There are a few things a hitter does that often tell us how to get him out. They show their approaches and weaknesses. As pitchers and catchers, when we pay attention and know what to look for, pitch selection becomes a little easier.
1. Position in the box and step direction. Close to the plate. Away from the plate. Back in the box. In the box.
Close to the plate but stepped to open. The thinking is that if they are close to the plate, it will be easier to get them out with deep pitches but if they step open, they will probably hit deep pitches better. That open move opened up the outside to get them out even though they started near the plate. Attack and go from there.
Stand away from the plate. The initial thought might be that we can get them out on the outside but if they “dive” with their stride towards the plate, their approach is to reach the outside pitch thus making it harder for them to reach the inside pitch. Strike inside and go from there.
Behind the box may indicate that they are giving themselves more time and space to read the pitch, but this may also provide more room to move outside your pace. Try dropping the speed in the zone and starting from there.
In the box might indicate that they are trying to take up space for those off-speed pitches to work. Go with the fast one and go from there.
2. Read their foul balls.
If they are late on your fastball, they are asking you to stick with your hard fastball. If they’re at the start of your fastball, fouling, it’s a good time to throw in the next change of speed.
3. Aggressive on the first throw.
Don’t shy away from this. Use that to your advantage. As pitchers, we need to learn to accept their aggressiveness. Attack the bottom of the zone. Try lowering the speed of the first pitch in the zone. If they get a hit, move on and try to get two hits on the next pitch. Use their aggressiveness to our advantage. One pitch out is great!!
4. Watch for teams that have a first pitch approach or pitch until they get a hit. No need to be fancy or picky, attack from the middle down. Get them in the hole with the first throw. Batting average drops drastically with first pitch hits.
5. Runner in scoring position.
Hitters have a habit of being overly aggressive when there are runners in scoring position (2nd and/or 3rd). Be prepared for them to swing on the first pitch. Throw your most confident ground ball throw. Again, don’t be afraid of contact, use it to your advantage.
However, not all of this applies to all levels and all players/pitchers. But understanding the game as a coach can help our ability to teach it and as players, it can help us become smarter and better competitors.
Play games within games. Talk about the game. Talk about what we saw. Coaches, teach the game and encourage your players to play the game according to what they see in their opponents.
Founder of Baseball Dudes. Blessed with three beautiful children and a wonderful wife. Baseball is my life, next to my family, and I love sharing what I’ve learned from it. Thank you for taking the time to check out what we have to offer here at Baseball Dudes.
