Quick bat drill

Question
I coach a young 14U FP team.  We are having a hard time hitting the older hard throwing 14U teams.....our bats aren't quick enough.  Do you have a favorite drill to increase bat speed/quickness?  Thanks for any help.

Answer
Hello Randy,

Often girls in this age group don't necessarily have "slow" bats, it is more of a case where they have slow pitch recognition.  What I mean is, they often are late in the decision making process and commit to swing too late.  Make sure the girls are prepared to hit each pitch by shifting weight as if they are going to hit every pitch.  The swing can be stopped if they determine it to be a ball after shifting weight.  A simple drill to help them focus on the ball as it approaches involves soft tossing both a yellow and white ball at the same time.  After tossing the balls, you say the color of the ball you want the girl to hit.  The timing requires her to adjust in mid swing to whatever color you announced.  You can pause longer before announcing a color the better they get at it.  As I stated, it often is not a case of their bats being slow, it's more of a case that they decide too late to swing.  This drill will help speed up the decision process as it relates to swing location.  Another thing I'd recommend is doing a lot of hitting off a pitching machine at a slightly faster speed than they are seeing, so they aren't so overwhelmed when they see the faster live pitching.  Please let me know if this helps.

Coach Mike