Very early in my coaching career I was fortunate to have a son, who, at 10 years old questioned everything!
Like most I felt my son’s questions were a test of my patience, but when he asked, “How long do I wait?” during a hitting drill, I realized what I was saying sounded very “baseball-ish,” but I realized I did not have an answer to his question. As I was turning around to respond, I wouldn’t call it an epiphany, but my son helped me recognize what I was saying did not make sense.
Wow, and I thought I was the coach.
Guess we all need to be questioned now and then!
It is true, a physical technique, or approach (style), is necessary, but our technique is what should be controlled by knowledge! Knowledge of what it takes [action] to hit the ball versus spending so much time discussing a descriptive how to hit a ball.
Think about it. If you place a kid in the outfield and ask them to throw the ball all the way to the catcher without it bouncing, move them to second base and ask them to do the same thing, and finally from the pitcher’s mound; Ask them, “How do you know how hard to throw it each time?” their response is likely, “I don’t know, I just do it!”
Honestly, when it comes to hitting, “I don’t know, I just do it” is the response you are looking for.
Knowledge or allowing your brain to take over using what you know, is where the “how” comes from. Once you have the knowledge, then letting their super computer make it happen.
I call it “Hitting in Auto Pilot” Simply knowing what it takes to hit a baseball and leaving the decision of “how” to their brain.
Quite frankly, hitting truly is simple once a player blocks out all the fallacies (“hips versus hands,” “hands versus hits,” “linear versus rotational,” “knob to the ball,” “throw your hands at the ball,” stay inside the ball,” “let it get in on you,” and oh yeah, “wait longer”) and mentally start focusing on the actions it takes to hit the ball.
If you need a refresher on what Actions it takes to hit a ball, then I recommend, “Hitting is Simple…Have You Figured it Out Yet?”
Until next Blog,
Al McCormick
