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5 Drills for Hitting the Outside Pitch

By: Cindy Bristow

You want to have good hitters and win games then your players better be able to hit the outside pitch. Discover a 5 Part Drill to help turn your players into solid outside pitch hitters!

Fastpitch Softball Free Hitting Drills score more runs

Ever get that runner to secondbase only to have your next 2 batters hit groundballs to the shortstop – inning over! Learn how you can teach your hitters to take balls to the opposite field and score more runs in the process.

As every player, that makes the transition from travel or high school ball to college, learns, hitting is one thing, hitting the outside pitch will get you into the lineup! Now I’m not talking about sticking your bat out there and poking some lame slow roller to the secondbaseman. I’m talking about driving the ball hard to the opposite field on an outside pitch!

Before we get into a series of drills that will really help your hitters learn to drive that outside pitch, let’s first talk about a few things that are important as a means of background; what exactly is the “opposite field?”, why is this pitch is so hard to hit?

OK, you might be wondering what the opposite field is, or what’s it opposite of? Both are excellence questions and fortunately, easy to answer. The opposite field is the part of the softball field (both infield and outfield) that is opposite from where the batter stands in the box. So for instance, I’m a right handed hitter so I stand in the batter’s box to the left of Home Plate. That means since I’m on the LEFT of Home Plate that the entire part of the field on the RIGHT is the opposite field. Drawing a line to split the field in half from home plate to 2nd base and out to centerfield, everything on the right side of the line (standing on home plate and looking out at the pitcher) would be opposite field for a Right Handed Batter while everything on the LEFT side of the field would be opposite field for a Left Handed Batter.

Now, why is it so hard to hit the outside pitch (the pitch that goes over the outside part of the plate)? Well basically there are 2 reasons:

  1. It’s Farthest Away from our Eyes – This makes our ability to clearly and precisely see this pitch very difficult. We often struggle with knowing whether it’s over the outside edge of the plate for a strike or just a bit outside (as Bob Uecker says) for a ball. So our vision is one of the challenges for hitting this pitch.
  2. Trying to Pull Everything – the other reason our hitters struggle with this pitch is that weaker hitters try to pull everything and that doesn’t work on an outside pitch. When poor hitters having twisting swings, where their chests pull their hands and their entire swing is moving sideways, it makes reaching out to get plate coverage extremely difficult. It’s hard, if not impossible, to hit the ball to rightfield when your chest is twisting into the 3rd base dugout. So having poor hitting mechanics is the other reason the outside pitch is so hard to hit.

Now the big question is – how do you fix it? What things can you do as a coach (or parent or player) to improve your ability to hit that outside pitch?

Fortunately there is a series of drills that will help the hitter work on hitting the outside pitch and learning how to hit it hard to the opposite field. What hitters must learn is to keep their upper body (chest) facing the ball while finishing their swing in the direction they want the ball to go in, which is, the opposite field.

Too many hitters try to step toward the ball with their foot which only makes hitting this pitch harder. You always stride to the same spot no matter where the pitch is. This is due to the fact that pitches will break far too late for you to step at them based on inside or outside locations.

What hitters must go to hit the outside pitch includes the following:

  • Keep their chests facing the outside part of the plate
  • Continue their follow through toward the opposite field
  • Be patient and let the ball travel closer to the plate than usual
  • Stay tall and don’t lean into the ball with your waist
  • Keep your hands ahead of your barrel during your swing (called an Inside-Out Swing)

Fastpitch Softball part of the ball to hit to go to opposite field

Before we look at a 5 Drill series that will really help your hitters learn to master hitting the inside pitch lets discuss the part of the ball you want to try and hit to make the ball go opposite field. The diagram to the right shows how you should place a ball on a batting. Have the closer seams facing backwards and have the righty hitters hit the Black X seam and lefty hitters hit the Red X seam. It’s actually hitting the Inside part of the ball but makes more visual sense this way.

Now the 5 series outside hitting drills:

    Fastpitch Softball hitting drills - feet facing forward

  1. Feet Facing Forward – Upper Body Facing Plate: have your hitter use a batting T and a home plate, and start with her feet beside each other (spaced out) and facing forward while her chest faces the ball on the T. She works on hitting the ball off the T without moving her feet. At first this will be extremely difficult but will teach her to keep her hands ahead of her barrel and hit the ball away from her. (Lefties/Slappers start in their regular box with feet and chest in same position.)

    2. Fastpitch Softball hitting drills - feet on file line

  2. Feet on Foul Line – Upper Body Facing Plate: The next step involves the hitter moving her feet so they are lined up with the fouline as shown in (2) to the left. This starts to get harder and really forces the hitter to lead with her hands and keep her chest facing the ball.

    3. Fastpitch Softball hitting drills - feet regular ball on Tee

  3. Feet Regular – Ball on T: Now the hitter gets into their regular position in the box and keeps their chest facing the ball throughout their swing.

    4. Fastpitch Softball hitting drills - feet regular ball off toss

  4. Feet Regular – Ball off Toss: The final step for a right handed hitter is the same as (3) except now the hitter is hitting a ball from front toss. This now allows the hitter to actually track the pitch, wait for it to get deep and then hit it hard to the opposite field.

    5.  

     

    Fastpitch Softball hitting drills - slapper drills - Slapper Feet Position Picture

    Fastpitch Softball hitting drills - slapper drills

  5. Extra Drill for Slappers – To help lefty slappers handle that inside pitch and still hit it to the opposite field there’s one more drill they should do. It’s awkward as it involves really twisting up the feet but is outstanding to help slappers work on their hands. The slapper gets into the lefty box and puts her feet in line with the 3rd base fouline. She’ll have to pretend the fouline is more in front of homeplate (as in (5) to the right). She’ll then work on keeping her chest to the ball and hitting the ball off the T to the opposite field. It’s hard but really pays off with your slappers being able to handle the inside pitch (either high or low).

To help make this more challenging try using Zip Balls on your T’s and with your tosses.

If you’re looking for more ways to improve your hitters you might find the following helpful:

Filed under: All, Hitting, Slapping — Tags: , , , , , , , , , — Cindy Bristow @ 8:17 pm

29 Comments »

  1. This is GREAT stuff……

    Thanks Coach Bristow!

    Comment by Tracey — February 9, 2010 @ 8:49 am

  2. great drills, i wish i would have had them this fall but we’ll be using them in practice today!

    Comment by joe elston — February 9, 2010 @ 8:57 am

  3. Joe – I’ll be interested to hear how they work for your team today in practice. Keep us posted – Cindy

    Comment by Cindy Bristow — February 9, 2010 @ 9:35 am

  4. Waw..this sounds interesting. I will definitely try with my girls too.

    Comment by Raluca — February 9, 2010 @ 9:54 am

  5. excellent!! I would add for young hitters to understand that the use
    of cones for targets helps it make more sense to them.
    keep up the great work!!
    Joe Medlen

    Comment by Joe Medlen — February 9, 2010 @ 10:08 am

  6. This is great I’ve been trying to figure out how to get my girls the practice drills they need to hit the outside pitch seeing as we “seem to let them go by”
    Thanks Cindy

    Comment by wayne — February 9, 2010 @ 11:36 am

  7. Hi Cindy… Great drills, but have just 1 question. Drill #5 for slappers, did you mean this drill would help them hit the “outside” or “inside” pitch? Thanks for all your great tips and help!!!

    Comment by Ron — February 9, 2010 @ 11:37 am

  8. Thanks for the great lead up drill.

    Comment by Diane — February 9, 2010 @ 12:15 pm

  9. I saw Patrick Murphy do these at a clinic and have used them ever since. They are awesome. I even presented them at a State All-Star Clinic myself!! Great drill for indoors as well this time of year!!!

    Comment by Rus Mayes — February 9, 2010 @ 1:26 pm

  10. What do you recommend for left-handed power hitters (not slappers)? They get lots of outside pitches when runners are in scoring position. Should they still try to go with the pitch to the opposite field?
    Thanks.
    Linda

    Comment by Linda — February 9, 2010 @ 1:51 pm

  11. Cindy!

    As a side note, you mention hitting the ball “inside-out.”

    I have asked this question of peers (coaches that know the game) and an Olympic player and didn’t get the answer I was looking for, a difference of opinion… possibly? Either way, here goes:

    - When in the box, should the batter be “thinking” inside-out or outside-in?(re: adjusting to the pitch)
    - The responses I’ve received said one of 2 things and in a few cases both… “I’ve never thought of it that way,” or “outside-in.”

    I believe a player should “think” of adjusting to a pitch, “thinking” inside-out, because in my opionion, it’s fundamental to stay closed and drive the inside pitch, BUT if it breaks out, you wait… and drive the pitch to the opposite field as you’ve mentioned in this article.
    - Where do you stand on this one?

    Keep the awesome information coming!!
    I am a much better coach from the knowledge you provide!

    - DJ

    Comment by DJ — February 9, 2010 @ 2:04 pm

  12. Cindy in diagram #5 for slappers hitting the inside pitch the opposite way the tee is set up for a outside pitch is this just a oversite in the diagram or am I missing something?

    Comment by Mike — February 9, 2010 @ 2:26 pm

  13. Cindy,
    Thanks for the hitting the outside pitch drills! I am going to have the girls try it at practice on friday night! I am excited to see how they do. I also looked at the zip ball drills and will start to implement them also.

    Comment by Jenny Scharbach — February 9, 2010 @ 2:30 pm

  14. Thanks Coach…I will be sure to incorporate some of these drills, especially the drill for the slappers!

    Comment by Luke — February 9, 2010 @ 2:31 pm

  15. Outstanding information!! Our girls last year struggled all year and lost games because we couldn’t hit the oustide pitch. These drills will do wonders for the girls! Thanks!

    Comment by Rhonda Ruesch — February 9, 2010 @ 2:39 pm

  16. Those are good drills and we really use the one where the hitters feet are exaggeratedly open but have never tried the one with the batter facing the pitcher. For the lefty slapper who needs work on the inside, I really wanted a drill and I looked at your diagram but the pitch is on the outer half to lefties, not inside.

    Comment by Jami Lind — February 9, 2010 @ 2:51 pm

  17. I always forward stuff like this to our program’s head-coach. I love it!

    Comment by Natosha — February 9, 2010 @ 3:43 pm

  18. Hi Cindy,

    Need some clarification please.

    Please clarify the position of the tee in drills 1-3.

    In drill 4, is the front toss made from behind protection or do you use wiffle balls?

    Comment by Rex Wootan — February 9, 2010 @ 8:25 pm

  19. Instead of a comment, I have a question on the outside pitch. Can you use double tees as a drill that are staggered with the batter swinging through hitting both balls? The reason why I ask because I have a 10U travel team and I did the drill with the girls tonight. It seemed to be very successful with the young girls in a crapped up cage with several drills going on at one time. Yes, some had problems because they wanted to pull their chest out, but after showing them to follow through just like you explained. The girls caught on very quick.

    Comment by Chris Cummings — February 9, 2010 @ 10:44 pm

  20. Coach –

    The graphic on number 5 indicates an outside pitch but the article said “To help lefty slappers handle that inside pitch and still hit it to the opposite field there’s one more drill they should do.” Can you straighten me out? Are we hitting inside or outside here?

    Thanks!

    Comment by Eric — February 9, 2010 @ 11:35 pm

  21. Hey – for those of you that asked a question about Drill #5 – which is the one that deals with Slappers I know it might sound a little confusing but here’s the deal… Slappers have a much easier time handling the outside pitch than the inside one. The inside pitch really jams most of them up. But, in order to practice hitting the inside pitch we first want to practice the proper upper and lower body position needed to handle the easier outside pitch.

    So, Drill #5 shows the feet position that a slapper is in when they hit any pitch in any location, and the T is setup outside as this just makes it easier for the slapper to begin practicing. Once they’ve gotten pretty good with the outside pitch then you can move the T inside and practice the same thing. You guys are right – I could have explained it better so thanks for the feedback!

    I’ve just updated the article: 5 Drills for Hitting the Outside Pitch, with a picture of Caitlin Lowe slapping and handling the outside pitch so you can see that her feet are in the exact position I’m talking about in this drill. You’ll see that Caitlin is handling an outside pitch with her feet and hands in the same position as Drill #5 and the same position as they would be for an inside pitch. Hope this helps! Cindy

    Comment by Cindy Bristow — February 10, 2010 @ 11:32 am

  22. Wow – this Outside Pitch article really woke everyone up! That’s great! Here are my answers to a few of the questions that didn’t deal with Drill #5:
    - Yes, left-handed power hitters should still try to hit an outside pitch to leftfield (opp. field) with runners in scoring position as they’ll tend to drive the ball farther. The key is that it’s an outside pitch. If they try to pull this pitch they’ll most likely popup.
    - Hitter’s should think Inside-Out on all pitches as this keeps them from swinging around the ball. Then it’s only a matter how how deep to let the ball travel based on inside vs. outside pitch.
    - T position in Drills 1 – even with both feet, Drill 2 – even with back hip or foot, Drill 3 – even with back foot. In Drill 4 if using real or Zip Balls use a protective screen or else use whiffle balls.
    - Double T’s work great especially when you’re also using the footwork progression we talked about in these 4 drills.
    Cindy

    Comment by Cindy Bristow — February 10, 2010 @ 11:40 am

  23. Great info, Im a hitting instructor and this is axactly what I preach. Let the ball get deeper in the zone,shoulder closed and hands in front of barrel. Move runners and extra base hits.Its also a shorter bat path to the ball/ Fight off the inside pitch and adjust to the outside pitch. Inside Out, knob ahead of hands.Palm up and hit the right field line.Its all about the tracking and it comes from alot of front toss.

    Comment by Coach Neil — February 10, 2010 @ 2:52 pm

  24. This is great stuff!!! Thanks Coach. I really enjoy your tips and informaion. Keep them coming!

    Nick

    Comment by Nick — February 10, 2010 @ 4:59 pm

  25. Very informative Coach. I’ve got a clinic for younger girls coming up and I will use some of your tips for hitting the outside pitch. THANKS!

    Comment by JIM — January 23, 2011 @ 10:47 am

  26. do you have a similar drill for pulling the ball?

    Comment by Chuck — May 29, 2011 @ 8:52 am

  27. i don’t mean pulling the outside pitch just one down the middle

    Comment by Chuck — May 29, 2011 @ 8:58 am

  28. Chuck – If you’re looking for drills to help your players pull the ball, there aren’t many since that’s usually a skill coaches don’t want their players doing any better since foul balls don’t help. Hitter’s tend to be much stronger at pulling inside pitches than going with outside pitches – that’s why thie series of drills. Sounds like your problem is a mechanics issue with your hitter’s swings. If they can’t pull anything it’s because they are never commiting their barrel to the ball. Instead, they’re pulling the bat handle through the entire zone without their tophand snapping the barrel into and through the ball. Check out our Hitting Drills manual (http://www.softballexcellence.com/Detail.bok?no=4) for some ways to help correct this.

    Comment by Cindy Bristow — May 29, 2011 @ 10:19 am

  29. Coach, having played & pitched this game for many years I try to share my experiences with girls & coaches alike. I ALWAYS suggest learning to hit to the opposite field not only for the examples you write about, but to also help the girls become better contact hitters. If your hitters are in a slump, learning to hit to the opposite field WILL give your hitters the skills they need to become better contact hitters. Thank you so much for demonstrating these simple (not always easy though) drills.

    Comment by Fred F. — November 4, 2011 @ 5:57 pm

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