Stay-and-Hit

Explanation: After players get a chance to warm up on tees and front toss, we have a variety of stations that stimulate a “live situation.”

We break kids into teams during this drill, so the players are in pairs. Most of the players are shagging, while three groups are staying warm or hitting off a live pitcher (we use our pitching coach). The pitcher gives each hitter five to 10 pitches to warm up.

After the warm-up pitches, the athletes dig in the box and are given a variety of counts. If they strike out looking or swinging at bad pitches, they receive zero extra at-bats; if they draw a walk, they receive one extra at-bat. If they get a base hit, they receive another at-bat. Each keeps switching with her partner after each at-bat until the pair has used all of its extra at-bats.

This game can go for a while or can be over in two at-bats. In high school softball, where you may only face an opposing team once or twice in a year, it is even more important that we make our at-bats count against opposing pitchers.

This drill has helped players be more aggressive in games and understand what opposing pitches are likely to throw at them in the upcoming game. Our players become extremely competitive with it and excited when their “group” does well. Other groups will respond with trying to stay in the box longer.

We occasionally will do this off of machines, front toss and wiffle ball as well. It is easy for players AND coaches to get in a rhythm in batting practice to just “get cuts in,” as opposed to quality at-bats. Drills like this enable players to stay mentally sharp.