Hitting for power has always been associated with the big strong player.But in our research, we have discovered it is not so much the size of the player, but rather the strength of his hands.

If strength needs to be improved, it is in the hands and wrists. The ability to use the body is also imperative.From the biggest player to the smallest, if you use your body you will hit for more power and distance.Big guys and little guys can both use their hips (1st) and hands (last), with a forceful snap motion.  

It is imperative that the batter develops a quick pivot and quick hands.

Many young players never develop power because they are taught to just “meet the ball.” It’s a common phrase from baseball coaches. As a result, many hitters stop their hands during baseball hitting drills on contact and they never hit through the ball.

A hitter must be aggressive. Hitting is controlled aggression, while maintaining balance and control

Another problem young hitters have comes from watching baseball on TV.Baseball hitters will let the top hand go too early.Tip - you should be finishing with both your hands. This will further incorporate hitting through the ball.

Add to this the problem that many players are taught how to hit a baseball by getting their hands out over the plate on contact. Some times this is as a result of being taught incorrectly to get extension over the plate.Extension does not occur on contact, but rather after contact.When hitters try to extend on contact, it is like sawing wood, using too much arms and shoulders.This technique will not help you hit for more power.

In order to learn how to hit for power in baseball the hitter has to get his hands out in front of the body to contact the ball, with the top hand over the bat, and the bottom hand under the bat.The top hand is then like a hammer on contact.

Using the hands like this will increase bat speed at least 30-40% more than the arm swing. 

Baseball Hitting Tips:

1. A strong body
2. Quick hips
3. Especially quick hands, out front on contact
4. Hitting through the ball
5. Being aggressive 

Former Tulane Hall of Fame Baseball Coach, Joe Brockhoff, fully explains his baseball hitting tips with the Super 8 Hitting System, completely demonstrated with videos and hitting drills to help you hit with more power and raise your batting average.

There are many different attitudes concerning the stride.  They all address one or more of these questions:

1.       How much weight?

2.       Which direction?

3.       How high and how wide ?

4.       Should we stride at all?

An instructor during my pro days who was teaching me how to hit in baseball  told me that if the pitch is straight down the middle, step forward.  If the pitch is outside, step toward the outside, and if the pitch is inside, step inside.    The problem is that against good velocity, there is absolutely no way for a hitter to wait until after he determines the direction of the pitch before he takes his stride.  He will always be late getting to the pitch and will have extreme difficulty with his timing.

Another method made famous by Kirby Puckett, is to raise the front foot in an exaggerated hop-step stride.   Many hitters who try this method struggle because they cannot get the front foot down in time to start the stroke.

Our Super 8 Hitting System techniques are simple, easy and repeatable. 

Here is a very important principle:   THE STRIDE DOESN’T HIT THE BALL.  It merely gets us in position to hit the ball.  This means the hands are still back at the completion of the stride.  The stride overcomes inertia and supports the hitter against the fastball.

If the pitch is a fast ball, the action would be “stride-stroke”.  If the pitch is slower, there would be a momentary pause.  Example:  ”stride-(pause) stroke”. 

The stride is initiated by the large muscle in the upper leg (hip thigh area), which keeps it consistent.  

Here are the rules:

1.       The stride travels only 6 inches, directly forward, in the same place every time.

2.       It occurs at the time of pitcher release.

3.       It distributes approximately 30-40% of the weight to the front side, and lands on the ball of the foot, which remains closed, open no more than 45°, which usually happens during the pivot.   Some players stride in a “toe tap”, with no significant weight on the front foot.  If a player places only 10% of his weight down on his stride, how will he get 90% more of his weight off his back side when he rotates to the pitch?  He can’t. 

4.       It happens quickly, getting the batter into position to hit.  

Finally, never underestimate the importance of a good stride.  It is part of the hitter’s timing.  When he’s striding, he’s deciding.

The hitter must work on his stride in his baseball batting drills, using either live or pitching machine  practice,  so that he can drill “stride and take”, just concentrating on technique.

These techniques are fully explained in our baseball hitting tips web site for the “Super 8 Hitting System”, completely demonstrated in eight baseball hitting videos, which include many tips on how to hit in baseball.

 There is no doubt that is baseball is conceived to be America’s national pastime all over the world. One of the necessities of the game, apart from having someplace to play, is having the right baseball equipment. If you want to have a friendly game with your pals on the weekend or want to practice with your kids, you are still going to need a bat, ball and a mitt at the particularly minimum. The bis serious your game is, the more equipment you are going to have to purchase. Having the right baseball equipment is a requirement to joining almost any league, from junior to senior amateurs to secure that the game is as safe as mortal.

League teams usually have some baseball equipment that is available for all of their players to use. These are often paid for by the sponsors that specific team. These include the uniform, bats, catcher’s equipment and helmets. However, it is up to the individual players to buy the rest of their equipment such as running cleats for their boots and gloves. The cost of a new baseball kit can be extremely high, especially if you want the best. Representative, a glove can set you back around a $99 and buying top quality running cleats will not give you much change out of seventy dollars. However, it is possible to find these and other pieces of baseball equipment available second hand online at eBay. Other items online to look for are Baseball Books, Baseball DVD’s  and Posters of famous baseball players.

You might be surprised at some of the bargains that you can pick up around your town. Chosen cautiously, used baseball equipment can last as long as new would, but at a fraction of the cost. One of the benefits of buying second hand equipment, particularly gloves or mitts, is that they have already has-been* broken in and are ready to be played with straight away. New gloves need to be made supple and worked on before diehards* are up to game fitness. If you are looking to buy second hand baseball equipment, there are a number of pointers that you need to look out for. Defy gloves, you should inspect the surface thoroughly and ensure that there are no splits in the leather and that the glove itself is still firmly stitched together. The top important piece of advice is if in doubt, don’t buy it.

The same applies to running cleats. It is main that these are the correct size for your shoes and that there is little disintegration. Your running performance, and safety is affected by incorrectly relevant or immensely worn cleats..

Running bases may be one of the simplest baseball skills to master, but a lot of times, it’s neglected among the amateur ranks.  However, to be the best you can be when it comes to baseball, you need to be able to do this right.

As with any other aspect of baseball, what develops after you’ve hit the ball tells you what to do when it comes to running.  If you’re trying to beat an infield roller, for example, you need to get to first ahead of the throw.  If the ball goes to the infield as a single, you want to make a turn at the base.  If you drive the ball over the outfielder’s head for a double, there’s one running pattern, or if it’s a triple, there’s another.  And if it’s a homerun, there’s still another pattern to be used.

Here’s what you do, starting with trying to beat a throw to first.  If you’re a right-handed batter and you hit the ball, your weight is on your front foot.  To go to first, drive off that foot, taking the first step with your right foot, too.  A left-handed batter is going to have his weight on his front foot and can usually start on that foot to first.

Whether a batter is right or left-handed, he or she is going to start running like a sprinter just taking off the starting blocks.  He sees where the ball is going, and then concentrates on running, with his weight forward and body low.  The first steps are choppy, short, feet well spread.

About a third of the way to the first base, his stride becomes longer and he straightens up.  At the halfway point, the batter is running fully upright and at full power.  When the batter gets to first base, he keeps running as though the finish line is 15 feet on the other side of the base.  The runner runs through first, stepping on the base with either foot as he passes.

Runners shouldn’t jump at the bases, though, because this wastes energy.  Sliding is not appropriate, either, unless someone is attempting a tag.  After the base is crossed, the runner goes back to it.  If you miss a move toward second, even bobbing your head toward it, the opposition can play on the runner and he may be called “out” and as off base.

Some advocate that the batter should turn to the right after he or she crosses the bag so that there’s no misunderstanding about what the batter had in mind.  This isn’t always good practice, however, because a runner will lose steps if he does have the opportunity to go to second base.  Most important, the runner should remember not to move to second base unless he’s actually going there.  The batter should want to crack out a base hit and then stretch it, and draw a throw to first base to take advantage of an error if possible.

It saves steps and gets the batter in a good position to advance if he approaches the first base and he does any other until he’s some 15 to 20 feet in front of it.  At that point, the runner makes a small move to the right so that when he hits the base, he’ll be right on target for second and not right field.

How should runners touch bases as they circle them?  There’s a lot of dispute about that, and many baseball coaches and managers say that the runner should put the inside of his foot on the inside corner of the base, turn left and then cross over with the right to continue to the next base.  However, others say that this requires breaking stride to do that.  Because of that, the best method may be to strike the bag with whatever foot is up first when the base is arrived at.

What’s most important is that if the base is missed, the runner should go back and touch it.  Touching the base is the most important thing to learn.

If you learn to be an expert at base running, you can be one of the best players on your team.

One of the things you’ll need to learn to do if you want to learn how to be great in baseball training is to slide. There are two basic methods when it comes to sliding, the “leg under” or “bent leg slide,” and the “hook slide,” or “fade away.”

First, let’s talk about the baseball hook slide. Sit down with your legs out and turn to the right so that all of your weight is on your right hip. Bend your left leg so that the calf is at right angles to your thigh; the toe of your foot is your “hooking foot.” Raise your arms over your head and lower your body until your back is touching the ground. Move your right foot to the right ever so slightly and raise it a few inches off the ground. That’s a hook slide to the right.

To do a hook slide to the left, just change the instructions so that they’re appropriate to the other side.
When you do the hook slide, remember that you need to spread your weight out as much as you can, and get your back on the ground. Keep your outside foot, the one not touching the base, off the ground. If you don’t, your spikes will probably catch in the dirt and you can turn your ankle badly because your body will be sliding forward and you won’t be able to stop it. You might even break your ankle if you make this mistake, so be careful. And don’t “jump” the base. Instead, slide and keep your hands up as well.

If you don’t keep your hands up, you might cut or scrape yourself, or end up with a sprained wrist. If you can’t remember to keep your hands up, just pick up some dirt with each hand when you get on base and then make sure you don’t let go.

Now, let’s talk about the “leg under” slide. Sit down with your legs out in front of you and double your right leg under your left so that your right shin is facing what would be the base. Roll over on your right hip ever so slowly, raise your hands over your head, get your back down and reach for the base with your left toe. Switch these instructions to the opposite side if you want to switch your position.

To stop at the base, slide until your bent leg touches the base and then let your top foot go over the base, bringing it down on the other side. Then you should simply be able to spring to your feet and continue on.

To get an idea of that, sit in the bent leg position and have someone grab one of your hands and pull you up. You can see that you come naturally up to your feet without a problem.

If you’re going to slide, slide

One hard and fast rule about sliding is that if you start, don’t stop.

And if a play is being made and you are on second or third base, you should always slide. Overrunning the base means you risk being tagged out, slowing up so that you won’t overrun the base will be a risk to you too, because you could be tagged out then, too. Overrunning home plate of course is not a problem, but don’t go into the base standing up unless you know the catcher is not going to try to take you. If you have any doubts, slide.

If you can only slide on one side (right or left), you should use a hand to tag the base. If you’re going to go into second base and beat a throw from left field, the second baseman leaves the left side of the base open. If you can only slide on your right side, do that and go to third base’s side of second, grab the base with your right hand as you go by, and ensure that you’re safe.

You can practice sliding in two places: in a jumping pit used for track and field events, or at the beach. In either case, don’t jump at the base, a habit you can form easily in either of these two places.

Pulling off the ball is a common mistake by many hitters.  In order to get consistent contact, the hitter must be sure his head stays closed, in other words, looking down into the contact area.

It is very easy to get into the habit of pulling off the ball.  This is especially true for power hitters.

Have you ever seen a power hitter hit a home run and thereafter, he can’t couch the ball?   What happened?

The home run took him out of himself.  So as he pivots, he is also pivoting his head. 

First of all, hitters should never take a 100% stroke.  Doing this invites pulling off the ball.        

For efficiency, the stroke should be no more than 95%, saving 5% for command.

As coaches, we sometimes go too far in the other direction by telling them to “just meet the ball.”  And now  they start to aim the bat, which is not good either.

Hitting is a controlled explosion.   Continue to be aggressive, with a 95% stroke.

So what do we advise?  The hitter is pulling off because he’s rotating his complete body when he hits.

He must focus on his head rotating in the opposite direction to the hips.  As the hips rotate to the pitcher, the head should rotate to the ball. 

Here are three baseball hitting drills for this:

DRILL #1

Place a pile-on or glove across from the hitter just outside the batter’s box in front of home plate (45% angle).  After the hitter makes contact, he looks into the pile-on area. This keeps the head inside.

DRILL #2 (with pitching machine or live pitcher)

Hitter assumes his stance, with no bat.  To simulate holding a bat, his top hand grabs the thumb of his bottom hand.  Coach stands in back of the hitter and holds his head on both sides .  The hitter takes batless strokes at the pitched ball, while coach restricts the head to keep it on the ball as it enters  the hit zone.   

DRILL #3   (Full Take)

The hitter will coil, stride, and read the pitch to the catcher.     

This keeps the head independent and disciplines it to stay with the ball.  Note:  This head discipline should carry over to his regular hitting, in the “full take”, a pitch that is an obvious ball.

Coaching Points.  The hitter should not go to the point where his head is pushing against the back shoulder.  This locks up the back shoulder and restricts his extension.

The head swivels.  It should never tilt while reading the pitch.  This causes the body to tilt also and the eyes to look on a vertical plane.  Eyes must stay basically horizontal for best vision and body control.

These techniques are fully explained in our baseball hitting instruction web site for the “Super 8 Hitting System”, including batting aids and a series of baseball hitting videos, which demonstrates many baseball hitting drills.

The baseball catcher is an important member of any baseball training team. Most young baseball catchers, those from eight to 10 years old, have a “receiving stance” that is much too far back from where they should be standing. Of course, these young people are concerned about being hit by the bat instead of catching the ball. With the receiving stance, the catcher’s feet are spaced wide apart, tail low. The glove hand is the target, with the barehanded fingers loose, thumb tucked under the fingers.

Something to remember is if the batter can’t reach the catcher with the bat on the back swing he takes before the pitch happens, he’s not going to be able to touch him when he tries to hit the ball, either. The batter as a natural course of things goes forward and away from the catcher to take the hit. Therefore, if the catcher stays just out of the way of the batter’s bat, he’ll stay perfectly safe.

Still, the catcher has to get as close as possible to the batter for a couple of reasons. Staying an extra foot back, for example, means that a curveball will start to break too late. If he stays too far away, the catcher also makes it harder to throw to the bases because he’s too far away.

A beginning catcher will often close his eyes when the batter swings, and will also sometimes turn his head. Both of these are natural reflexes, but they can be dangerous. The catcher won’t get hurt if he keeps his chin down, looks straight ahead until the ball hits the glove, and keeps the eyes open. The equipment he’s wearing should protect him. Young catchers, too, also often flinch when balls are thrown into the dirt. Again, equipment will be protective, because he can drop to his knees, and block the ball by getting his glove on the ground.

When the catcher throws

The baseball catching part of the team, too, must also throw to the pitchers, so they have to start working on their throws. As outfielders do, catchers throw overhand, with the ball directly in front of the hand. The ball shouldn’t curve and if it hits the dirt, it should have good backspin so that when it hits, it will bounce sharply and high. The catcher can’t use a full arm swing like the outfielder can, though. A snap throw is good for the situation instead. The proper position for the throwing arm is to hold the arm in the right position and do an overhand throw.

The hand is not held directly over the pitching elbow, and is brought down behind the ear instead. Then, the pitcher should step forward and “snap” the ball toward the pitcher. This is the same technique a football player uses when he’s throwing a forward pass, spiral. Catchers should always throw directly at base to catch runners stealing, or if throwing to second on the cutoff play, throw directly at the cutoff player’s head.

When catchers first began to catch, they should be taught to throw the ball to the pitcher the right way. The pitcher has a big job to do already and shouldn’t have to go after wild throws from the catcher. And that’s not just bad for the pitcher, but dangerous with runners on base, too.

The catcher should throw the ball at the pitcher’s glove shoulder, in a direct line and just the right height for a second base throw. The catcher should do a nice, medium speed throw to the pitcher, neither lobbing it back too easily nor firing it hard. Again, the throw comes from the glove shoulder. When bases are loaded, catchers should always make sure to take a quick look at the runners before he or she sends the ball back to the pitcher.

The catcher is a very important member of the baseball team.

In baseball training, when the ball gets hit, the catcher has a job to do. Most of the time, the catcher guards the plate. On bunts and pop-ups, though, oftentimes, it’s his job to do that play. No matter what, though, the catcher needs to toss the mask aside as quickly as he can.

When it comes to fielding the bunt, if the catcher is right-handed, he or she should always try to go for the left of the ball. That means he’ll be in a good position to throw it when the time comes. If the ball is still rolling when the catcher gets to it, putting the glove down in front of it to stop it and then grabbing it up with his glove and bare hand together for the pickup is best. If the ball has stopped, the catcher can make the pickup with his bare hand.

“Catching the ball with your nose”

When it comes to doing pop-ups, the catcher wants to get control of the ball as quickly as possible and should be waiting when the ball comes down. Pop-ups to the catcher are often caused by a sharp undercut to the ball, so the ball is spinning at a really high speed. The spin makes the ball move in one direction or another, but usually it goes toward the infield. The catcher knows this and has to be careful when the ball comes down so that he doesn’t catch it with arms out. There won’t be enough arm to do what he wants to do.

If the ball “floats” out of reach, the catcher can avoid this by “keeping his nose under it.” As the pros say, “Catch it with your nose.” Blink your eyes rapidly as you watch the ball come downward, because this prevents what are called “light staggers.” If pop-ups go to the back of the catcher, the ball’s spin will often make the ball curve as it goes upward.

A good rule of thumb to keep in mind is that if the batter undercuts an outside pitch away from him, it’s going to curve toward the batter. Therefore, the catcher should turn to his right and go back and under if the ball goes up and over the catcher’s left shoulder. This means that the ball will usually be curving in his direction, which makes his catch much more simple. If the ball goes up over his right shoulder, the catcher should turn left to go get it.

Covering third

When you are baseball catching on third base, it’s a special occasion, but there are several times this happens. First and most importantly, he is on bunt defense with a runner on first. They catcher goes into the diamond on the bunt, but he goes to his left and goes to third if the third baseman fields ball. If he doesn’t do that, it’ll open up the base and runners going from first to second can go on to third.

Catchers may also occasionally find themselves on third during a run between home and third. Again, the catcher will go to third when both the second baseman and the shortstop are chasing a pop fly by second with runners on base. In that case, the pitcher covers home and a third baseman takes second. Catchers should back up first base when the bases are not occupied and the batter hits a grounder to infield. This is especially imperative if the game is close. In order to make this backup play, catcher should start running when the bat first cracks and go for a spot at least 20 feet to the foul side of first. If the ball gets away from the first baseman, the ball and catcher will arrive at about the same time and the catcher can either keep the runner on first or get him going into second if he tries to continue and tag him out.

As a catcher, you have to be very thoroughly educated in these techniques and in the skills required.

Several years ago while traveling in Missouri, my son and I stopped off, as we often do, to take advantage of a commercial batting cage to get in some strokes.  The entire facility,  however, was rented out to a youth baseball team.  So every stall was filled with team members taking their hitting turns.   The coach was busily walking from one end of the cages to the other giving them baseball hitting tips, shouting out instruction to his hitters.

“You have to keep your elbow up!” was what he said. 

“Get the back elbow “ is one of the most common statements used to instruct young hitters.What will this do to allow a player to improve? Why would coaches feel this could add value to a hitters stroke?

I asked, “Coach, is this how you teach and prepare for a baseball game?” 

He answered , “Yes, when they finish their practice.”

Then I asked, ”Coach, why do you tell your players to get the back elbow up?”

And he answered honestly, “I really don’t know why.Every baseball coach has said this and some continue to teach it.  So it must be a good thing.”

Let’s explore some baseball hitting mechanics.What happens when the back elbow is up as the hitter goes to the ball.Many students who come to me will have their elbow up, and we will immediately adjust the elbow so that it is not up, but approximately 45° from touching the backside. 

By raising the elbow to 90°, we change the grip on the top hand, making the knuckles over-rotated, and unless the hitter makes an adjustment, prior to contact, this grip will cause him to roll his hands, losing club head accuracy to the ball.

What about professional baseball players?Why would some of them keep their back elbow up?MLB players make an adjustment with their back elbow prior to approaching the baseball.

What should the back elbow be doing?It allows for supporting the top hand.The elbow will not do this if it is as high as the hand.It allows for support to the grip and its no equal by being under it.

When checking a hitter, as he approaches the ball, the elbow should be under the bat in the formation of a “V”—which we call a “Power-V”.This keeps the grip correct and the hands in a state of strength.

Youth Baseball Tips:  The role of the top elbow is to support the bat.The support is gone, and your grip has been changed when it is up.We do not want this.

“Get the Back Elbow Up” is one of the worst things that you can tell your players.

Here is a video on batting stance and preparing to get in the box.