| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| loveit |
Posted - 01/05/2012 : 10:41:57
My son is making the adjustment to the -3 (32/29) this season. Last year he used a -9(30/21). I am wondering if anyone can shed some light on what to expect. He is a young 13 (late July birthday), in the eighth grade and will be trying out for the High School 9th grade team at the end of January, requiring the -3. He has begun his growth spurt so, that should help. Does it take a long time to be successful with an extra 8 ounces? Should we expect an "off" season with his batting? Just wondering if anyone has any thoughts on the matter.....He has played travel ball for 5 years at AAA/Major level. |
| 13 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| nc-coach |
Posted - 01/07/2012 : 13:30:18
Thanks for the advise. Found out that they make exception for 6th graders as far as using drop-3. (Must be pretty laid back) Will probably go with drop-5 for travel and school (if he makes team). Likewise, I'm curious about how the games will play out. |
| jacjacatk |
Posted - 01/06/2012 : 17:07:16
quote:
Originally posted by nc-coach
This topic came up at just the right time, and I would appreciate any advise My twelve year old (6th grader) will be trying out for his middle school team (private school)in a couple of weeks. They will play by high school rules including field dimensions and Drop-3 BBCOR bats. He had been using a 31/23, so he tried a 31/28 in the cages last night. He did better than I expected, but we're both a little nervous about the transition. They are playing a limited 8-10 game schedule so I'm trying to get him to just relax and approach it as a chance to try something new. Should we go ahead and switch to a drop-5 for the upcoming travel season? I'd appreciate any advise on transitioning to the bigger field, too. He's played travel ball at one age group higher for the past four seasons primarily at AA. He's playing back with his age group 12U this season.
I'd be curious to see what middle-school ball looks like with the big field and -3 bats. My son's a relative giant and I think he'd have been hard pressed to keep up on the big field in the 6th grade (would have been 11U for him). Also, is it just one team with 6th-8th graders? If so, I'd expect the team to have very few 6th graders generally (depending on size, maybe that's a bad assumption).
If he was doing OK with a 31/23 before, I'd find a 31/26 for travel and hold off on the -3 except for school ball if/when it happens. That's mostly because using a -3 BBCOR bat in travel (which I suspect would be the only legal bat since that what USSSA requires if you're using -3) is probably going to be a big disadvantage relative to his peers there. |
| T13 |
Posted - 01/06/2012 : 15:58:09
This is the problem with middle school ball...bats too heavy for most kids and field too big for most 6 and 7th graders....just get through the abbreviated schedule and enjoy travel...everything will change when they mature physically... |
| nc-coach |
Posted - 01/06/2012 : 12:39:50
This topic came up at just the right time, and I would appreciate any advise My twelve year old (6th grader) will be trying out for his middle school team (private school)in a couple of weeks. They will play by high school rules including field dimensions and Drop-3 BBCOR bats. He had been using a 31/23, so he tried a 31/28 in the cages last night. He did better than I expected, but we're both a little nervous about the transition. They are playing a limited 8-10 game schedule so I'm trying to get him to just relax and approach it as a chance to try something new. Should we go ahead and switch to a drop-5 for the upcoming travel season? I'd appreciate any advise on transitioning to the bigger field, too. He's played travel ball at one age group higher for the past four seasons primarily at AA. He's playing back with his age group 12U this season. |
| RACGOFAR |
Posted - 01/06/2012 : 08:55:25
quote:
Originally posted by jacjacatk
[quote]The barrel is essentially always below the hands at contact in a good swing.
I essentially agree with that statement for pitches down in the zone. I was talking about their hands dropping after loading more so when moving up to a heavier bat, causing the bat to drag through the strike zone and be below the hands all the way to contact, which is what I would call a "long swing." When I've seen my players move up to a heavier bat, their hands tend to drop down rather than stay inside and move towards the ball, at least until they acclimate to the heavier size.
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| rippit |
Posted - 01/06/2012 : 08:27:16
It sounds like he'll be fine. We aren't there yet as our county doesn't allow 8th graders to play up, but what I've "heard" is coaches are looking for an athlete. Speed, good glove hustle, attitude are important. If he's not killing the ball but has a good swing - they will notice. Your son didn't play aaa/majors without knowing how to swing a bat and stay balanced.
We were lucky that the coach this past fall MADE all the 8th graders he coached use a -3BBCOR no matter what the bat regs were in any given tournament. I greatly appreciated him for that.
GOOD LUCK to your son! How exciting! |
| in_the_know |
Posted - 01/06/2012 : 00:58:56
High school ball is becoming less important with regard to being seen and scouted as the travel ball scene and showcase events are far more efficient for college recruiters to see talent.
However, two of my three sons have played high school ball and enjoy it as much or more than travel for the social aspects (third one's on the way there next year). They get to play with their friends that they've been growing up with their whole lives. They get to play for their school and their friends and girls will come out to watch the games. They take alot of pride in playing for their school. It is also a GREAT wake-up call for playing at the next level since, more often than not, performance plays. No daddy ball. If you're good and contributing, you'll be rewarded with playing time. If not, then you'll see alot of bench time. This is a good precursor to college for many of these kids who aren't used to that in the travel community. |
| loveit |
Posted - 01/05/2012 : 17:52:20
Thank you all for your thoughts and advice.Our previous High School coach did not allow 8th graders to try out for the 9th grade team. We based many decisions on this knowledge and now, new coach & new rules. Had we known that he would be allowed to try out(end of THIS month), we would have done things differently.We thought we had one more year to increase the bat size  . We bought the Rawlings 5150 32/29 at Better Baseball after swinging several that he was considering. This one felt the best. We went to the 32/29 on advice from our coach. He played 13U in the Fall,using his 31/21 & 30/21 bats, and has been swinging his 31/28 wood bat in practices. He has had professional batting and pitching instruction since he was very young and had his first lesson with the new bat last night. I think this addresses most of the questions raised.
I realize that he will do a lot of growing by next year this time and, quite honestly, was not disappointed that they were not allowing 8th graders to try out. Now that they are, I feel that he must try out to "get his foot in the door". I do feel that so often we tend, as a society, to rush things.
This brings up another question that is bouncing around in my over-analytical brain....."How relevant is High School ball to getting to play 'at the next level'? " From what I am hearing, HS ball has lost a great deal of it's importance, in that respect, due to all the showcase events. Is there any truth in this? I'm all for playing for the HS team. There is great fun and honor in that but, am curious about what I've heard!
Again, thanks for all your advice and thoughts. Very good insight! |
| jacjacatk |
Posted - 01/05/2012 : 17:38:59
quote:
Originally posted by RACGOFAR
causing the barrel to be below his hands at contact and resulting in weak pops up or sliced contact to the right side, and a much longer swing than he had.
The barrel is essentially always below the hands at contact in a good swing. See this (ancient) link for some good pictures, http://www.baseball-fever.com/showthread.php?54903-Barrel-Above-Hands, google for more.
I think the problem you see with switching to a heavier bat is that the barrel drops more than it should during the swing which can cause the results you mention, and probably leads to the (potentially misleading) cue to keep the barrel above the hands. In my experience, consistently slicing is often a problem with casting the hands which I don't think is directly related to bat weight, but might be exacerbated by it if you already have this problem (my son fought this problem for a while). |
| RACGOFAR |
Posted - 01/05/2012 : 16:04:49
All good pointers and I would suggest that he begin taking 50-100 cuts daily with the -3 off a tee (in garage/basement using a plastic ball, etc) so he can begin to reinforce his muscle memory with that additional weight. He should wear gloves for this drill because that many cuts will put blisters on his hands without them. Video his swing with the old bat (off a tee) and the new one and then slow it down and you can show him the effects of the added weight on his swing. My guess is what you will likely see is that his hands are dropping or not getting to the same load position with the -3, causing the barrel to be below his hands at contact and resulting in weak pops up or sliced contact to the right side, and a much longer swing than he had. Swinging while facing a fence and other drills for keeping the swing short/compact should also help reinforce the new feeling with the heavier weight. |
| in_the_know |
Posted - 01/05/2012 : 14:39:11
Would have been best for you to move him to a drop 5 last season and gradually work toward the 3, but since that ship sailed . . .
First, a question, why are you going straight to a 32" drop 3. You're taking him up 2 inches and 8 ounces right out of the gate. I think you should consider a 30" or 31" unless he's grown significantly in his current "spurt".
So beyond that, I recommend two things.
First, get him a wood bat at least 1" longer than whatever size bat you decide to get him for the upcoming season. Have him swing and use it exclusively during cage and practice. On that note, get him in the cage with this bat ASAP so that he can start getting comfortable and confident with the longer/heavier bat.
Second, I highly recommend that you take him to one of the local stores that has alot of different vendor's bats AND a swing speed measurement device. I know that Better Baseball has the device. Elite Sports East Cobb is a sponsor of this board and he might also have the speed measuring device. That part is critical. Since bats vary greatly by the distribution of weight, I'd have him swing several to see which one feels most balanced to him and which allows him to generate the highest bat speed. Demarini's tend to be very balanced, while some of the TPX exogrids are end loaded. Find the bat with the best combination of balance and bat speed and that will likely server him best. He's going to be battling three things immediately, making a larger jump to the heaver bat, going from no limits to BBCOR, and the confidence factor. If he struggles a bit early on, it will take him a bit to get his confidence back. Additionally, he's going to lose some bat speed which will translate to less pop off his bat. This will be compounded by the fact that all the drop 3's are BBCOR, which means that he'll effectively be hitting with the equivalent of a wood bat. The good news is that everyone at that age is transitioning to the BBCOR, so that will be felt equally.
I believe that if you take these or similar steps, you'll have him up to speed in no time and shouldn't have to experience too big a hit to his batting in 9th grade. Best of Luck in the upcoming season. |
| rippit |
Posted - 01/05/2012 : 14:18:44
Is he trying out at the end of THIS month or next January 2013?
I'm also curious if he is jumping straight from 12U to 9th grade ball. If so, the bat is just part of the adjustment curve he faces. There's also the extra 20 feet between bases and an outfield fence that just took roughly a 100 foot hike backwards.
If it's NEXT January and he'll be 14 this coming summer, you'll be amazed at the rate they mature as they get closer to their 14th birthday.
To conquer the field size, speed/agility classes are important. Arm strength is important also so some stretchy band exercises would be great.
Regarding the bat, depending on how big a kid he already is he'll struggle some if he's playing 9th grade ball this spring, but if it's spring of 2013 - he'll be okay. Either way, I'd find a GREAT hitting coach and spend the money. |
| jacjacatk |
Posted - 01/05/2012 : 14:18:04
Depending on his size, I'd have moved to a -5 (probably 31/26 in your case) last season. My son is in the same boat (7/4 birthday, 13u now), though he won't be trying out for the HS team until next January, and our bat progression has been 30/22, 32/24, 32/27 (now) and probably 33/30 sometime this summer/fall (he's using a 33/31 wood in the cage sometimes now, just for kicks). He's 6' about 145 now and was probably about 5'4" 135 when we started with -8, FWIW. His hitting hasn't changed markedly with the various bat switches, though he has a tendency to let the barrel drop too far with the wood now, so I can imagine that making an 8 ounce transition could be tricky for you. Assuming he's been a solid hitter up to now, I'd suggest getting as much work in as you can with the new bat now, and just keep an eye out for flaws creeping into the swing if he's trying to compensate for the heavier bat. If you haven't already purchased a bat, you might look at 31/28s as well, and focus on finding a bat that's not end-loaded so that you can get the lightest swing-weight possible. |
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