How To Improve Your Swing Power In Baseball

Image via: https://pixabay.com/en/baseball-college-teams-ball-batter-680079/ Hitting the balls with power is one of those things that every baseball player dreams of, but it is important to know that this ability does not come automatically. Players in the Major League make it seems very easy but as good as they might be they did not just develop powerful […]
The Awards: Who Won them the Most?
It’s offseason time, which means it’s also awards season, where we get to see who will win the AL and NL Rookie of the Year, Cy Young, and MVP Awards. But who has won each award the most in baseball history? Let’s explore the facts, shall we? Obviously, a player can only win the Rookie […]
An Umpire’s Perspective on a Batter’s Approach at the Plate

When I was younger I had a great eye for pitches thrown for balls & strikes. I almost never got called out on strikes, but over the last few seasons (not last year, but the prior four and over 20 years later) in my over 30 baseball league I have been called out on pitches thrown […]
How To Be Successful Against Power Pitchers!

Against some of the harder throwers, many very good hitters cut down on their stride or even omit it completely. For those hitters who have trouble against “flame throwers,” they should remember that it’s not necessary to take any stride at all or to swing the bat that hard. Some baseball hitters, especially young hitters, […]
You Really Should Learn How To Hit To The Opposite Field!

By now, we’ve all heard the expression, “hit it where it’s pitched.” It’s very frustrating for a baseball pitcher when he throws a perfect low and away strike and the batter hits the ball to the opposite field for a hit. Most baseball pitchers will realize immediately how well schooled this particular baseball hitter is. […]
My top 5 Fantasy Baseball sell high options

Criteria For this analysis we will be looking at the following metrics (although not every player will be judged against all of these): Batting Average (BA), Batting Average on Balls In Play (BABIP), StriKout percentage (K%), Base on Balls (walks) percentage (BB%), On Base Percentage (OBP), Slugging average of total bases (SLG), Weighted Runs Created […]
The Soft Toss Drill Is Fabulous If You Use It Properly!
The baseball hitting benefits of the soft toss drill are incredible but this drill must be done properly. The soft toss drill is one of the best baseball coaching drills around and please don’t ever sell it short. It is a great time saver to break a bad habit, get into a good habit or […]
How To Overcome A Fear Of The Baseball
First of all, please realize that if you have a fear of the baseball, you are not alone. Just the opposite is true. In fact, almost all baseball hitters at every level have a fear of the baseball to one extent or the other. True, the amount of fear does vary significantly. You may have […]
Eight Baseball Hitting Tips For Your Success!
Here is a list of eight very good baseball tips on hitting that are highly recommended to help you be successful. 1. A Balanced And Workable Stance. All good athletes are balanced almost all the time no matter what sport we are talking about. It gives you a solid, comfortable foundation, which is where baseball hitting […]
A Totally Bizarre Way To Raise Your Batting Average!
If you are struggling at the plate, what you should attempt to do is to hit every pitch at the pitcher‘s belt buckle. And no, I haven’t lost my mind and I resent that you’re thinking that I’ve lost it. Try to do this on every pitch, no matter what type of pitch it is […]
Dear Mr. Fantasy: BABIP: An Indicator of Regression in Starting Pitchers?
Batting Average on Balls in Play (BABIP) can be used to determine how ‘lucky’ or ‘unlucky’ a pitcher has been when compared to the league average. The average BABIP for pitchers in 2011 was .295. The average so far in 2012 is .296. It is often said that baseball stats are subject to a ‘regression […]
The Number One Baseball Hitting Problem On Earth!
A “quick hip” is when the front hip opens a fraction of a second early. It is a very common baseball hitting problem and a very serious one for many hitters at all levels of play. The swing itself should force the front hip open. If the hip opens a fraction of a second too […]
Baseball Tips On Hitting: Your Baseball Hitting Style Belongs To You Only!
Your baseball hitting style is what you do at the plate before you swing the bat and baseball hitting mechanics are what you do when you are actually swinging the bat. If a coach wants to help you improve your baseball hitting mechanics, that’s one thing. But your very personal hitting style is an entirely […]
Baseball Tips On Hitting: How You Stride When Hitting Is Critical!
Exactly when you should start your stride varies among hitters. Usually, the stride begins a fraction of a second before the pitcher releases the ball and that’s my preference. Many teach that the stride should start when you see the pitcher pivot on the rubber and the hitter can see the pitcher’s rear end. That […]
Short Nap: Fantasy Baseball Sleeper Shortstops for 2012
Although there are several decent options at the top of the list of fantasy shortstops for 2012, if you find yourself fishing for a player to fill this middle infield position in your draft or auction, you’ll want to have several options available. There are several sleeper candidates for shortstop in 2012 and these are some names of interest: Stephen Drew (ARI) […]
Baseball Tips: How To Focus On Three Things To Improve Your Hitting!
I believe hitters are way too often bombarded with too many baseball tips on hitting. The guilty culprits are often teammates, coaches, parents and occasionally even your Aunt Mary. Take your time and take hitting in stride. No pun intended. Try to learn a little bit at a time and you will be just fine. […]
Preseason Timing Tips for Hitting
I have seen so many kids season ruined before the season even gets close to starting. Dad or team coach takes player(s) to the batting cages and sets the speed at game speed on their first day of hitting, after a long offseason. It is important to realize that hitters’ eyes are not close to […]
How Players And Coaches Should Deal With A Hitting Slump!
Very simply, a baseball hitting slump occurs because of something that you are now doing that is mechanically incorrect when swinging the bat or it can be something that you were doing correctly and now you are not doing it. In other words, either you have developed a bad habit or have gotten away from […]
One Umpire’s Perspective on a Batter’s Approach at the Plate
When I was younger I had a great eye for pitches thrown for balls & strikes. I almost never got called out on strikes, but over the last 2 seasons (and over 20 years later) in my over 30 baseball league I have been called out on pitches thrown on the outside corner (some teammates […]
How to Play Fantasy Baseball
The more I play fantasy baseball, the more I love the game of baseball itself. There is no better way to closely follow box scores, standings, player trends, hot streaks, cold slumps and the inevitable friendly competition which arises from trying to best your opponents then by participating in fantasy baseball. However, more and more I am approached […]
Hitting Drills using Two Batting Tees to “Stay” Fundamentally Sound
Three important ingredients of a good baseball swing are staying compact, staying inside the ball, and staying through the ball. The following drills involve using two batting tees. These drills work on good hitting fundamentals and just as important, give hitters a better understanding of what those ingredients mean. 1. “High, Low tee drill” develops […]
Valuable Tips so Your Batting Tee is not a Waste of Money
One thing I always ask my baseball and softball students is “How many of you have a batting tee?” and the answer is usually encouraging with a number of hands being raised. I follow that up with “How many of you use your batting tee regularly? To which very few hands shoot up. I admire […]
How To Overcome Two Very Common Baseball Hitting Problems
I would venture that on any given team, at least one third of the hitters have one of these two very common hitting problems. Here are several baseball tips on hitting that should help to overcome them. Tension Is A Hitter’s Worst Enemy! I’ve heard this expression dozens of times and could not agree more. […]
Fantasy Baseball Players to Consider Dropping for 2012 Keeper Leagues
With the fantasy baseball playoffs looming and the end of the 2011 baseball season in sight, as afantasy owner you will no doubt be looking to make some roster decisions in regard to the players you will consider keeping and those which you will release. When deciding who qualifies as a fantasy baseball keeper for 2012 and who doesn’t, you might want […]
Of Baseball And The Dog Days Of Summer
When I was a kid, I used to keep track of my batting average during our extremely informal sandlot baseball season. I really didn’t know how to figure out a batting average, but I knew that one hit in two at bats was a .500 average, and I would go from there. One year, I […]
Picking Up Stolen Bases from the Waiver Wire or Trading Block in Fantasy Baseball
If you are like many fantasy baseball owners, you may have a glaring need for stolen bases on your team. The basic problem is that many owners will place a higher value on hitters who deliver power as opposed to speed. Since a home run will technically also contribute in 3 other categories (run scored, […]
Sabermetrics 101: Gaining the Fantasy Baseball Edge
Most people who play fantasy baseball participate in leagues which count basic statistical categories. Although actual league formats may differ (head-to-head, rotisserie, points leagues being among the most popular), the categories in which your teams compete are generally the same. Most fantasy baseball leagues will consider the following categories for batters: Runs, Home Runs, RBI, Batting Average and […]
The Tribe is Failing to Meet Expectations
When the Indians started the season out on a 30-15 clip, everything was clicking. The average result of a game was a win by 1.5 runs. They had a respectable .265 batting average and their ERA was a sparkling 3.38. They were looking like a true team as […]
Follow the Batted Ball
One of the things those of us in stats all want to do is to go from step A to step F without explaining the steps in between. The main goal in this section is to avoid skipping steps. In the introductory article I mentioned batted ball statistics. Before I move onto those statistics I […]
Ten Hitting Tips that Guarantee Success
Never accept mediocrity. When hitters have good hand, eye coordination there is no reason for inconsistent contact – work harder on the fundamentals. Hitters do not need to know what they are doing wrong but they need to know how to adjust. I often tell my students that no one forces them to […]