3 Step Hitting

Weekly

Reps

Common Coaching Challenge - Stepping Out or "In the Bucket"

This is the case where a right-handed hitter is stepping away from home plate, landing well towards the third base side of the batters box. Doing this likely means that the athlete is Scared of Getting Hit (see Training Session for that), and makes him vulnerable to the outside pitch.

However, many times this happens to athletes that are NOT scared of getting hit. In this case, it is simply a physical error. Placing a barrier behind the feet (bucket, trash can, milk crate) may work as a band-aid fix, but it will NOT solve the problem.  Once removed, the athlete will continue to step “in the bucket”.  Truly, this athlete must retrain his alignment so that he can FEEL where he is stepping. Use the coaching method of Exaggerated Adjustments highlighted in the pitching video below to fix the stride direction.

Teach your athlete to step towards home plate (almost ON TOP OF home plate). This means that the tee or location of a soft-toss must be placed well outside. Allow the athlete some time to get comfortable with this new stride direction, and INCORRECTLY stride closed!!

Then, when the time is right, bring the stride back to center. I recommend taking multiple sessions to allow the athlete time to really feel the fix. If done correctly over one week, this problem can be solved forever.

Going forward, try 3-Step Hitting to mark the proper positioning of the feet. Have the athlete hold the finish after each swing, and then reset the feet to the markings prior to the next baseball.

Detail

Fix Stride Direction

Daily

Reps