I have read many threads re this on hsbbweb. But still having difficulty with knowing how to help. Player is always been a good hitter. Sophomore this year. Also on varsity last year as starter. Did very well on hitting side of game last year and with travel ball team. Has NEVER had problems with hitting, (although, he is smart enough to know, that it was possible to hit a roadblock as some point.) In practice hits extremly well. Works outside of hsbb on hitting. Hitting instructor reports "Nothing wrong with his swing" (not that there isn't things he could tweek) Have come to realize it's(Possibly) ALL mental. Pressing, expectations from Himself and has NO Confidence. Hitting weak grounders, not on base much (if he is, it's due to an error), striking out alot, and ALOT of times not even swinging the bat. Has gone from hitting around 400 (freshman) to probably less than 200. (not that #'s are important, just trying to explain situation). Has god given natural ability. He's somewhat of a quiet kid, but funnier than heck at times. He respects people and is coachable. Summer and HS Coaches feel he has good chance to play college ball. (although, he is doubting himself about this now) Is always asking "What am I doing wrong? How did I look at the plate?" But says "I feel relaxed". Nearing end of season, only few games left. Then Travel ball will start.

HS coaches are good, no negatives. Parents are positive with him. Had one coach ask him if he has "an approach"/Player does not. In fact, has never had "an approach." Was told (by one coach) he "needs an approch",and by others to "relax", be yourself etc, etc, etc......... . He says that he has always just got up to the plate and "isn't thinking". Feels he has always just "reacted." Adversity has struck! (not that we/he didn't think it could happen) Always does sooner or later. Have tried
quotes, more reps, "this will make you stonger" approach ALOT of times don't even talk about it at all. Sorry this is so long! As said before , just trying to give the whole picture. Any suggestions or insight would be greatly appreciated. He is not the type to give up. Has goals, loves bb. Thought about some books, but that is just more mental stuff for him to think about. Has never been a "thinker". Commenting to him from time to time re mental aspect or mechanics does not help, but he is always asking. Thank you. PS. (CoachMay and TRhit, I hope you read this

In my experience I have found that the good hitters regardless of their age do not think they REACT!!!

Well... if I had the answers, I would be hosting the Dr. Phil show right now. Here are some thoughts...

quote:

Pressing, expectations from Himself and has NO Confidence.

All of those things are a concern but can be overcome if the focus is changed from interal concerns to external considerations. Confidence is the most elusive of all commodities but often times is illusory. For instance, just because he has never had a problem with hitting before does not make him immune from a slump. It is kind of like walking into a Casino and winning big on the slot machines your first time out. Your confidence may be sky high but it is confidence derived from statisitics that have obvious ups and downs. He needs to learn to have confidence whether he is 1-10 or 8-10. Dustin Pedroia struggled in the playoffs for a time last year and he said he knew it was just a matter of time before the numbers swung back around his way. That is true confidence.

Internal things not to focus on... his batting average... going 9-9 to repair his average... hitting 7-run homeruns... feeling sorry for himself... wondering what went wrong... lamenting about how great things were last year... etc. letting the expectations go... last year he was Derick Jeter and now he has to learn how to be himself - that ought to be more than good enough to succeed - being himself...

External things to focus on...

Helping the team win in any manner... walks, HBP, working deep counts, hustle, etc... hitting the ball hard... hitting it back up the middle or to the opposite field to reset his timing (Manny Ramierez employs this trick when he struggles i.e., seeing the ball longer)... doing his job in the field... having fun and trying to help others have fun... see the ball hit the ball approach... I agree sometimes people can out-think things... There are probably a million other things he can focus on that are external to the worry and self-doubt... focus on those things and the long night will be over allowing the sunshine to return...

Everyone hits the wall as some point. Those who come out of it go on to succeed. Even high level guys go into a funk. But, they have the advantage of volumes of video to comapre their swings at different times.

For the most part, hitters revert to the same faults. A video library works great, but just knowing what components of a high level swing are is important.

I try to break things into two catagories: timing and swing plane. We work on fixing the swing plane first and then adjust the timing from there.
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We review what happens during his stride (what hips, shoulders and hands are doing).

We make sure weight (hip unload) is not transferred forward too early even though he is striding forward (i.e. not jumping at pitches).

We make sure hips begin to rotate before upper body.

We check where his launch point is.

We make sure momentum is maintained throughout the swing (including hands).

We watch how hands/arms move barrel into swing plane then rotate toward the ball.
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We can find almost any mechanical flaw working through that progression. Failure to fix mechanical flaws will result in prolonged slumps and brings "The End" closer and faster than it needs to. Do most kids quit because they hit too well? It's because they fail to solve flaws and struggle until the game becomes unbearable.

Otherwise, stay aggressive and swing at early strikes. The saying "If you don't want to strike out, don't get two strikes" has served my son well.

And all too many times the players, coaches/ parents think too much

Thank you for your responses, others may respond as well. TR- once again, I like your message. EVERYONE is thinking to much. Will leave enough alone and see how things go. Hopefully his REACT will reappear.

Is it at all possible that the pitching that he is facing has improved to the point that he is kept off balance and unsure?

Perhaps working with him on pitch recognition and location would help. Work with him on location by throwing him pitches to various locations on and off the plate and have him tell you where each pitch was in relation to the hitting zone.

If he can become confident in his ability to read where a pitch is going to enter the hitting zone and if it is offspeed or a fastball, this should affect him in a positive way.

You could be describing me in that whole paragraph, my coach says "see the ball, let it fly..." Regardless, it is harder than it sounds and its tough to break out of this funk that im in. You can't do anything more than just keeping at it. If your son breaks out of it, please tell me how he did it.

You could try taking a day off and not thinking or playing baseball---play video games, go see IRONMAn ---do anything that gets you away from thinking abou it

The most difficult concept to convey to a player who is struggling is to relax and "react" as TR said. The more a player struggles, the more likely he is to press and try and do too much. It's the slippery slope every hitter finds himself on at some point. TR's right. Thinking too much is the enemy of a struggling hitter. The concept of slowing everything down and just stepping into the box and hit what you see is one way to go. Good luck.

"There are 1 billion Chinese, who do not care if you son hits the ball". They want to survive.

"Keep it in perspective".

"Hit the ball with the front shoulder"

Do you understand?

Bob

Yes

If you haven't got this book, I highly recommend your son give it a read:

The Mental Keys to Hitting: A Handbook of Strategies for Performance Enhancement (Paperback)
by H.A. Dorfman (Author)
ISBN-10: 1888698381

Nitric_Acid,
That book is great, but it doesn't help you go up to the plate with a clear head and not think about anything... It tells you that that is what you're supposed to do, but it doesn't tell how.

The best source on mental hitting is CD by Steve Springer. Quality At Bats. Much more direct and practical advice than Dorfman. This will clear your head, stop focusing on batting average, and focus on hitting the inside of the ball hard.

Per Springer, get your Q's, by the end of the year, your numbers will be where you want them to be.

Just tell him to smile when he goes up to bat next time.