Expert: Jack Elliott - 12/22/2008

Question
My son is 14 and has developed a problem of hitting the ball on the upper handle or shaft of the bat instead of the big barrel. He stands plenty far from the plate but still has the problem. How does he develop a shorter arm stretch to hit the ball on the barrel of the bat?


Answer
Hi Joe,

This is a difficult thing to answer without actually seeing the swing.  Instead, I would recommend your son practice his swing.  Two of the most effective ways to do this are:
1.  Soft toss and
2.  Hitting off of a tee.

These drills are designed to help train him to see the ball better and to be able to hit the ball in all areas.  The tee can be really effective at working out holes in his swing.  The root problem could be a number of things including bat speed, vision, or poor swing mechanics.  After practicing with the soft toss and tee for a while, see if you can see any improvement in the hitting.  If no improvement, have your son take a few lessons with a hitting coach.  Ideally, you want to find one that has coached high school, college, and professional athletes.

Another thing I would recommend is have him swing the bat everyday 100 times a day from both sides of the plate.  This will help develop his strength and bat speed.  Older players like Mickey Mantle used this to develop their swing.  Although he may not be a switch hitter, this will help him develop balance in his swing and muscles.  

Hope this helps,
Jack Elliott
http://www.baseballtrainingtechniques.com