What Really Causes Hitting Slumps? 25 Things That Can Ruin a Batting Average and a Baseball Season

Stopping a Hitting Slump That Can Ruin a Batting Average
By Jay Granat

Mark Teixeira, of The New York Yankees a great hitter with lots of runs batted in and a fine batting average is in a slump right now. David Wright, of the New York Mets just got out of one.

Over the years, baseball players of all levels struggling with hitting slumps have come to talk to me. Slumps can frustrate and impact major league players, college players, high school players and little league players.

Batting slumps can also create stress for parents, owners, athletic directors and
owners of teams. They can shatter a player's confidence, especially if they last for a long period of time.

The causes of hitting slumps are not always mechanical. In fact, many players with fine swings go through bad periods of hitting.

Last year, I gave a lecture to The New Jersey Pilots Baseball Team. I outlined the
causes of most slumps in that talk. It is very important for players, coaches and parents to understand the issues which can contribute to poor hitting by talented baseball players.

Here is a list of some of the major causes of batting downturns that I have seen over the years.
1. Being hit by a pitch
2. A physical injury
3. Choking or performing poorly in a big game.
4. Loss of confidence
5. Loss of focus
6. Failure to keep good records on pitchers
7. A breakdown in mechanics
8. An unwarranted change in mechanics
9. Feeling criticized by a coach
10. Feeling criticized by a parent
11. Burnout
12. Swinging at pitches out of the strike zone
13. Loss of patience
14. Alcohol abuse or substance abuse
15. Failure to recognize and understand your strengths and limitations
16. Inability to relax at the plate
17. Little or no training in the mental aspects of hitting
18. Lack of a clear approach when you step up to the plate
19. Anxiety in the dugout, on deck circle or batter's box
20. A vision problem which needs correction
21. An abundance of self-criticism
22. Perfectionism and unwillingness to try a new approach
23. Conflicting advice from coaches
24. Difficulty adjusting to play at a higher level
25. Stress, conflicts, family problems and personal problems off the field

Jay P. Granat, Ph.D. is a psychotherapist and the founder of http://www.stayinthezone.com. 101 Ways To Break A Hitting Slump and a Free Book is available at this link: http://www.stayinthezone.com/shop-stay-in-the-zone.html?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl&product_id=21
Dr. Granat can be reached at 888 580-ZONE.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jay_Granat

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Baseball 2Day Coaching Journal; 12 Batting Flaws and How to Correct Each

Baseball 2Day Coaching Journal; 12 Batting Flaws and How to Correct Each

How to Correct Baseball Hitting Flaws is your guide to identifying and correcting baseball hitting flaws at every level of play inlcuding youth baseball, travel baseball, high school baseball, and college baseball.

We all know that coaching hitters involves many actions:
1. Careful analysis of the the present swing's quality.
2. Correction or elimination of incorrect mechanics.
3. Practicing the desired swing with correct execution repetitively.
4. Instilling patience, confidence and agressiveness.

The following are common mechanical errors
that should be quickly identified and eliminated.
There are many more and we will
continually add more.


1. Improper Stance Width
2. "Wrapping" The Bat
3. Looking At Your Nose
4. Poor Grip
5. Overstriding
6. "Hitch" In The Swing
7. "Locking" The Front Arm
8. Opening Up Too Soon

Click here to read this article at the Baseball 2day Coaching Journal.

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Youth Baseball Hitting - How to Fix Your Baseball Swing

Youth Baseball Hitting - How to Fix Your Baseball Swing
By Brian McClure

To hit the ball well takes a lot of practice. Youth baseball is actually easier than for older players because there is only the basics to learn and develop. This makes it easy for as as coaches to improve our youth baseball teams hitting.

We still must do it right. Practice does not always make perfect. The practice must be effective and done correctly or the mind and body will instill the wrong mechanics.

Hitting off the tee - has probably been a lost art. It is however making a comeback in certain circles. I have always started batting practice by hitting off the tee. Yes..all ages. Purpose of the tee is to load the bat and get our weight back. First check that the players hands are in the right place..batting stance should comfortable. Second, Load the bat (Body and hands go slightly back and front foot comes up) Third, short quick swing.

Common mistakes to look for and avoid is the player dropping his hands and and weight back to far which is caused by wrapping the hands around the head. Wrapping the bat and Dropping the hands is usually the youth baseball player trying to hit a hard fly ball. It lengthens the swing and there will difficulty in hitting the ball correctly(popups) if at all, in live pitching.

Soft Toss - My favorite way to practice hitting. A youth baseball coach (or whoever is doing the tossing) can get a lot of control over the ball and watch the mechanics without fear of injury. The most common way I see soft toss done is from the side of the batter. I prefer to use a screen and toss from the front. This better simulates the pitch and the tosser and see the hands, head, and stride better too. Franklin L-Frame Pitching Screen
Work on strike tosses in the middle, inside, and outside... up, down. Toss in a few balls too so the player can work on learning the strike zone also. As you see a lot of work can be done in a short period of time.
If you toss from the side ,it is best to have net to target the balls.

Free Hitting - Turn 'em loose. Pitch or use a pitching machine and let the youth baseball player work on improving his hitting with live pitches without a lot of coaching at this point. Let the player have fun and just hit away. The Tee drill and soft toss is to work on mechanics. Now Focus on the ball and Swing.

These tips and basic batting practice strategy will greatly help your players improve their hitting skills. As a parent you can quickly move your son to the meat of the batting order with these simple batting practice two or three times a week. As coaches we should try and implement some batting practice every practice. The best way is to divide them into groups..some work on tee..move to ..the soft toss..then free hitting and move on to shagging.

Author- Brian McClure Want to learn more about helping your child in youth baseball as a parent or coach? http://www.coaching-youth-baseball.com

See our complete list of Topics and articles on youth baseball here http://www.coaching-youth-baseball.com/topics.html

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Brian_McClure

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