Developing hitters via competition

Read time: 4 minutes

This week's episode is with Bill Mosiello

Head baseball coach at 'The' Ohio State University

Coaching Highlights:

• Coached or managed over 100 MLB players, including 14 first round draft picks, 28 MLB All-Stars and three current MLB managers
• Has won conference championships in the SEC, Big 12 and Big West
• Five trips to the College World Series in Omaha
• Has coached over 30 All-Americans and six conference players of the year
• Has coached under three Hall of Fame head coaches

Key Quotes:

*"The superstar players that I've coached, they're better people than they are players."

"Everybody wants to be comfortable, but unless you become uncomfortable, there is no growth."

"The transition from high school to college, they just have no idea."

"The best players are not afraid to hit with two strikes."

"Winning teams don't just find a position for a hitter, they find a position for a baseball player."

"Love your players. That's more important than any great knowledge you have or any gadgets that you have as a coach."

Listen: patrckjonesbaseball.com

Last week we talked about EEG and measuring a hitters brain activity. I got some great feedback and will continue to write about research being doing in hitting. 

This week we're focusing on developing hitters through competitions. 

Hitting in practice can get monotnous. BP round after BP round. Day after day. 

Hitting is messy. 

We want hitters to feel similar emotions that they will in games. 

Competitions are a great way to make practice more game like. 

I know that not every coach has access to a HitTrax or a Trackman. So I created several competitions that you can do with AND without technology below.  

Oppo Taco: 

We don't have a power problem across baseball and softball, we have a lack of hitters problem.

That starts with being able to 'drive' the ball to the opposite field. 

Hitters can get into bad habits when practicing to hit the ball to the opposite field, mostly because they're pushing their hands at the ball. 

This competition removes that because players are rewarded for only hitting the ball hard. 

For softball, I'll set up my machine at 55 mph from 37 ft 4 inches away from home plate in my cage. This equates to roughly 63 mph at 43 feet. 

March Madness 

This is a fun one. A great way to end the week with a bracket style competition. You can get creative and create different seeds for certain hitters, 1 seed vs. 16 seed. I know you have to be careful with this as you don't want players to lose confidence but it can motivate certain players too. 

The Cycle

This one is self explanatory I'll add that if a hitter hits for the cycle in order, they get 5 bonus points. Otherwise, the most points wins. 

Knockout

I like this one because the defense is involved. Each side can get a point.

* If a player in the field makes an error, their team loses a point.

Conclusion 

3 reasons competitions are important in a team setting. 

Pressure: Competitions create a sense of pressure and competition similar to actual game situations. This helps hitters become more accustomed to performing under pressure

Motivation: Knowing that their performance is being evaluated and compared to their teammates can motivate them to work harder.

Skill Development: Competitions can be designed to target specific aspects of hitting. This allows you as a coach to emphasize certain skills and track players' progress in those areas.

Whenever you're ready, there's 1 way I can help you:

I'm currently working with hitters in Cincinnati, Ohio.

If you want to become the best hitter you can, fill out the form below: 

Patrick Jones Baseball

* I do not offer remote training. In-person only.