This past Thursday the Staten Island Yankees and Brooklyn Cyclones played a minor league baseball game that seemed pretty normal until the last at-bat. With two outs in the bottom of the ninth, Pat Venditte, an ambidextrous pitcher for the Yankees, faced Ralph Henriquez, a switch hitter for the Cyclones and all heck broke loose.…
Training for sports has gone to a whole new level in today’s society and the major shift is the emphasis of training the core muscles. You will often hear the word “core” to describe the muscles comprising the midsection of the body which includes the abdominals, the obliques (the muscles at the sides of the…
I was in Alaska for a baseball camp this past week and did not have time to write a column. Therefore I am going to go with some baseball trivia. Enjoy! The National league was established in 1876. The teams were: Chicago White Stockings, St. Louis Brown Stockings, Hartford Dark Blues, Boston Red Caps, Louisville…
The question has been asked by many people over the years. How heavy of a bat should I swing? Some people feel that if they have a heavier bat the ball will go further. There is some validity to that, but what about when the bat is so heavy that it’s swinging you! I believe…
Last week we discussed batting stance and today I want to emphasize the importance of keeping the front side of your body closed at contact. This is extremely important if you want to maximize your chances of hitting the ball hard with the barrel of the bat. In baseball terminology the front side would be…
I get a lot of questions regarding how a player should set up in the batter’s box. Most kid’s like to emulate the pros that they watch on television and that can create a problem. A batting stance is all about comfort which is key to a hitter. When it comes down to it, it…
If you have not already asked your team this question you should. It’s a great way to introduce them into the mental aspect of baseball. What do I mean by that? Challenge your team to look deeper than just how many outs there are or what’s the score. Encourage them to learn as much about…
This week we are going to discuss the importance of rotating your back foot when hitting. Did you know that 60% of your power comes from the core muscles?! You will often hear the word “core” to describe the muscles comprising the midsection of the body which includes the abdominals, the obliques (the muscles at…
This week we are going to discuss the direction you want to take your bat to the ball. Many people call this your “swing path”. Below is Riley McDonald, an 11 year old who plays in Diamondback Little League. We photographed him hitting during a private lesson last week. You can click on the photos…
When hitting the outside pitch the most important thing is to be patient and allow the ball to travel longer into the hitting zone. Many coaches call this “letting the ball get deeper”. Stepping towards the location of the pitch is a mistake because it takes too long and can throw you off balance. A…