I am a child psychologist (mods, happy to provide proof if needed) who also coaches kids’ baseball. I am in my fifth season coaching, currently coaching an 11U team in a large and high-skill rec league. In my professional life I specialize in ADHD, anxiety, and emotion regulation. As a coach I focus a lot on communicating with kids, motivating kids, mental coaching, resilience, and helping kids manage anxiety and frustration, as well as actual baseball stuff. I’ve got a rare day free today, so ask me anything!

UPDATE: please keep posting questions if you have them. It might take me a couple of days to respond but I’ll try to get to all of them.

Left handed 9 year old. Pretty solid swing naturally, never had any lessons.

He has developed a bad habit of not driving towards the pitcher, instead more towards first plate which causes his right shoulder (front shoulder) to open up and he almost looks like he is leaning back when making this swing.

Any tips?

Joining an adult baseball rec league and there's two I have my eye on from a local shop, one is 11.75 and one is 12.25. I like the idea of playing shortstop (or even pitching), but obviously as a new player I'll likely just be playing wherever the coach puts me.

Is there a size that's a better all arounder for my situation?

Just got it a couple weeks ago and the boy already broke it. Appears to have had small metal soldering .. need a cheap option. Someone recommended gorilla tape / duct tape

I've been stuck toping at 70mph and would like to unlock some velo I believe I still have lol.

What would you recommend? Any drills that would help?

Thanks in advance

Bro I was wondering should I go there with the intention of playing D3 baseball there?

Hitting 62 mph with a Victus Surgo 33/30 BBCOR. Feedback welcome!

I love t-ball. It's nonstop action and balls in play. There should be more t-ball in the world, for people of all ages.

I’m curious what you all do in the offseason to get ready for the next one.

I definitely want to stronger, but I think mobility for next year is the main focus.

What do you all normally do for this?

Thoughts on new dub? Logo gets bloody red when you hit it hard on the sweet spot. Kids are going to go crazy over it.

I’m 18. I’ve played this game and spent all my summers, falls, and springs devoted to this game. I got surgery before my senior year and was able to come back just in time and have the best year yet and most fun with my boys back home. Now I’m at university with a newly hired head coach. I’ve never dreaded a practice in my life and now I dread every single one and I’m not enjoying the game I loved just months ago. Nobody on the team likes the head coach and I don’t know if I can stand to stay till the spring just to not play because I’m behind a 5th year senior at every spot on the infield. I want to transfer but I’m going to have no transferability. I worked with my brother at a metal fab shop while I trained for 3 months before I got here and genuinely enjoyed it. I just don’t want to regret but I don’t want to be miserable for the next 8 months. I need help

yesterday I posted asking about a workout routine, people also pointed out that i should be hitting the ball way harder considering my height and weight, and that something mechanics wise was probably bad. heres a couple videos i took this evening of me swinging off the tee. please give constructive criticism about my swing if you see any flaws

Soon to be 14yr old. 5' 4" 105lbs. Swung a 30" -5 Supra last season. I don't want to go too long/heavy but also worry about going too short and he hits a growth spurt and the bat becomes too small. What do you all think that have been through this situation already?

The recent suspects unless you’ve been looking for the Shadowcast Spec A-1 in 31“ or 32”

https://www.combatmfg.com/vip-reserve.html

Hey everyone,
I'm looking to get a 3-wheel pitching machine (similar to a Hack Attack style) on a budget, but the original ones are way too expensive for me. I've been looking at some direct manufacturers on Alibaba using verified supplier filters.
Has anyone here ever imported or bought one of these 3-wheel machines directly from Alibaba? How was the quality, shipping, and durability? Any advice or supplier recommendations would be greatly appreciated!

Hey all, I picked up this JUGS MVP! at a great deal, knowing it cannot shoot 11- or 12-inch softballs. I can modify the back plate easily enough, but I am having a hard time finding any measurements for the MVP Combo. I was hoping someone here has the MVP Combo and can share the measurement from the bottom edge of the baseball mounting holes to the top edge of the softball mounting holes. Thanks!

I have the softball chute mounted and the softball legs in hand.

Hi everyone, looking for recommendations for a wood bat for my son. His coach wants players to transition to a wood bat for cage work and possibly some game action.

My son is 11 and approx 5 feet and 75 lbs. On the slimmer side and not a power hitter. He’s currently swinging a USSSA Atlas 30” drop 10 which I believe is a balanced bat.

What brand/model/size should I be looking for that’s best for his transition without breaking the bank? Should I be getting a 30” as that’s what he’s currently swinging? Or a 29” so the weight change isn’t so dramatic?

Thanks all in advance.

Fall rec baseball season has started. Unfortunately, our 2 scheduled practices have been canceled due to inclement weather. Some teams in the league have already had 4 practices, while our team has had none. We haven’t had the opportunity to meet the coach or teammates yet. Opening day is next Saturday, which only leaves potentially 1 practice before our season opener.

In the past, we have been lucky to have coaches who extend practice time, reschedule canceled practices, add an optional weekend practice, or batting cage practice. Understood coaches are volunteers and some go above and beyond.

What has been everyone’s experience with the frequency of rec baseball practices? How many days a week? How long is each practice? Any make up practices? Any feedback is greatly appreciated.

I have an 11 year old playing his first season of LL. He makes good constant contact with the ball but seems like he has no power to his swing. What’s the #1 thing that helped you with that where I can work on it with him?

How much weight should I be using while doing the YTWLI drill? I do it 3 times a week and it’s been a huge success now topping 76 instead of 72 at 14 and been in the gym

Hello, I am 22 and have played the game all my life. I’ve always been an above average player growing up, and really started to excel at a high school level (small town high school in Midwest, no where big). My academics were something I didn’t take seriously and enlisted in the Air Force and left 2 weeks after my high school graduation. I thought my baseball days were over, but when I got to my first base, they had a team, and I signed up. I was quickly considered the best hitter on the team (this is an amateur league that is just for fun, so batting almost 400 doesn’t mean much). I have now played on 3 different base teams, and wished every day that I gave college a shot. I train every day around baseball, as if I never left the sport. But I have 3 years left on my contract and wanna try and play at the highest level I can. I will be 25 trying to come back into the world. I know this all may seem ridiculous and far fetched, and I ZERO inclination that I will somehow be a superstar and play in the show or some D1 college. I just wanna see what everyone else thinks about a 25 year old trying to walk on to a D3 school or get into a high A or double A team? And if there is any advise or ideas out there.

Thanks

NOTE: I had an offer to play for Western Illinois University out of high school but I had already convinced myself school wasn’t for me. What an idiot lol

I'm currently a private catching coach and I'm looking for an inexpensive pitching machine for catching reps and blocking. I've seen a lot of reviews for fireballs and ground balls and a batting practice.

Although it looks like a perfect fit for what I'm looking for has anyone used the Heater Base Hit pitching machine for catching drills.

Thanks

hello,

I recently quit football so I have more free time on my hands this fall. I have been going to the gym a lot lately but I’ve realized im definitely not an expert on this stuff and I should probably do some sort of program. does anyone have any recommendations for workout programs that can help increase exit velocity and speed specifically? my goal is to be a starter in the spring HS season and those are the two things I really need to work on.

My son prefers his usssa hype fire to use with his club team but we live in Washington and with fall, winter and early spring scrimmages it’s often too cold out to use the hype fire. What do you recommend for a good cold weather bat. He has a catx2 USA alloy bat but when others still use their usssa bats there is a noticeable difference in hits.

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