Greg Etheridge Etherifge I’m always looking to hit the ball harder and farther. This may not help everyone for those categories. It did for me making the switch a couple years ago. If you end up trying it let me know if you noticed any results. I’m definitely better at it off the tee and am working to get back farther in live hitting. That may be one of the reasons I generally hit the ball farther off the tee consistently.
Watched this video on Sunday, changed my approach at the plate during my games Tuesday night and hit two homeruns and a triple (and if I wasn't tired, it would have been 3 homeruns). That equalled my homerun count in the last 6 or 7 seasons that I've been playing in my orthodox (slingshot) league. I crushed the ball further than I had ever previously. Excellent video. Thanks for the tips.
I’ve found that using your legs to power your swing instead of just using your upper body, gives more power. I’m obviously no pro but I can tell you that I used to use just my upper body and would have difficulty with having no power and dropping my shoulder which made me pop up more. Everyone has their way of finding more power.
This is an EXCELLENT instructional video. I was using my hardball/fast pitch swing in slow pitch softball. I just could not get the power I wanted until I watched this video. Its a completely different swing than hardball. I come back to this video often as a reference point if my swing feels off. Thx man I appreciate you taking the time to go through each step. It really helped me.
I can still get power and hits swinging like it's a baseball. Never really tried this though. If it's going to give me a lot of pop ups, I'd rather stick to the other way where I'm always getting hits and scoring.
Dude this helped me out so much. Gotta realize the difference between softball and baseball hitting !! Got some good tips to work on at the batting cages
A few weeks ago, I was simply frustrated with my hitting... in general. Power, distance. I've watched a bunch of other slow pitch YT hitting videos over the years, and would take a little info here and there. Kinda stumbled across this video, as I was combing through your playlists. Really glad I did. I was using a hybrid overlap. Pinky under knob, pinky/ring finger overlap. After I watched this vid, I decided to just go all in on the mentioned techniques. Full overlap grip and all. I'm simply blown away by the results. I've always had the ability to place hit. Oppo is almost easier for me than pull hitting. Now I have more distance & velocity on my hits than ever. I'm really anxious to apply this in a game. Again, thanks for the videos. Sharing tips, and knowledge, and of course reviewing bats.
Thanks for the Video and for being a left handed batter! I’m a 40 year old getting back into softball after a 13 years break. I had success in my younger days but I want to approach the game more wiser this time around.
charlie805 thanks for watching and welcome back to the game 👍. I turned 40 myself last summer and a couple years ago started looking more at technique to try and prevent losing pop on the ball and even increase it. I try to work at one portion of the swing at a time.
You should make a video highlighting the importance of letting the legs start, drive and power the swing. Most rec softball players have very upper body dominant swings. Some guys can get away with this because they have a strong core, strong shoulders, arms and wrists however they would hit much further if they got their legs involved properly. I struggle with the upper body dominance issue and am currently working on drills to program my leg muscle memory. Good stuff. I look forward to more! Also have you ever reviewed an Axe bat? They have a 2020 Avenge model that they claim is super hot out of the wrapper.
Great suggestion. I agree with your thoughts. I’ll see what I can do. I did a review on the 2020 Axe Powergap and have some additional videos of it being compared to other 2020 asa bats, scheduled to come out soon. Thanks for watching.
After you use the tee to develop muscle memory what do you do for the timing of the pitch? This is my issue - either Im too early and have to overreach or if im late and the ball is hitting the handle. Thanks
AW thanks for watching! Live bp is the best option for timing. I rarely have a pitcher to go out with me. I primarily use the pop toss green tee. I’ve done reviews on it. One of the best birthday present I’ve been given. You can buy it here if interested: 21stcenturybattingtees.com/product/green-pitching-machine/ Using the code “LIVEBP” saves you $8 too.
Biggest thing I’ve learned and do is waiting that half a second ! Most of us are baseball background regardless of how far we went... slow pitch is a different beast. Waiting to pull that trigger a half a second has helped. I personally know i can’t hit a homer. But when I don’t wait. It’s always a pop up. But when I wait for that ball to get chin levels i hit solid every time. Just have to ween out the baseball in us. If they makes sense ... literally half a second makes a difference !!
I’m a baseball player and joined my companies slow pitch. Idk what the hell happend but I’m a ground ball machines on top of that the high arc gets me confused on timing
Welcome to the game! The different pitch can take a little to get used to. But if you stick with it and get some good bp I assume you will find your stride. I personally love slow pitch over softball because the games are more high scoring and a lot shorter and faster paced :) But I know not everyone would agree with my preference on this haha.
I dont understand how you think stiff arm swing gives you power i have played for years and have not seen anyone who used a stiff or straight arm type swing didnt get any gains from it you get absolutely no whip in your swing
Thanks for watching. Sorry, I don't quite follow the comment. This video is focusing on getting back in the swing in order to bring more power forward. It isn't meant to demonstrate the "attack" portion of the swing. For the getting back portion, did you happen to try that at all? Curious of the experience. It may not benefit all hitters the same way. For my swing it was a help in adding footage and exit velocity on the ball.
102 thumbs down... really? Great intro... useful tips... entertaining... If you use these tips to double your swing speed you would get a 4-fold increase in energy transferred to the ball (E=0.5 mv2). I use a similar move during the golf swing, so I am definitely going to apply these tips the next time out.
@@bathound After the ~ 25th ball (several hit the fence prior), I hit my first home run hit this morning. It sailed over the center-field fence by at least 80 feet. Strangely enough, a retired softball coach whose daughter was in the Olympics years ago was watching me and he gave me some additional tips. I used the tips from you, but he also had me close my stance. In the end, whether the stance was open or closed did not matter. Get the weight shift down which was easy coming from years of playing golf and also add your grip tip from another video (very important component) and the ball explodes off the bat. Thanks again for all of the great tips!!! I could easily see averaging a home run hit every 10 balls or so with some more practice. Also, moving the ball higher on the tee was a game-changer.
Mandy Swafford thanks for the comment. I’m always looking for ways to hit the ball harder and farther in slow pitch. What have you found to give you more pop on the ball? Were you able to give any of these a try. In general I try to be working on 1 or 2 things at a time especially during the off season.
I just want to say THANK YOU SO MUCH. Since taking your advice my hitting has been better, I have a better eye at the plate and most importantly confidence.
Philip Popovich guys are all over and some stand at different places depending on the situation and where they may want to place the ball. I am typically right at the back of the plate. Virtually everywhere I play uses plate and mat for a strike. I like to be right in the middle where I feel confident hitting the short pitch or the deep one without needing to “walk the box”
Hey Phil. Depends on the arc allowed in your league and where you like to receive the ball. I like to receive the ball about waist high or slightly above. In my unlimited arc league, I stay back near the rear of the plate. Any further forward and I'm tomahawking the ball. In 6' - 12' pitch (6' Min arc, 12' max arc) I align about even with the center of the plate and in 3' - 10' pitch I align near the front of the plate. BTW, you've got a great name. Good luck.
@@ppopovich2847 I usually stand about center of the plate but step back a little more towards the back of the box. Slightly. I might move up if I feel the ball is dropping a little short of that.
I need two ASA bats. I want amMid-load/balanced AND max load. Torn between the following: DC41 ASA 34/27 Freak Primo Maxload ASA 34/27 Flipper OG Mid-load 34/27 Freak Primo Balanced ASA 34/27 Flipper USA 34/27 Which two would you guys get?? Something else I should be looking at? Help!
It has been a long time for me since making that transition, but I remember timing being a major thing. It takes a little getting used to the way the ball comes. Both of those are simply getting batting practice I would think. The two things that helped me the most in terms of getting more distance on the ball is 1) moving to the drop-down full-overlap grip, and 2) working to get back in my swing.
Buy softballs by the dozen that your tournament uses. Master the bat/ ball combination and perfect the sweet spot. New softballs in practice will improve your game much more than anything imaginable. You’re welcome.
ClassicGameMusic thanks for the comment. I never thought to purchase balls from tourneys. That is a good thought. I find all mine at a field near me 😂.
The suggestion was to buy softballs that your league or tournament uses. Work on hitting all fields. Your bat will break in evenly if you practice to simulate game conditions with new/ newer softballs. And the bat chasing will be less of a pursuit. Happy hitting.
ClassicGameMusic working on hitting the ball to all fields is something I’m hoping to work on in the spring. Gonna try to end the shifts, even though I enjoy the challenge lol.
Generally I do have a slight upper cut. I do not do much cutting of the ball, but it certainly works great for many. With my path I do want to be hitting the bottom half of the ball for better back spin. Ken Van Bogoert has some great videos on bat path that I found helpful through the years.
The best way to create upper and lower body separation is to keep your arms and wrists relaxed in your stance and simply walk away from your hands as you stride forward. You NEVER want to pull or push your hands back because doing so creates tension in the arm muscles which will do nothing but slow your swing down. The getting back with your hands and arms should happen naturally. Forcing it by trying to manipulate the action will lead to a host of problems not limited to lack of consistency in live game at bats.
1977TA thanks for the comment. I obviously can’t speak for all, but I can say for me this hasn’t messed with consistency at all. But admittedly I’ve taken thousands and thousands of swings like this so that it is more natural than not not doing it. I can’t really respond to your comment other than saying I experienced this improving power in the swing. I’m always looking for more tips to hit the ball harder. Have you tried this idea?
When I first started playing slow pitch I discovered I needed to start my swing a little earlier than my brain was telling me I needed to at first. Perhaps because it was coming so slow I thought I could wait longer or something, I'm not sure. But perhaps some of that could be going one where you are hitting the top half of the ball more than the middle, to bottom half of the ball. Another option is to pay attention to your swing angle. If you are working on cutting the ball, having a slight upper angle seems to be the instruction I see out there. If you check out Ken Van Bogaert's channel, there are some really good training videos on there. I have learned a good bit of tips from the videos.
Going to start practicing these techniques. I've been playing slow pitch softball for years and want to improve my swing. What other techniques do you recommend for female players that have less upper body strength. I like your pointers and pulling back that should give me a little more power.
I used these techniques last season in the rec softball leagues, crushed 2 homers in 1 game, and a GR double. Thanks! Using the same this year, getting closer to the top of the fence every game!
Your tips helped me out big time so the last season before covid hit I batted .689 in the highest div and .889 in the lower div. And my wednsday night team .775 I'm sharing ur videos allot
As a very experienced baseball player, I know that y’all are gonna so softball is so much diff from baseball but just listen... he starts with his arms back, you shouldn’t do this, most of your power comes from the waist and in order to get that power, you need to get that back arm in the slot, that’s what you should do,
I noticed that when I am on mound at bat, if I don't pay attention to form I hit the ball best. For instances just simply standing eye on the ball and then just naturally using this technique. Power varies for me. Any tips to better hit I am all in!
Sino F I agree hitting is very much a mind thing as well. I find it takes a long time to make certain adjustments on the swing to be habitual enough to simply not think of it. In game time I try not to think about things and hope that all the practice will kick in. Practice practice practice 👍👍. Thanks for watching!
Oops, sorry I'm just getting to this. But that is correct, that is a DIY one you can make for a fraction of the price of a high end tee. If you wanted to purchase a tee and not build one, I can highly recommend the Rukket Sports tee. It has a great range of hitting heights and mine is approaching 37,000 swings and the top is still in great shape. Never thought I would see it last this lone.
Devn Thanks for the comment. I’m not exactly sure what you mean. Care to elaborate? I’ve never played cricket before so it makes it all the more difficult to understand.
jbuehlerjr yes pretty simple. The difficult part is actually getting back. Easier to do off the tee but with live pitching it isn’t intuitive for most of us.
@@bathound I actually learned a lot from this...back to basics in a sense. I have been in a slump and I needed to regain focus...my balance, my grip, weight shift. Looking forward to tonight's game. Thanks
wow, i just started a softball league and im having problems hitting that pitch with any real power. i played and grew up with a good baseball swing. But i see your stance and hitting for softball is nothing like my baseball stance. This might explain my issues. time to change.
Mr. Mike I know the feeling - I turned 40 last summer 😂. For bat speed I found doing over load under load drills to help, as well as swinging away with the pop toss beast - a weighted training bat that allows you to hit normally but with weight inside the bat. I noticed a good difference after using it all winter. Last week I finally hit a goal of distance I’ve been working for over the last couple years 👍. I have a couple videos on it. It wasn’t called the beast at the time just the 2-in-1 weighted training bat.
@@bathound I noticed something this wk. I have enough size and power to hit balls out. But I have this fear of not making contact and so i can't give my swing enough power to hit one out in games. Do you understand? And what can I do about this?
@@09fatbobmike This may sound like a simplistic answer, but since the mental side of hitting is so critical and influential on the outcome, I'd say there really is no substitute for getting in as much bp as possible. I love hitting off the tee and use the tee for consistency of swing and a concentrated focus on specific aspects of the swing...and because I just like it :) I rarely have someone to go out with me during the week to pitch, so I try to get in a good amount of live swings using the Pop Toss Green Tee. The family got it for my birthday last year, and I still love it. I have a couple reviews on it. If you go that route you can use the code "LIVEBP" to save $8. Either way, I would say just keep at it and get as many reps in as possible. I'm amazed at how sometimes teams will stack the whole right side with guys, but when I'm in a grove it doesn't bother me at all - I'm convinced it won't help them stop the ball :) But when I struggle, even if they play me straight up there doesn't seem to be an open spot on the field and the wind feels like it will knock down every ball I hit...and of course it is much more difficult to get solid contact. Such a mental game. That is where work on the side is so helpful to convince ourselves once again that we can crush that big yellow ball flying so slow haha. Now for golf, I still haven't figured out how that ball beats me every time lol
Jairo Mayor thanks for the question. Are you asking which worth and Miken bats I liked best? If so, for Miken I’d say the dc41, but I’m really liking the primo supermax that just came out 👍. For worth id say the ‘17 est xxl, or the est short barrel balanced from ‘18, but the legit bb of ‘18 has caught my attention. If I’m answering the wrong question let me know. 👍👍
@@bathound The only problem with the new bats is durability. They don't make em like they used to. I have three pre-durability(2015 and older) issue Eastons that each have over 2000 swings and are still going!
Ethan Soles I’ve heard the same of others. I wasn’t able to test out other bats back then and just swung the juggy for the most part. Now that I’ve branched our I try to sell my bats shortly after review 😃.
