The 2009 Texas Cup, an MSBL sanctioned tournament, was held in Austin Texas. the Braves entered it’s club team in the 25+ age bracket against 5 other all-star teams from New Orleans, Dallas and Houston. The format was four games in two days. The temperatures exceeded 100 degrees both days which tested everyone’s stamina. The competition was at a much higher level than in our league and we held our own going 2-2. Although we did not make the finals, we found out that we can play a high level of baseball. Some of the pitching was approaching 90 mph. We feel this experience has helped build up our camaraderie and gel as a team.
Texas Cup 2009
March 26th, 2010
Pitching Fundamentals
March 26th, 2010Long time Amherst College Head Coach, Bill Thurston, illustrates proper pitching mechanics in the following videos. Coach Thurston has been the head coach of the Amherst College baseball program since 1966. A widely respected teacher of baseball skills and techniques, Coach Thurston has some excellent insights in these video clips.
Pitching from the Windup
Leg Brace
Arm De-Acceleration
Pitching from the Windup
Leg Brace
Arm De-Acceleration
Proper Arm Path
Cocked Position
Rotational Hitting
March 26th, 2010Book Recommendations
By far the leader in this area is Mike Epstein. We highly recommend his books, and videos. Additionally the classic book for any hitter and instructor to go through is Ted Williams’s book “The Science of Hitting”.
Online Resources
- The Best Batting Tip
- Rotational hitting versus linear hitting
- The Mental Game
- Mike Epstein’s home page
- The Swing Plane
- Linear vs. Rotational Hitting (Bat Speed Research)
- Rotation Around a Stationary Axis
- Over 15 short video clips that breakdown many aspects of hitting
Videos
Rotational Hitting: Body Angle
Introduction to Rotational Hitting
Rotational Swing Analysis
This video’s audio is a little rough but is an excellent example of rotational hitting.
Hip Rotation
Baserunning Fundamentals
March 26th, 2010Baserunning is one of the most over looked skills in baseball. Maybe you can’t teach speed but you can teach effective baserunning skills. Fast or not, poor baserunning skills will take you out of an inning early and just may cost you a game. On this page we will post videos and links to other websites that will help you develop good baserunning techniques.
Links
Quality Coaching Baseball
Videos
Taking a Proper Lead-off and Double Leg Drive
Variation on the lead-off
Take notice of the open athletic stance
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