You don’t need a $50,000 indoor facility to build a high-level swing. While private lessons have their place, the “secret sauce” to hitting is high-quality repetitions. If your player commits to 15 minutes a day in the backyard, they will see more progress than a once-a-week lesson ever provided.
Here are three simple drills that focus on the one thing every scout looks for: Bat Speed.
- The “Heavy-Light” Training This is the same principle used by track stars and long-distance hitters.
- The Drill: Have your player take 10 swings with a “heavy” bat (or a weighted donut), followed immediately by 10 swings with a “light” bat (like an old, smaller bat or even a broomstick).
- The Result: The heavy swings recruit the big muscles, and the light swings train the central nervous system to move the hands faster. When they pick up their game bat, it will feel like a toothpick.
- The “Stop at Contact” Drill Most young hitters over-swing and lose their balance.
- The Drill: Using a tee, have the player swing at 100% effort, but they must stop the bat dead the instant it hits the ball. Do not let them follow through.
- The Result: This teaches “barrel control” and forces the player to use their core and legs to stabilize the swing. It builds that explosive “snap” at the point of contact.
- The “Walk-Up” Happy Gilmore This is the best drill for teaching “rhythm” and “separation.”
- The Drill: Start three feet behind the tee. As the player approaches, they step their back foot behind their front foot and then stride into the swing.
- The Result: It forces the body to build momentum and teaches the “load” phase of the swing. It’s fun, it’s athletic, and it naturally increases exit velocity.
Consistency is the Key
None of these drills work if they only happen once a month.
Challenge your player to the “1,000 Swing Month.”
That’s only 33 swings a day. Use a simple calendar to track it—once they see the streak, they won’t want to stop.