The Mental Game of Hitting

excerpt from the book Softball Skills & Drills-2nd Edition
by Judi Garman, Michelle Gromacki

Hitting is adjusting–adjusting to the pitch, the type of pitcher, the count, the umpire, and the situation. The mental game of hitting begins in practice. In a game, it begins on the bench, continues in the on-deck circle and on the approach to the plate, and reaches its greatest intensity when the batter steps into the batter's box. Batters must be in control of themselves before they can control their at-bat. Self-control leads to body and skill control.

Success requires discipline, concentration, and quickness. Hitters should focus on one pitch at a time and on the process of the at-bat–not the result. They learn from every swing as they obtain immediate feedback and make the adjustments necessary for success. Instead of making excuses on a missed opportunity, good hitters figure out what they learned from the situation (too late, too fast, under the ball, and so on) and make mental notes on how to use that knowledge to succeed the next time. They also take note of what they were doing well when successful.

Hitting is an attitude. It is confidence. Players should believe that they are al-ways going to hit the ball solidly "on the money!" Focus on the number of "quality at-bats" and not the batting average (because a hitter may hit the ball well but at someone). Players should also understand that the difference between a .200 hitter and a .300 hitter is only 1 hit in 10 at-bats. Hitters must let the pitcher know that they are "the best" and that the pitcher has her hands full. Great hitters never let up. If they are 4 for 4, they strive to go 5 for 5. Successful hitters visualize success. They see themselves getting the winning hit. They live for the moment when the bases are loaded and they step to the plate with the game on the line. Good hitters have high standards, high expectations, and a high level of commitment.

Good hitters are aggressive, prepared to hit every pitch. The batter should stride to every pitch with the intention of hitting the ball. She should hold up on the swing only when she recognizes that the pitch location makes it a poor pitch to hit. The adjustment to hold up the swing should be made at the last moment. To do this, the player squeezes the bat and tenses up, stopping the swing before the bat goes through the strike zone. The approach to the pitch is "Yes, yes, yes, no" or "Yes, yes, yes, yes." If the batter does not prepare to swing at every pitch, she will not be able to pull the trigger when she really wants to swing. A checked swing is a pitcher's best friend. The batter should go hard to every ball; a swing and a miss is better than a checked swing.

Hitters should focus only on the ball, not its location over the plate. If the ball is around home plate and the hitter is confident that she can hit it, then she should go after it! Players should focus on their strengths and jump on any mistakes made by the pitcher. Hitters should know their best pitches to hit and their hitting zone. Good hitters consistently hit balls within their hitting zone (strength area), whereas weak hitters hit too many pitches in their weak area. The batter must never be emotional and show her cards. The pitcher will read her re-actions. If the hitter is emotional, the pitcher will think she owns the batter and will gain the upper hand. The batter must not react to the umpire because that will never work to her advantage. And she must always separate offense from defense. When at the plate, she should forget what happened on defense and stay mentally tough and positive.

The Count
Batters should try to think like a pitcher as they look for a pitch to hit. On the first pitch, the pitcher usually tries to get ahead in the count by throwing a strike. If she gets the strike, the next pitch will not be as good. The pitcher hopes the batter will chase the ball or that the umpire will call a strike if the pitch is close to the plate. The best pitch batters will likely see is that first pitch! Yet how many hitters take the first pitch with the justification that they want to see what the pitcher throws or that they want to get comfortable?

The hitter should not take a pitch to see what the pitcher is throwing. The next pitch will not be the same, and the hitter gets no feedback from taking a pitch. The batter has the opportunity to see the pitcher's delivery during the warm-up pitches.

Hitting sometimes seems as difficult as winning the lottery. The odds of hitting safely improve with three attempts, or chances, compared to with one or two, so batters should get their money's worth by using all three opportunities. If they swing and miss, at least they can gather information to make adjustments on the next swing (Was the swing too slow? Too early? Was I under the ball?). Hitters can learn nothing by taking a good pitch, and doing so only decreases the odds of success.

If the pitcher is behind on the count, the batter should expect to see the pitcher's best control pitch, usually a fastball, right over the plate. The batter should be ready to jump all over this pitch! With a runner on third and less than two outs, batters should look for a drop ball. The pitcher does not want to throw an "up" ball that can easily be hit in the air. The pitch selection charts in chapter 14 offer valuable information about what the pitcher and catcher are thinking and how they plan to set up the hitter. Pitchers generally establish a pattern during a game. By looking for this pattern, batters can know what pitch to expect. if they know what pitch is likely to be coming, they can more easily recognize and adjust to it. Table 1.1 offers some general guidelines for hitters based on the number of balls and strikes.

Two-Strike Adjustment
With two strikes, the goal should be to just make contact. Hitters should recognize that the pitcher will throw a marginal or waste pitch and that they have to make some adjustments. But they should not drastically alter their swing and stance. The goal is to avoid striking out and to put the ball in play so that the defense must make the out. Batters should expect no sympathy on taking a called third strike. Players can practice these two-strike adjustments in the batting cage:

• Move closer to the plate to protect the outside corner and to be able to reach outside pitches that can be driven to the opposite field.
• Enlarge the strike zone and swing at anything close to a strike. Don't let the umpire call you out.
• Focus on just meeting the ball and using a compact swing to put the ball in play. Don't swing for the fence.
  

Umpire's Strike Zone
The size and shape of the umpire's strike zone may require hitters to make adjustments for the pitcher they are facing. If the umpire has a wide strike zone, the hitters must move closer to the plate to hit the outside pitch with the sweet spot of the bat. Alter-natively, they may choose to lay off that pitch completely. With two strikes and a high- pitch umpire, hitters must enlarge the top of the strike zone. A stubborn batter who refuses to adjust will strike out often and will not be successful.

Slump Busting
Everyone has slumps, and slumps are almost always temporary. When a player is struggling, she should fine-tune her mechanics, not perform a complete overhaul. Slumps often start in the head, beginning with a loss of confidence. A mechanical breakdown can also lead to bad days.

Here are some suggestions for breaking a slump:

• Ask the player this question: "What were you doing well when you were successful?"
• Encourage the player to try to see the ball better and longer. She should concentrate on hitting the ball up the middle or to the opposite field.
• Have the hitter open up her stance. An open stance shortens the swing, and the head position makes it easier to keep both eyes on the ball.
• Have the player choke up for better bat control.
• Advise the hitter to examine her mental approach. Remind her to focus on what she wants to happen and to avoid negative self-talk.
• Encourage the player to relax and avoid overswinging.
• Have the hitter work on her mechanics off a tee.
• Give the player a day off so she can get away from the pressure.
• Move the hitter down in the lineup, but make sure she understands why.

The Defense
Smart hitters survey the defensive setup and try to hit the ball where the defense is weakest. For example, if the outfield has shifted radically, expecting the batter to pull the ball, the batter should step back from the plate so that pitches are farther away from her body. More pitches are now outside, making it easier to take a pitch to the opposite-field gap created by the shift. If the outfield is playing so deep that the hitter cannot possibly hit the ball over their heads, the hitter can choke up on the bat and drop the ball in front of the outfield. When the infield moves in on top of the batter, the batter should look to drive the ball past them.

Preparation
When does the at-bat begin? It starts in the dugout as the batter puts on her helmet and batting gloves and gets her bat. She should have a set routine as she leaves the dugout, goes to the on-deck circle, walks to the box, and assumes her stance in the box. Each player should write a "script" on what she is going to do and then be consistent in following that scripted routine.

Three batters before her turn, the player should be ready to go with helmet and batting gloves on. While in the hole, she prepares her body by stretching and getting loose and thinking of nothing but hitting. She watches the pitcher and anticipates the game situation. While on deck, she takes good gamelike swings to time the pitcher and get into a rhythm; she is thinking about how and what the pitcher throws. She reinforces any pointers about her swing (e.g., keep the hands in). She visualizes the situation and a successful execution of the play. While walking to the plate, she is confident, uses positive self-talk, gets the sign, makes a commitment to it, and follows her routine. She tells herself, "I waited for this. I am ready for this." Then she takes a deep breath and steps into the box. She shuts off the thinking process. She picks up the pitcher's release point and aggressively attacks the ball. She tells herself to keep it simple: See the ball, hit the ball? Between pitches, she steps out of the box to regain focus (turning away from the plate for a second or two), analyze her reaction to the last pitch, and check the coach's sign. Then she takes a deep breath, follows her routine, and steps back confidently into the box. After the at-bat, she passes along any useful information to the next batter regarding the pitcher (dominant pitch, speed, and movement) or the umpire.

READING THE PITCHER
If it didn't help hitters to know what pitch is coming, the other team wouldn't hide the signals. Opinions vary regarding whether coaches should try to tell their batters which pitch is coming. If coaches are going to "pick the pitches," they must do it early– the coach must have enough time to relay the information to the batter, and the batter must have enough time to prepare for the pitch. The best situation is where the batter can "pick" the pitcher herself and know what pitch is coming. Some coaches will only call pitches that are not thrown very often (e.g., changeup) to take away the surprise. Batters must learn to hear only the coach's voice and must practice this in batting practice. To learn to pick the pitches, players must also practice good observational skills. During the games, have a contest to see what player can pick up pitches the fastest.

Most pitchers do have easily observed giveaways. Find out what they do differently on each pitch. On a changeup, you can sometimes see a stiff wrist as compared to a loose wrist. During warm-up pitches at the beginning of the game, the coach can time the pitcher (by counting 1 one thousand, 2 one thousand, and so on) to see how long it takes her to get a grip on the changeup. It will take longer than for other pitches. The coach can then call this pitch from the box. (Batters should be focusing on other things rather than counting before each release.) Videotape your pitchers to see if they have any giveaways and to practice picking pitches. Show a front view to teach your hitters. If you have an opponent's game film, study their pitcher too.

COACH PICKS FROM THE COACHING BOX
If the pitcher does not hide grips, the coach may pick up pitches very early and have time to tell the batter. Coaches must decide how they will relay that information. They may simply call "change" or may use phrases with hidden messages such as "looking good." Sometimes outfielders will give away the pitch by shifting position.

PITCHER GIVEAWAYS THAT THE BATTER CAN WATCH FOR
Facial expressions
• Tongue, mouth, sounds, eyes

Feet
• Placement of the feet on pitching rubber: side or center
• Distance of the spread between the feet
• Toe position: up or down, pointing at various angles
• Foot slide during the delivery (On a screwball, one of our Olympic pitchers made a dramatic slide of the right foot across the rubber.)
• Direction of the step (Pitchers will step off line to the glove side on a screwball to increase the angle.)

Grips
• Some pitchers will take their grip on the leg while taking the catcher's sign.
• Ball or grips seen through holes on the pitcher's glove
• Hand inserted into the glove palm up or down
• Amount of ball or "white" showing in the glove or when pulled out
• Finger placement on the seam, finger spread, or number of knuckles showing
• Change in position of an exposed finger in the finger hole
• Ball pressed or jammed into the hand to get a grip
• Space between the elbow and body as the pitcher gets a grip
• More time taken to get certain grips (can be timed by counting as previously explained)
• Amount of wrist showing during the presentation
• Palm up or down or in or out when taking a grip

Backswing
• Amount of white showing
• Grips showing
• Knuckles up during the circle; number of knuckles showing
• Finger spread
• Wrist angle and bend in the elbow
• Glove position on ball when overhead (A pitcher may place the glove on a different portion of the ball.)
• Speed of the backswing (This may vary, especially on the changeup.)

Release
• Turn of the trunk
• Length and direction of the stride

General tips
• If the ball is deep in the palm and the wrist is stiff, this means a slower pitch. If more than one knuckle is showing, the pitch will be a changeup.
• On the rise or curve, the pitcher will be working the side of the ball. The index finger may be on top of the ball. The batter will see more ball.
• On a drop ball, the whole hand usually shows; few varied grips are used, so this is usually consistent.