The Backyard Batting Cage

There are dozens of baseball hitting problems and we're going to look at two that are quite common. Not having proper balance at the plate as well as uppercutting the baseball are two very common baseball hitting problems. Let's take a look at some baseball tips on hitting as to why these two hitting problems may be occurring as well as a few possible very easy fixes.

Problem Balance Poor:

1. First of all, make sure that you are very comfortable in your hitting stance. A good starting point is to have the feet about shoulder width apart or slightly wider. Usually, the width is about the same as if you were guarding someone in basketball and want to be ready to move left or right very quickly. You must have a solid foundation. It won't matter if everything is perfect above the waist if you don't have a solid base.

2. Make sure you are standing on the balls of your feet and not standing there flat-footed or even worse yet, standing with your weight on your heels. Standing with the weight on your heels may very well have you spinning like a top and that is not a good, solid foundation for effective baseball hitting and will destroy your balance.

3. Make sure your front shoulder remains closed. Opening your front shoulder too early will cause your foundation and balance to be severely disrupted and you won't be steady on your feet. It will also cause many other hitting problems for you.

Problem Uppercutting the Ball:

Many good baseball hitters appear to be uppercutting the baseball. The only time you should be uppercutting is when you are into the follow through of your swing. Uppercutting is a sure way to lower your batting average. Let's look at some possible reasons for uppercutting the baseball.

1. Your stance may be too wide. This will encourage your actual swing to be going upward when making contact.

2. You may be lowering your back leg, back elbow or back shoulder. It's often referred to as collapsing your back side. If the back side goes down or collapses, the hands and the bat will go down also and you will be swinging upward to the ball.

3. You may be holding your hands too low and when the actual baseball hitting takes place, your hands will have nowhere else to go except upward and causing an uppercutting of the baseball. If your hands are too low when swinging, at the point of contact, you will not be swinging level and will be swinging upward to the baseball.

Larry Cicchiello is the successful author of “Excellent Baseball Coaching: 30 Seconds Away." His VERY user friendly eBooks and CD's cover 320 topics on playing very good baseball. ANY baseball player, coach or parent who wants to help their child will be fully equipped! Some FREE baseball tips on hitting and FREE baseball pitching tips are available at http://www.LarryBaseball.com

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