Study on Fast Pitch Softball Hitting

The Fast-Pitch Softball Study …why we teach, what we teach   

As I was introducing myself to the Fast Pitch Softball world in 2005, I observed as much as I could. Living in Arizona, I was lucky to have some of the best programs in the country. High level recreational teams, high school teams, University of Arizona and Arizona State University -- all just minutes from my home.

I was intrigued by several observations I made.
Then, I just started asking questions, and more questions (examples below)and more questions to anybody who would listen
I then started asking the “experts” some questions.

The ”Experts” I am referring to were the coaches and private instructors who I had been told were the leaders in the sport.
I was trying to get a picture painted as to how this sport paralleled the other diamond sport in as many aspects as possible.

·         What are the similarities?

·         What are the differences?

·         Are there aspects that are exactly the same?

I have had nearly 35 years of experience in the “other” sport. Why re-invent the wheel if I don’t have to?

This is what I concluded from my initial introduction to the sport:
1. There are similarities ... shocker
2. There are differences ... another shocker.
3. A major difference was the lack of functional strength in the game.
4. A majority of coaches think baseball & softball are as opposite as night and day.
5. Just as in “the other sport,” most well-meaning coaches were teaching concepts and hand-me-downs techniques.

I had done a study on the best hitters in the sport of baseball just a year earlier. I wondered what a study on the best fast pitch softball hitters in the world would reveal. I was very interested to find out because I had already done about 5 hitting camps for softball players and nearly 90% of fast pitch coaches I had spoken with had voiced their opinions on the differences in the two games.

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The Study (a quick synopsis):

·         I gathered as much video and still photographs as I could get from Team USA, UA, ASU and other top programs.

·         After getting enough information, I did the same exact study I did with the baseball players.

·         I identified movements and/or positions in the swing and gave them names.

·         I then went player by player and charted if they made these movements and/or were in the common positions.

·         The criteria were that 90%+ of the players had to make the movement or get in a certain position for me to call it a commonality.

·         The results surprised even me.

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 The Results:

Disclaimer - If you are one of the 90% of coaches, parents or players I spoke with in 2005, you might not want to hear/read this ... but you should... it is the truth, not my opinion.

The results were identical. Yes, identical. The girls had the same 9 commonalities of the best baseball hitters in the world. The actual swing was the same.

·         Video does not lie.

·         Photos do not lie.

·         It is what it is ... not much wiggle room for the doubters.

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The Response:

At the beginning ...
We held a hitting round table in a mid-western city. We had about 20 coaches and most of them were softball coaches. One of the first questions I asked was, “Is the softball and baseball swing similar or even the same?” One person thought they were similar or the same.

 I then showed still photos of players of each sport in the same positions. They were identical.  I asked the same question again. Only a few more people raised their hands.

I then showed video of hitters from both sports ...  Again, the commonalities were obvious.
I asked the question again but only a few more hands went up. I was trying to grasp this. I just showed several examples of the swing commonalities. Commonalities of all great softball hitters and commonalities between the baseball and softball swing and at least half of the people still didn’t believe it.
I then realized what we were up against ... the history of fast pitch softball.

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The last few years:

I call it “cracking the shell.”

·         I start by letting people know that we are really not that smart, just a couple guys without jobs and time to do a detailed study.

·         I then SHOW them example after example via photos or video.

·         I offer examples of excellent softball coaches with baseball backgrounds

·         Then, if I am lucky enough, I go through the program with them.

Update:

Krush Athletics has held more than 350 Fast pitch softball hitting camps across the country working with more than 10,000 hitters... just spittin' facts!