How to Teach the Level Baseball Swing

Getting a bat that starts in an almost- vertical position into a level position, parallel to the ground, isn’t easy for a Little Leaguer. When he has heard you say the strike zone is from the armpits to knees, any kid should be excused for not understanding how to execute a level swing in both the high and lowest level of the strike zone.

The answer, of course, is that he must adjust the whole body, bending the knees, while keeping the shoulders and elbows level. By so doing the swing will be level.

A drill that allows the coach, or parent, to teach a child’s level swing is the drill where the coach tosses the ball from the side and the batter hits the ball into a fence.  The coach, or parent, should purposely toss the ball at different heights within the strike zone and see if the batter adjusts the body for a level swing. This is also a good drill to practice hitting the ball in front of the plate, since the coach, or parent, can control his throw to make certain it is in a plane that is in front of the plate.

Coaches differ in opinion of positions of the feet, elbows, shoulders, and hands of a batter awaiting the pitch; however, they all agree that the swing should be parallel to the ground. The parallel rules are:

1.       Toes on a line parallel to the plate. This means the player should try to hit the ball up the middle which is most always a good place to hit.

2.       Shoulders parallel. Dipping the shoulders will move the head, making a level swing impossible.

3.       Elbows parallel. If the elbows are level going into the swing, they will more than likely be level coming out of the swing.

4.       Chin parallel to shoulders. Touching the shoulder with the chin will keep it parallel and prevent the head from moving.

5.       Arms parallel. The arms should be parallel to and away from the body before the swing. They should be parallel to the ground as they are extended in a level swing.

The above rules are simple, but easy to remember.  Once the players master the basics of hitting, the coach can start refining the other checkpoints in a gradual process of helping them to become better batters. If you teach the average 9 or 10 year-old simply to make contact with the ball you will have done your job as a coach. As they gain confidence that they can hit the ball, the will become eager to take the steps of learning more that will help them to become good hitters.