Keys to Youth Swing Development

Greetings everyone!

Drawing from my direct personal experiences as a player and coach, discipline and absolute determination makes all the difference in the world when it issues us challenges and, indeed, the most important lesson life has ever taught me was to impose strict rules on myself and be tolerant to the deficiency of others. Indeed, of all the good deeds I have done in my entire life, coaching children to play baseball has been by far the most rewarding of them all since I think teaching kids new skills is what makes coaching baseball a unique profession. Albeit, I believe that dreams in baseball are made on the field of playing I utterly disagree with the view that they are made while one is dozing one's lives away. Nay, nay, dreams are not made while you are asleep, on the contrary, one needs to be very much awake for it is fundamental that one raises one's game in order to keep one's dream alive. Certainly, the difference between mediocre and superb lies on attitude, approach and dedication to a cause where enterprise and ardour are the most important items for making it big. Therefore, It is essential that young players concentrate fully in which the coach ask them to do and how a particular drill must be follow so that he can determine what steps to take in order to correct deficiencies in players' abilities to rise to challenges and all the rest. Bear this in mind, impatience is not a good trait in baseball and one must learn to listening in order to be heard and seen. Energy is my favourite word but I deplore snobbery and racial prejudice. Sweat is now pouring down my face, I take a deep breath, need a glass of water, the glass is half-full, drink from it and go back to my coaching today's drill which is  titled: The Keys to youth Swing Development.   

The tee ball drill will enable a coach to help young players to correct deficiencies in their swing while teaching them batting fundamentals that must be acquired in order to be a good hitter of the ball. It is of paramount importance that the correct grip of the bat and the correct stance are shown to the learner. Albeit the stance is elementary it is a very important issue in swing development. Feet just a litter bit wider than the shoulders, the knees bent, the hands must be at shoulder height and close to the body. The bat should be in a vertical position, the back elbow down, the head level so that the tracking eye has a clear line of sight to the ball and the bat must be kept still before the swing is executed. Certainly, a tee ball is not pitched to the batters and the ball must be hit from a stationary position, placed in front of a home base. A Constant batting objective is the shifting of weight towards the back leg before taking a short stride with the front leg while the foot, the front hip and shoulder remain closed. The hands move backwards and the leading arm stretches across the chest (Watch for bat wrapping and for hands dropping), turn the back foot at a 90 degree angle. Watch for front shoulder, and the hip opening, this should produce a strong hip rotation. The belly button must be pointing to where the ball goes after it has been hit and the bat should be driven by the legs and hips, not hands, ensuring that the player makes a solid contact with the ball towards the fielders. From the coaching point of view repeatedly hitting the ball off the tee will improve a player's swing and at the same time he will discover that there is a sweet spot on the bat at the end of the barrel when he makes a clean contact with the ball. 
  

Pedro Figueras
Head Cach
Figueras Baseball Academy

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