Staying in the Zone – How to Play Baseball
photo credit: Matt McGee
There is a long standing tradition that you never mention a no hitter in the dugout when a pitcher is pitching one. The reasoning is that the pitcher will be “jinxed,” and the added pressure will cause them to lose the no hitter. There is probably something to that and the same goes for when a hitter gets into a good hitting groove. Most of the time, good hitting streaks come when a hitter stops thinking at the plate, just watches the ball and “let’s the bat fly.” Of course and of utmost importance, good fundamentals are necessary to even have hot streaks. Hitters with incorrect fundamentals rarely ever get to experience a hot streak. There is simply no substitute for the correct hitting fundamentals.
As a coach I would not mention a hitter’s hot streak or any swing fundamentals during these streaks. It is usually best to remain silent and be sure the hitter keeps the exact same routine that they have been doing. Upon observation of the hitter’s routine during this streak, I would notice they had grooved their swing with a few beneficial hitting drills that allowed them to not have to think about their fundamentals.
The moral of the story is to find the hitting drill or drills that most help each particular hitter. Every hitter has a swing fundamental that needs addressing the most and if you can find that drill(s) for the hitter, they will have the best chance to get into that hot streak as often as possible.
Often, this is a trial and error process but once you come across those drills, it will be worth it with a “hot streak” and an increased batting average.
