Throwing bat after hitting

Question
MY grandson who is 8 has a bad hait of throwing his bat after he hits. he has a godo swing and makes very good contact and swings very hard.....in his follow thru he lets go of the bat always. He was called out 2 times in game tonight for throwing his bat.  As his grandfather i would like to help him gain better control....how can I help?

Answer
Mike, thank you for your question.

What your grandson is experiencing is not uncommon.

I would start by talking with him and explaining that throwing the bat is dangerous to others on the field, and that the rule for not throwing the bat is there to protect other participants.

Practice having him take swings with the bat, no pitcher, no ball.  Swing, drop bat, 25 times.

Same swing, drop bat, run a few steps, 25 times.

Same swing, drop bat, run to first base, 25 times.

Over time, he will become comfortable with swinging and dropping the bat, then running.

When he is doing that successfully, you can add a tee and ball, repeat reps.

Final step is to take it back live, in a game, with a pitcher, or practice with a pitcher.  Once he has it, he shouldn't return to throwing it.

Generally, kids get excited and in a hurry, thus throwing the bat seems to be the quickest way to get out of the box.  Time and reps should get him past it, especially since the umpires have started calling him out.  

Good luck as you go forward.  Very fixable, just takes a little time.

Yours in baseball,

Rick