At what age do I teach my child to hit?

“Just let them play the game it’s suppose to be fun”…I hear this all the time.

The fact of the matter is that your son’s or daughter’s age has nothing to do with when to start the process. They need to learn the “right way – right away!”

I agree it is suppose to be fun, success is fun, failure is not. To be successful in anything we do, means we need to work not only hard but “smart”!

There needs to be some balance at the younger age level, in other words do some drills that are simple and some that are hard and challenging.

Here is an example. How much does a young gymnast who is training to become an Olympic athlete challenge themselves only to fail? Every single day they fall, but they get up and try it again, then they fall again get up and try again and again and again! We learn from our mistakes… don’t we! Yes the more advanced stages may be harder at first but lets not be afraid to challenge our hitters at a young age.

Players might not even be ready for the next level but I don’t think there is anything wrong with challenging them or preparing them for the next level. There needs to be a balance between challenging them to where they fail and building their self confidence so they feel good about their performance.

Remember hitting is the only thing in life where if you fail 70% of the time you are considered successful (.300 average). Making it hard so they fail is perfectly okay as long as you don’t go overboard, it teaches them how to handle adversity and how to be strong and become determined to get better or excel as a hitter.

We also need to improve their confidence so I recommend you start off with the basics which should be fairly easy, challenge in the middle and then finish off were they are feeling good about themselves at the end of the day even though it won’t always turn out this way. Why? So they feel good and want to come back and do it again. I also recommend you do whatever you can on a game day to get them as confident as possible!

I will have more to add soon, so please check back. Thanks for your time….Al
To the parents: have you ever felt nervous watching your child walk to the plate because they aren’t a very good hitter or, are you just hoping they will get a hit? Whether you are a parent, youth or a high school player, hitting slumps or being considered a poor hitter can be embarrassing and very stressful for all.

Is your son or daughter a confident hitter?

Is your son or daughter a confident hitter?I personally find it quite frustrating when I hear coaches comment or hear players say “they simply can’t hit”. If you have a player who wants to work at becoming a better hitter, yet still feels frustrated with the results, it is usually because they haven’t been given the proper instruction, tools or knowledge to be successful! Regardless of the age level the information has to be presented in the proper manner AND understood in order to attain any level of confidence.

I have witnessed many, many times players who have never played on an all-star team, many of whom were never given the opportunity to try out for the team because they have they have been labeled as someone who “can’t hit”. I also remember these same players walking up to me in my Academy with huge smiles on their faces saying, “Al, I finally made my All-Start Team!” I can still see those images in my head to this day; it remains a great feeling for me to have helped these kids accomplish that goal or dream. With a little hard work on their part, some guidance, and a system to follow helped them get a little better each day, and the better they became the more confidence they gained. It’s that confidence and self esteem that helped them become an All-Star!

How would it feel to watch your child walk to the plate with total confidence, runners on base feeling he/she is going to get the game winning hit? What a great feeling. As a parent there is no greater feeling than knowing how good your son or daughter feels about themselves at their accomplishments.

If you want to instill the confidence in your child by helping them become a better hitter then we can help. The most recent test study we conducted proved that 100% of the hitters increased their bat control and solid contact in only four weeks. What this means to you and your child is simply this. The sooner they learn to develop the proper swing mechanics (control the bat head and make more consistent solid contact), the sooner their confidence and success will follow.

Any comments or other topics you wish to have posted please let me know by filling out the form below.

Many thanks,

Alan