batting swing for kids

Question
Hi Mr. Elliott

Our son Wren is 7, he played coach pitch at age 6 with the 7-8 year olds, had a 777 batting average. We moved, and signed him up to play with his age group.  His coach recommended the big barrel bat, but the private coach we have on the side said for him to stay with his 18 oz kid pitch bat.  Wren has a very wide stance, long story short--the team coach and his batting coach are wanting him to take a step forward when he hits and sort of swing up, the private batting coach says he can tap his front foot if he wants to, but he can do it with the wide stance and no step.  He is a big kid--will be 6'5 and seems to have natural talent--we are not a sports oriented family, but want him to get the best instruction while having fun.  What would you recommend--should they stride into the ball or not?  Also, he did a pitching clinic, they wanted him to start learning--it seems way to early at this age--when should kids start learning to pitch and how many in a day, he was able to do it very quickly and well, we just don't think it is good for his shoulder.  Any suggestions welcome!

Answer
Hi Melody,

It sounds like your son is a natural talent.  That high a batting average is great at any level.  In addition, it sounds like you are willing to get him any help he may need so I applaud your support of your son.  With this said, I will offer some answers and suggestions to your questions.

1.  Team coach versus the private coach question?  My opinion in this area is to give more deference to the private coach over the team coach.  Private coaches tend to offer more personalized advice to the player.  In addition, the team coach may not be an expert in that facet of the game.  For this reason, I would tend to follow the advice of the private coach.  Since you are paying for this advice, it only makes since to follow it.  The only time I would really push back against private coaching advice is if Wren felt like it was not helping him or risking personal injury.  However, if you have done your homework finding a good instructor, this should not be an issue.  

2.  Size of bat question?  I think the dispute between the private and team coach here is over their perspective.  The team coach may want him to swing a bigger barrel bat believing he will get more hits for the season.  However, the private coach may be thinking that a smaller bat will help him continue to develop his hand and eye coordination for the future.  Since Wren is only 7, I tend to think it is better for him to practice for the future and use the smaller barrel bat.  If he wants to switch to a big barrel bat as he gets older, he can naturally do so.  The top hitters tend to pick their bats by feel more than the size of the barrel.  Plus, there is some science that suggests you can get faster bat speed with a smaller barrel bat.

3.  Batting stance stride question?  It is difficult to judge your son's swing without actually seeing it.  However, I am a big believer in having players develop their own natural swing, especially at an early age.  For this reason, it seems your son prefers a wider stance and so I see no reason to fight this since he seems to be hitting very well with it.  I would only look at changing the swing if he is doing something that is making him lose balance or developing a hitch in his swing.  Many major league hitters have all kinds of different swings.  Don't let anyone try to tell you there is one right swing.

4. Pitching question?  There is no real need to for him to start pitching before middle school.  I would be concerned about possible injury and burnout.  Your son is very young and there is no reason to rush this.  I would delay adding significant pitching training until middle school.  This will help reduce the risk of injury due to throwing too many pitches and allow his body a better chance of developing properly through puberty.  

As he gets older and starts pitching, you do need to be concerned about his pitch count.  The general rule at the high school level is to not throw over 100 pitches.  However, I would cut this down to about 60 pitches for middle school and even less for younger ages.  In addition, after pitching these pitch limits in a game, it is very important that he not throw at all for the next 48 hours to allow his arm and shoulder time to heal.  Many young players fail to allow their arm time to rest properly and risk reduced speeds and personal injury later in the season because of this.        

These are all good questions you are asking.  Best of luck to your son in the upcoming season and beyond.

Jack Elliott
http://www.baseballtrainingtechniques.com