Let’s Play Ball

With baseball season in full swing for many New Yorkers, we thought it would be a good idea to chat with Coach Raymond De La Cruz of On Deck NY to get some hitting tips from the dugout. Parents can always use some extra guidance on how to coach their little ones at the mound, home plate and around the bases. Batter up! —

1.  Start from the bottom and work your way up.
 

This means that hitting off of an actual tee is a necessity. A tee is a
tool that coaches will utilize at every competitive level, so do not allow your
slugger to persuade you he has out grown it. Make sure he sets up with his feet
outside of his shoulders, this will give him balance. The main reason why young
kids do not generate power is because of their lack of balance. Start at the
base.  

2. Hips not feet!

Across the country, fathers and even
coaches are heard saying things like “squash the bug” meaning turn over the back
foot while swinging. While it is something that is supposed to happen, too much effort is
being spent on the hitters feet while nothing is being said about their hips.
Instead, dads should use phrases such as “snap your hips.” Practicing this will
automatically force the back foot to turn over. Without hip movement, a hitter
will never develop bat speed. It’s in the hips!

3. Grip and swing.

A hitter
wants to hold the bat in his fingers not his palms. A great way to remember this
is by asking him to line up his “door knocking knuckles.” Hold up a flat hand
and tell him to knock on your hand as if he were knocking on a door. This will
instantly give him a reference that is easy to remember. Lining up the “door
knocking” knuckles forces both elbows down. The absolute worst advice anyone
can give, and it seems like the number one thing fathers and bad coaches everywhere love
to say, is “pick your elbow up!” We have to start replacing that with “line
your knuckles up” because raising the elbow leaves any hitter open to developing bad
habits–the hitter’s upper body is less flexible.

4. Focus on the
result of what’s being taught.

Build confidence by focusing on one step
at a time. If you are working on the base of the hitter’s batting stance or
the way she is gripping the bat, then we shouldn’t be giving tips or scolding her for swinging and missing the ball at the same time. Hitting a baseball is the hardest thing
to do in sports and it can be mentally draining. Instead, give her feedback,
good or bad, on the specific drill being worked on and remind her that it is
important to focus on parts of her swing first so that eveything can come
together the right way.  

5. Ask your child why he wasn’t ABLE to hit the
ball.

There are only four ways to swing and
miss. You can either swing above the ball, beneath the ball, too late or
too early. ABLE: Above, below, late, early. This will allow even a young hitter to
start critiquing their own swing and it gives them an easy reference on how to
make an adjustment. Emphasize ABLE and then remind them that if they swing and
miss it should be a different way every time. If they were late this time then their next swing and miss should be early.