My 12 year can't hit. Need help

[kdarwin]

I would try two approaches. Number 1=Mental, tell him see the ball hit the ball because when you analyze you paralyze at the plate, just react. Number 2 =Physical keep knob inside the ball and throw your hands to the ball and the barrel will follow. KEEP IT SIMPLE Just my two cents.

[Masmak]

When my boy was going through that, I tried a completely different route. I quit working with him for awhile. I paid one of the better high school kids to step in and work with him. And then I would take my son to the high school games to watch him. He had some fun with a good younger person, and also got to see him hit and strike out. Changed his mindset. Worked wonders

[ByronB]

Thanks for all of the feedback. Here's some thoughts.

1. He's not afraid to get hit. He's a big strong kid and been hit plenty of times. He's not bailing out of the box. I have 2 other kids on my team that are afraid to get hit, so I know what that looks like.

2. We never use a pitching machine. I always throw batting practice to every player before the games. I have been considering having another coach or a player throw batting practice to him instead of me. Maybe challenge him a little bit. I throw good batting practice, so maybe that's what gives him confidence to cut loose in the cage. Some of you suggested having someone else throw BP to him and I think that's a great idea.

I would try "the other coach" or find a professional that gives hitting lessons......someone who will video the sessions. This may be expensive but I have seen it work. Someone other than "Dad" showing the kid or talking to him. It may just be that time. When my son was in 8th grade I had to turn to this approach. The hitting instructor was able to throw every type of pitch at my son in the cage and communicate a little differently mentally when it came to hitting. We kept that same instructor through my sons Senior year of Baseball. I am sure your son will break out of it. He sounds like a good athlete.

[quackaholic1]

My son had the same problem when he was younger. The problem was that he was taking his eyes off the ball just for a split second. The remedy was pretty simple. I took 20 balls and colored the seams red on 5 balls and blue on the other five. Then I would tell him which color he had to swing at. His batting improved immensely.

[KNEE DEEP]

He'll come around. Im no expert at all. I played little league all the way thru high school and tried to walk on at various colleges but didn't make it. But when you start walking to the plate wanting to hit instead of oh no,my turn that's when you start hitting. Watch youngsters walking to the plate to hit. You can tell by body posture who wants to hit and the ones that don't. You play long enough and want to continue you Want to hurry and and bat. Good luck to your son whatever helps him,but STAY POSITIVE. Like I said,just my opinion.

[jruss]

You can't finish if you are on the muscle. Loose punch loose. Sounds like he is gripping when facing a kid pitching to him. Cousing his core hips and shoulders to lock up.

[Hart8]

Need some help just Pm me and we can talk about the mental approach as well as a couple of drills that will go a long way in correcting any bad habits. Mental will be your biggest challenge. You will also find as your child grows it is not unusual to find one part of his swing or approach to be the one he struggles with for the rest of his time playing the game. Kids have way to much pressure today in a sport that was never intended to be played year round. As a kid growing up we played everything, never over working any particular muscle group or tendon structure. Not to mention the mental aspect of each game getting a break when we switched sports. It has to be fun, before success can be achieved. Played a long time and battled many different weaknesses in my game. Its the only game where you can fail 70% of the time at bat and still make the hall of fame. LOL Good Luck.

That 2nd to last sentence..Never thought of it like that before!

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Tapatalk

[Tmag]

Looks like all the bases are covered on ideas. I wondered about the eyes too, glad you are getting them checked.

As a Dad that coached my son from t-ball through majors, I praised my son all the time but found afterward I was a little more critical also. Found myself telling him he was a better player than that instead of keeping my mouth shut and letting him be a kid enjoying the game.
His pony year I didn't coach, he started hitting homers and played better than ever. His high school years were awesome, he played first base better than the senior that started at first and crushed the stinking ball every game.
In the end, I was a better supporter than a coach.

[Blane]

I played ball all through the younger years into high school and then a little bit in rec leagues in college, then moved on to softball. I was listening to a pregame the other day and they were interviewing Chipper Jones. They asked what was the most important thing he could pass on to every child/ball player that was in attendance that day. I have never heard his response said by anyone, "Keep your head and eyes as still as possible". To this day, when I get in the box, I have a little bit of a rock to my bat which goes through my body, including my head. Last night watching a high school game, every player, on both sides had some form of movement in their cadence. Not into it anymore, but if Chipper thought it was good info, I would listen. Crazy that I had never heard that before.

[ByronB]

I played ball all through the younger years into high school and then a little bit in rec leagues in college, then moved on to softball. I was listening to a pregame the other day and they were interviewing Chipper Jones. They asked what was the most important thing he could pass on to every child/ball player that was in attendance that day. I have never heard his response said by anyone, "Keep your head and eyes as still as possible". To this day, when I get in the box, I have a little bit of a rock to my bat which goes through my body, including my head. Last night watching a high school game, every player, on both sides had some form of movement in their cadence. Not into it anymore, but if Chipper thought it was good info, I would listen. Crazy that I had never heard that before.

Keeping the head and eyes still is a given. If most kids are not taught this already I would be surprised....at least for competitive style players from youth on up. Moving the head around can cause all kinds of nightmares at the plate. Kind of the same on the golf course. Head still.

[ByronB]

I have to add....Chipper Jones was fun to watch when he was playing ball. Great athlete.

[chancito1]

The best technique in the world will not produce without the right minds set. If he likes to read have him get a book called the mind gym. It really focuses on the on the mental side of the game

[Outback]

I would be willing to bet that he needs glasses.

[knapper]

Make hitting fun for him !
Dont penalize him for outs in a game, like hard contact is good. Dont let him feel like it's a job to play the game.
Use tennis balls in practice with numbers 1-5 on them.
Let him call out the number after each soft-toss or or pitch.
Award points to correct ones, and negative or incorrect.
Also may have him evaluated on mechanics by someone who does it professionally. And stick to his plan. Don't listen to every one, because most will give conflicting info.
Best of luck to him.

[bbridges]

Just my opinion based on what I am reading but it sounds like a confidence issue. The only fix for it is lots of at bats. I coach a lot of softball having three daughters and mine have struggled through that transition in kid pitch. My 10 year old has one of the prettiest swings you'll ever see. Mechanically, she is rock solid but it has taken time for her to get comfortable and build confidence. It will come in time.