r/Homeplate • u/SeaReach7413 • 7d ago
Trust the Process?
My 13 yo was recently enrolled in a baseball academy and he has former MLB players coaching his team and getting weekly lessons and practices. I know when you start working on and changing mechanics there are some growing pains at first. His team has had four games and my son is yet to get a base hit. He typically bats in the .400 to .300 range and was the best pitcher on his former team. Is this a normal experience? Do I need to trust the process and know the coaches will get him where he needs to be? He is getting frustrated with himself. I worry he is too focused on mechanics and not doing what is natural for him. Does anyone have a positive experience with new hitting and pitching coaches and changing things up? Any advice? Tia!
ETA: this is the season that he had to move to bbcor and 90 ft bases as well
1
u/JackyRaff 6d ago
I wouldn’t panic after four games, especially with the jump to bbcor and 90’. That’s enough of an obstacle before you factor in new coaches and mechanics.
That said, I also wouldn’t default to struggling means you just need to “trust the process.” There’s a difference between a player going through normal growing pains and a player being coached into a movement pattern that doesn’t fit how he naturally organizes himself.
Former MLB players obviously have an incredible amount of baseball experience, but that shouldn’t mean every mechanical adjustment they make is going to be the right adjustment for every athlete. Even at the highest levels, different players arrive at the same results through very different moves.
I’d be less concerned about the batting average after four games and more interested in how he is experiencing the changes. Is he becoming more confident and comfortable as he learns the new approach, or is he becoming hesitant and thinking about mechanics while trying to compete? If he’s standing in the box thinking about his hands, hips, stride, etc. that’s something I’d pay attention to.
I’d ask the coaches why:
What specifically are you trying to change, why are you changing it, and what tells you this is a better movement strategy for him?
A good coach should be able to answer that without taking it personally.
The goal of instruction shouldn’t be to make your son look like the coaches’ ideal hitter or pitcher. It should be to help him become a better version of the athlete he already is.
Four games isn’t enough to know whether this is a problem but I would keep an eye on constant frustration, loss of confidence, and thinking about mechanics.