We are not talking about that special time every afternoon where London comes to a grinding halt so everyone can have their afternoon tea. Tee time is something a little different.
Tee work is crucial to every players development. You can learn a great deal working on your swing when the ball is stationary. You can also learn a bunch of bad habits hitting on the tee if you aren’t careful. The moral to the story is that good tee work will make you a better hitter.
Boredom is one reason that we sometimes see a player develop bad habits. To avoid boredom, be sure to add some creative tee drills to your routine.
Here are a couple options?
Middle-Middle. Means just what it says. Hitting the middle of the ball to the middle of the field. Line drives are our goal and setting up to hit the ball back up the middle on command is an important skill.
Outside Pitches at All Heights. We need to set the tee up to work on the outside pitch. We also need to work on all the heights that might be called a strike. Just because it’s low and out doesn’t mean you can’t kill it.
Inside Pitches at all Heights. Set the tee up to hit the inside pitch. Again at all heights. This pitch needs to be hammered, in fair territory!
Happy Gilmore Drill. Just like in the movie the Happy Gilmore drill has the hitter take a couple steps into their swing. This drill allows the hitter to learn to hit with extra power. Once you learn to make the power in this drill it will apply to your regular swing too.
There are as many tee drills as you can imagine. Think about the things that you need to improve and you can come up with ways to work on those weaknesses on the tee.
For more ideas you can check out our YouTube channel on our website at fastpitchprep.com
About the Author: Tory Acheson brings a wealth of knowledge to the Fastpitch Prep staff. He has coached at all levels of the game, including the last 25 years at the college level at the University of Wisconsin – Parkside, Tennessee Tech and Kennesaw State. He began his coaching career at the high school level spending 9 years Whitnall High School in Greenfield, Wis. and is now working as a professional softball instructor.
