By Greg Bach

Hitting help Former Red Sox great Nomar Garciaparra, current Cardinals first baseman Adam LaRoche and A’s hitting coach Chili Davis share their valuable insight on the art of hitting and what it takes to be productive at the plate. Use their tips to help your players enjoy more success swinging the bat this season.

Hitting a baseball is one of the toughest things for kids to do IT’S ALL ABOUT CONFIDENCE in sports. It’s vital that kids have confidence And teaching it is one of the biggest challenges for in themselves no matter what sport coaches, too. they are playing, and that certainly So what’s the secret to helping kids become more pro- applies to when they step into the ductive performers at the plate? batter’s box, too. SportingKid checked in with a talented trio – Nomar The more confident kids are Garciaparra, Adam LaRoche and Chili Davis – to get in their ability, the more likely their thoughts on the art of hitting. they’ll enjoy greater success Garciaparra, a six-time All-Star as the shortstop for the Boston Chili Davis swinging the bat. Red Sox, is the owner of a sparkling .313 career batting average. So it’s up to coaches to deliver messages dripping in He also was a two-time American League batting champion, hit- positives, particularly if the youngster is really struggling ting .372 and .357 to claim the crown in back-to-back seasons. to break out of a slump. Davis, currently the batting coach for the Oakland A’s, “Don’t tell him what he’s not doing,” Davis says. “Tell him enjoyed a 19-year Major League playing career where what he’s doing right and what he needs to do differently. he collected 2,380 hits, popped 350 home runs and won The emphasis should be on the positive. Tell him that he’ll three World Series titles. get another hit. Try to stay positive without lying.” Remaining positive every at bat poses a real challenge for players of all skill levels – from the youth leagues to the Big Leagues. “There are times when you’re struggling and it’s a real challenge to keep that same confidence and that same positive attitude,” La- Roche says. “You’ll find that some of the best players in this game just have a knack for doing that.” Adds Garciaparra: “When you step in that box, first and foremost, you better have confidence. That’s what hitting is, it’s about being confident. Nomar Garciaparra (left) and, Adam LaRoche When you step in there you have (above) swinging at the plate. confidence that when the ball is here ‘I’m going to hit it.’ It’s as simple as that. See it and hit it; focus on that.” LaRoche plays first base for the Washington Nationals and has more than 1,200 hits in his Major League career so SHORT MEMORIES = BETTER RESULTS far, to go along with more than 200 home runs. When a player goes through a rough patch of strike outs, They’ve got the credentials, the experience and the ground outs and infield pop ups, it can be demoralizing. knowledge that you can use to help every youngster on During slumps, which all kids will experience at some your team make better and more frequent contact that will point, it’s important to work with your players to push the lead to them getting on the coveted base paths more often. last game or the last at bat out of their mind. What they did

22 summer 2014 www.nays.org at the plate 30 minutes ago or a week they step in the box that’s what they’re ago doesn’t matter. Teach them to em- “When you step thinking and not the negative.” brace the moment, not dwell on an at in that box, first bat, or a series of at bats from the past. GOOD DRILLS CREATE GOOD “There’s a lot of failure in this and foremost, HABITS game,” LaRoche says. “You’ve got to “It’s important to do drills with find a way to forget about the game you better have players to create good habits,” before or the 0-for-10 or whatever confidence. That’s Davis says. “I want to see contact you are going through and still go with the ball. I don’t want to see up there with a positive outlook on what hitting is, them looking up after the swing to it. Some of the best hitters I’ve been see where the ball goes. Use short around really couldn’t tell you if it’s about overhand drills where you throw to they are 10 for their last 15 or 2 for being confident.” him, and the object is not to swing their last 20.” hard but to just make contact with – Nomar Garciaparra the ball.” SIMPLIFY INSTRUCTIONS The more thoughts players have swirling in their heads HAVE FUN when they step to the plate, the greater the chance that “I get to talk to coaches of all ages and one thing I tell they’ll be handcuffed by too much thinking and struggle them all the time is to not make this one game the most to execute a fundamentally sound swing. important thing in this kid’s life,” says LaRoche. “Wheth- “Simplify it,” says Garciaparra. “If you tell a player ‘don’t er it’s a 12-year-old or a 22-year-old in pro ball, find a do this’ it puts it in their mind. Instead, say ‘hey, what you way to not take this game so seriously because when we need to do, let’s drive the ball the other way, let’s drive the do that and we put all that pressure on that one at bat or ball up the middle.’ Tell them what they need to do so when that one game and you fail, that’s a big letdown.”

Do you know a sports parent who…

Shows support for their child’s coach and game officials? Places the kids’ safety and fun over their own desire to win a game? Looks out for the best interest of their child, as well as other youngsters in the program? Does whatever is needed – from being a respectful fan in the bleachers to helping with the carpool – to help their child enjoy the youth sports experience? Then you know a great candidate for the Parents Association for Youth Sports 2014 Parent of the Year!

The award winner and one guest will receive complimentary flight and accommodations to the Youth Sports Congress in Orlando, Fla. during Nov.12-15, 2014 where the winner will be honored during the awards ceremony. Nominate a parent today for the 2014 Parent of the Year Award at www.nays.org/poty. Deadline: September 1, 2014 presented by with For additional information call (800) 688-KIDS (5437) or email [email protected].

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