with Ron Jackson, former Boston Red Sox Hitting Coach, 2004 World Champions!
Learn the hitting drills that have made the World Champion Boston Red Sox one of the best hitting teams in major league baseball history. In 2003-2004 the Red Sox led the major leagues in ten offensive categories, and set three all-time major league records for extra-base hits (649), total bases (2,832), and slugging percentage (.491). In this baseball video, Ron Jackson shares 18 baseball hitting drills used by the Red Sox, including the favorites of players David Ortiz, Manny Ramirez, Jason Varitek, and Johnny Damon. Jackson demonstrates multiple drills for youth baseball, using the batting tee to perfect contact points, hit to all fields, create a level and proper swing path, and drive through the ball. In addition, he shares several youth baseball drills, such as the soft-toss and short-toss drills that can be used on-field and in the cage for gaining complete plate coverage, learning to hit the ball to the opposite field, improving rhythm, hitting off-speed pitches, quick hands, and tracking pitches. Jackson, in this youth baseball video, also demonstrates one-hand, and "thunderstick" drills for improving hand-eye coordination, bat speed, and making consistent contact. Use these successful youth baseball drills to become a complete hitter at all levels of the game!
See the workout that has made Alex Rodriguez a feared hitter
Learn to attack the baseball no matter where it's pitched
Create a more efficient swing by eliminating unnecessary movements
Features hitting insight and demonstrations from Alex Rodriguez
Now you can learn the same hitting techniques, strategies and drills that Alex Rodriguez uses every day!
In this sensational DVD from Championship Productions, New York Yankees hitting coach Kevin Long reveals techniques and strategies for becoming a successful hitter.
Coach Long covers six keys to becoming a great hitter:
Grip - Find the best grip to stay loose and increase bat speed.
Stance - Stay flexible to maximize the power in the lower half of your body.
Plate coverage - Use your best swing regardless of pitch location.
Load - How to put yourself in a stronger hitting position for each swing.
Knee drive - Learn how to level your swing and generate power.
Hip torque - Increase your bat speed using your hips.
Watch as Coach Long takes A Rod through a batting workout to fine tune hitting mechanics with soft toss and tee drills using a short and regular bat. These drills focus on balance and staying tight to your core to get your bat through the hitting zone quicker.
In addition, Long and A Rod sit down and discuss the key techniques from a hitter's perspective. This section includes:
Strategies to develop the best swing possible
Scouting the opposing pitcher
Guessing on pitches
Batting practice for success
Off-season work
What makes this video unique is that you can see how these drills are used at the Major League level and how they can be adjusted to work at any level: youth, high school, collegiate and professional.
Long goes through a number of errors that are common among younger hitters - and how you can correct them. Among the problem areas covered are:
Stride in - where the batter's hips won't get through the swing
Stride Open - which mostly occurs left handed batters
Flexed Front Side
Turning In - creates long bat path
Leaning Forward
Long closes with a Coach's Q&A session. He covers a number of topics including:
Absolutes of hitting
Strategies for left- vs right-hand pitchers
Scouting reports
Two-strike approach
Hitting when you're ahead in the count
Identifying pitches
Getting over the fear of being hit by a pitch
and much more!
This is the workout that helped A Rod to one of his best statistical seasons as a pro in 2007. Get help with your swing from one of the top hitting instructors in the world!
Learn how to break down the baseball swing in 7 phases
Simplify the hitting process to improve batting averages
Hitting drills to incorporate with a partner or team
with Mitch Thompson, Assistant Coach, Baylor University
Coach Mitch Thompson breaks down the mechanics of a baseball swing into seven phases: bat selection, grip, stance, start, stride, swing, and finish. Coach Thompson's hitting instruction also explores the mental approach to hitting and explains ways to make hitting simple. Multiple hitting drills are demonstrated in this baseball video, inlcuding dry swing drills, the side toss, the short toss, tee drills, front toss drills, and the use of a hitting stick. This is a great instructional baseball video DVD that concentrates on hitting fundamentals. This is a great baseball video for youth programs.
with Jay Johnson, University of San Diego Hitting Coach
How can you take an aggreesive / explosive swing every time at the plate? Jay Johnson shares the San Diego hitting drill progression designed to maximize consistency, strength and power in the swing. The first concept is the impact of seeing the baseball, as timing, pitch selection and the path of hands during the swing are all dictated by seeing the baseball. The zone drill, including three zones, is taught to hitters at the plate. Drills include the colored ball tracking drill and the slider drill. Explosive hitting is developed with three drills; backhand catch, torque drill with tee and the uphill tee drill. Balance and timing are added to the most important areas of hitting. Johnson demonstrates the bounce drill where the baseball is bounced off the ground before hitting. The hands are also important in hitting, and the short bat drill places emphasis on taking the batter's hands directly to the pitch. Angle hitting and angle screen are two hitting drills that help create a compact swing, and the "Smoke the Cones" drill helps develop hits to center.
with Bill Krejci, Hitting Coach for USA Baseball's 18U National Team, former Head Coach Southwestern CC
Make your practice swings quality swings!
Bill Krejci leads off this baseball hitting DVD by building sound swing mechanics. Learn where to set up in the box, how to stay balanced when you swing, proper hand placement on the bat, selecting your bat to maximize swing velocity and getting the best grip. Moving into the sequence of the swing, Krejci takes you through the load, stride, hand press, contacting the ball and finishing the swing. Krejci teaches each technique using word pictures and cue words that you can use to effectively coach your athletes.
To perfect the execution of these essential swing mechanics, Krejci coaches demonstrators through 15 drills and shows how each drill can provide instant feedback on your athlete's swing. Krejci focuses on getting quality swings versus quantity swings and how to adjust your athlete's mechanics to improve his execution of the swing.
These drills improve swing mechanics, hand quickness, balance, contact, reaction to pitch placement, making adjustments to the fastball and change up, and more. Throughout the drills, Krejci provides tips for correctly feeding drills such as soft toss that will make the most of your practice time.
Krejci uses both traditional and non-traditional baseball equipment to create effective, challenging drills. For example, the "Ball on a Rope" drill teaches players to drive the ball and finish their swing.
Do more in batting practice than work up a sweat. Use Krejci's program to learn the proper execution of the swing and how to make your "quantity swings," quality swings.
with Mark Brew, Lee University Head Coach; 2008 NAIA National Runner-up, 2008 NAIA National Coach of the Year
Mark Brew's squad ranked in the Top 10 nationally in both ERA and batting average in 2008. In this instructional baseball DVD, Coach Brew shows you how to better utilize and develop your hitters' unique skills by implementing the fundamentals and mechanics of the swing. Brew walks you through tee, flip, and fungo hitting drills, as well as situational batting practice techniques for right- and left-handed batters. He also addresses 10 common mistakes that are made at the plate, including bat wrapping, over-striding, high elbows and more. Brew provides crucial, quick fixes that will improve your on-base percentage and increase your run production. Brew also includes a printable outline for a situational batting practice drill.
with Scott Stricklin, Kent State University Head Coach; 2006 Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year; 2008 & 2006 Mid-American Conference regular season titles
This excellent DVD is dedicated to hitting and all of the important fundamentals needed to consistently drive the ball. A player's stance and set up is the foundation of a good hitter. Coach Stricklin and his players demonstrate how the feet are a big part of the stance. A good bat grip consists of proper knuckle and elbow alignment, which allows you to "whip" the bat through the strike zone. A proper stance will require the bat be at a 45-degree angle. A level head will assure that your eyes are also level. The stride follows a good stance. Loading up the backside prepares a hitter for the pitch and is an important aspect of hitting. A good swing relies on the arms staying compact until contact is made, then hitters extend their arms through the hitting zone. Four things must be present for good hitters: head, back, back side and balance. Stricklin believes in the concept of "staying inside the baseball." This means you are short to the baseball and hitting the ball where it's pitched. The first set of drills demonstrates hitting off of a tee. The double tee drill produces two types of hits from two identical swings. To work on the timing mechanism, the soft toss drill gives players lots of hitting opportunities. Other hitting drills include the behind toss, angle toss and front toss. The bounce drill simulates pitches by bouncing the ball off the ground. Moving to the batting cage, players can practice simulated rounds of batting practice. Rounds will develop hitting from different situations such as bunting, hit and run, runner at second with no outs, runner at third base with the infield in, swing away and more. These drills will teach fundamentals and improve productivity and consistency at the plate.
with Jay Martel, San Diego State University Assistant Coach
This is a "must-have" video for all coaches and players that are looking to improve hitting! Coach Martel has numerous years of experience at the local and regional level in San Diego, coaching players of all ages and abilities and was also a successful prep player and played professionally with the St. Louis Cardinals organization. In this video, Martel does an excellent job of explaining and demonstrating different effective hitting drills including different Tee Drills and Toss Drills. All of the drills help teach and reinforce proper body positioning, bat control, head positioning, and hand positioning. Teaching these techniques and using repetitions allows players to use the entire field, which will increase their batting averages. All of the drills are ideal for team practices and many of the drills are well-suited for players to use to perfect their hitting skills on their own!
