WHAT IS THE BASEBALL SOFT TOSS DRILL?
The baseball soft toss drill should be used by all youth baseball players frequently in order to develop a consistently good swing. The purpose of this drill is to give quality repetition to the hitter so he can work on his hitting stroke. The quality repetition comes from a partner that “feeds” the ball to the hitter in the strike zone on a consistent basis. The soft toss drill is to help develop a good swing, not pitch recognition. Again, this is NOT a pitch recognition drill. It is a drill to develop a quality hitting stroke.
During the drill, a hitter can hit a high quantity of baseballs with a quality swing. If the hitter gets tired, he should take a break because getting tired will only teach bad habits which will lead to a poor quality and erratic baseball swing. I recommend having two youth baseball players working together so they can give each other breaks.
WHAT BASEBALL EQUIPMENT WILL BE NEEDED FOR BASEBALL SOFT TOSS?
Baseballs, tennis balls, wiffle balls. Other things can be used that make the drill more difficult, such as popcorn kernels, wiffle golf balls, etc.
Baseball Bats – I would recommend purchasing the Insider Bat for this drill and many other hitting drills. Click here for more info on the Insider Bat
Baseball Net to hit into
WHAT A HITTER SHOULD FOCUS ON DURING THE SOFT TOSS DRILL
Typically, the hitter will be focusing on one or two things during the drill. By focusing on a just a couple swing elements, the drill becomes simple and focused which is very important when developing a good swing. Below is a short list of possible things the hitter could work on:
- Hitting A Certain Pitch Location That The Hitter Has Difficulties With (ie. Low and Outside Pitch)
- Keeping His Hands Inside The Baseball – Use the Insider Bat
- Hitting The Ball To The Opposite Field – Use the Insider Bat
- Squashing The Bug – Use the Insider Bat
- Top Hand
- Staying Balanced Throughout The Swing
SOFT TOSS DRILL VIDEOS
Below are some soft toss drill videos. There are different variations, but watch these for the specific setup of the participants. Notice where the feeder sets up. Notice how the feeder gives a firm toss to the batter (He is not lollipopping the ball).
The different variations in the videos below just mean the hitter is working on different aspects of his swing. Choose your favorite variation and throw your own twist into the drill.
Go Get’Em Coach!
Insider Bat Information
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