needs to see and feel in order to get her rhythm, timing, and swing down.
Proper use of pitching machines will also improve a hitters confidence and enable the coach to instruct much more efficiently. There is no reason why female softball hitters cannot be just as consistent as male baseball hitters. From a training perspective, this is the reason why baseball players experience more success with batting average and slugging percentage than softball players do. Most baseball players practice off live arms and if a tosser is not available, the player, more often than not, knows how to use pitching machines

Show More
Related

  • The Similarities Between Softball And A Fastpitch Sport

    458 Words  | 2 Pages

    On the other hand, there are big differences between slowpitch and fastpitch. For slowpitch, there is an equal amount of boys and girls, but for fastpitch, there are only girls on the team because if you watch a game for slow pitch the boys can hit harder and farther than a regular girl can. Even though it’s normal when you hear the word softball you think of straight line pitching. Well, that is what softball is but only for fastpitch. Slowpitch has an arch shaped pitching style.

    Read More

  • The Importance Of Mindset In Softball

    333 Words  | 2 Pages

    In softball having a growth mindset is crucial. Mindset is simply a person’s attitude towards something. You can either have a growth mindset or a fixed mindset. Growth mindset means that you are in control of your own ability, and can learn and improve (The Importance of Mindset). Fixed mindset means you believe you will never be able to accomplish that certain task.

    Read More

  • Dissimilarities Between Baseball And Softball

    730 Words  | 3 Pages

    Unfortunately, numerous individuals confuse baseball and softball to be quite similar, but the two sports are extremely diverse. If one is a male, one will play baseball and if one is a female, one will play softball. Dissimilarities in baseball and softball include: pitching, the bat, and the game, but these dissimilarities are also somewhat similar. The similarities are where one could get reasonably confused with the two sports. The pitching performance is perhaps the most observable dissimilarity between baseball and softball.

    Read More

  • How To Slide In A Softball Essay

    727 Words  | 3 Pages

    Gabryella Moore Mr. Mayo Comp 9 25 January 2023 How to slide in softball Do you like softball? Softball has nine positions that players have to share while practicing, on the field though only nine girls can play at a time. Even if you don’t start, you should still be ready to be put in at any moment. Softball is a very hands-on sport” you’ll hear all the time about how dangerous it can be but you must remember that it’s not all dangerous as long as you learn how to do the skills correctly.

    Read More

  • A Physics Analysis Of A Baseball Batch

    504 Words  | 3 Pages

    Baseball pitchers have to be extremely explosive and create force to produce a good pitch. Some factors that go into a pitch would be velocity, movement, and position. There are many types of pitches that an athlete can do and follows a similar pattern but the factors change. If a pitcher wanted to throw a fastball, they would have to change the velocity of the ball but if the pitcher wanted to throw a curveball they would have to change the type of movement they do. The ultimate goal for any baseball pitcher is to get the ball into the catcher’s mitts without being interfered by the batter at home base.

    Read More

  • Why Is Softball Better Than Baseball

    595 Words  | 3 Pages

    The size of a softball field is 7,200 ft2  whereas the size of a baseball field is 16,700 ft2. When balls come off the bat in softball, the velocity is up to 100 mph. A softball player has less time to react from an infield line drive (0.61 seconds) than a tennis player does from a Serena Williams serve (0.65 seconds). When fielding grounders an infielder has to get the ball to first in less than 3.2 seconds which is over a second faster than a typical MLB player can reach first. The infield has even less time to react when facing a slap hitter.

    Read More

  • How Has Softball Changed Throughout History

    1019 Words  | 5 Pages

    Many people wonder why a softball is bigger than a baseball. A softball is bigger than a baseball because the game of softball was originally played as indoor baseball. Hancock and the men developed many rules for the indoor game and began designing the field the indoor baseball league emerged in its premier league as it became The Mid Winter Indoor baseball league of Chicago. The game of softball was originally called “Kitten Ball” because it is known not to go as far as a baseball would. Many people were very interested in playing this indoor game so it began to be played outside the following summer.

    Read More

  • Sports Rhetorical Analysis

    930 Words  | 4 Pages

    All you do is bat and ground the ball and through it to a person. You do have to run a lot. But compared to the rest of the rest of the sports baseball is the most laid back. I remember one game where I played third base and our team was so good no one got to third base so I just got to stand there and look pretty!

    Read More

  • Persuasive Essay On Softball

    463 Words  | 2 Pages

    There isn’t a huge difference between softball and baseball other than a couple rules and the gender playing the sport. People who don’t go outside as much most likely suffer from illness. Some people can’t go outside because they have certain illnesses that won’t let them. Some people just chose not to go outside and that isn’t very healthy. Kids these days usually have an excuse such as playing video games or saying they have nothing to do outside.

    Read More

  • Persuasive Essay On Why You Should Play Softball

    1052 Words  | 5 Pages

    At first you might not think you’re good but you can get better. That was my reasoning on why you should play softball. Along with some facts about the sport. A lot of girls play the sport and I hope that you will too.

    Read More

  • Informative Essay On Softball

    757 Words  | 4 Pages

    Baseball is considered by many to be America’s favorite pastime. Softball in many aspects is similar to baseball but in reality it is harder to play. This can be shown in all aspects of the game from hitting to pitching to fielding to catching. One major aspect where the difference is obvious is hitting. It has been scientifically proven that a 95 mph fastball generates 2411 lbs of force as it crosses the plate and a softball thrown at 65mph generates even more according to youtube.com.

    Read More

  • Lisa Fernandez Strengths And Weaknesses

    1139 Words  | 5 Pages

    She was named Player of the Year in California while playing softball in high school. During her high school career, Lisa had 1,503 strikeouts. She also had 70 shut-out games in high school. With her outstanding skill of pitching Lisa’s high school team won over 80 games in high school, and she led her high school team to the California Interscholastic Federation Southern Section Softball

    Read More

  • Descriptive Essay On Softball

    810 Words  | 4 Pages

    We then watch carefully the opposing team’s pitcher as she warms up. As a lead off hitter, it is my job to do anything possible to get on base. By working the count I am frisking with the pitcher to get into her head. I then get exactly what I want, a pitch that could change the outcome of the entire game. Once I take a swing at the perfect pitch you can hear the crack of the bat forcefully pushing the ball to get a base hit.

    Read More

  • Personal Essay: How Softball Has Shaped My Life

    648 Words  | 3 Pages

    A softball field is very simple. It has this red tinted dirt, fresh cut green grass, 4 white bases, freshly white chalked lines, and a group of girls that love the game. The softball field is so simple, but yet so beautiful to look at and play on. The cages come along with the softball field as well. The cages or even more simple than the field, all it has is a net, some turf ground, a bucket of

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Baseball And Softball

    526 Words  | 3 Pages

    However, the style of pitching between the two sports is one of the most different aspects of baseball and softball. In baseball, the pitching is over handed, just as the rest of the defensive players throw. In contrast, softball pitching is under handed, which contains a windup in a

    Read More

More about Softball Drill Research Paper

Open Document