Switch Hitting

Printer-friendly version

Great hitters possess a few characteristics that set them apart from the rest of the crowd. One, they have an uncanny knack for timing. They know exactly when to swing the bat. Two, they have great body control. They always put their body in a position to succeed. If they are fooled on a pitch, they are still able to get a piece of it and foul it off or get enough wood on it to get a base hit. Third, they have great eye-hand coordination. They know exactly where the bat head needs to be, when it needs to be there.

With as intricate as the swing is, it makes as much sense to help young ballplayers become better athletes, i.e. more coordinated. The better they can get at controlling their bodies, the better chance they will have at swinging the bat where they want. Switch-hitting is a great way to do that.

Switch-hitting enhances two instantly recognizable traits, strength and eye-hand coordination. As a body builder, do you only train one side of your body? No. When you constantly take swings from the same side, you are building all the muscles on that one side of your body. By taking swings from the opposite side, you are now building up the muscles on the other side of your body. With that comes the increased wrist strength from a different top hand and the added benefit of increased range of motion in the hips. Both huge plusses considering how dominant the hands and the hips are in the swing.

Of course the last thing that will accelerate is eye-hand coordination. Now you are teaching your body a new task and creating a whole new set of body awareness.

The steps involved in learning how to switch hit are the same as hitting from your regular side. Start with tee work, move on to soft toss and then graduate to live batting practice, if you want.

The idea behind switch-hitting is not to create a switch-hitter; it is merely another avenue to develop as a hitter. The better you can get at controlling your body and coordinating your movement patterns, the more likely you will be to put the bat where you want it, when you want it. Switch-hitting is great, fun way to do that.