Hitting to right field

Question
Hi. I'm hoping you can help me. My daughter is 8 years old and plays in an 8U softball team. She has always been a great hitter. About half of the time she will hit them to the fence at the back of the field. However, lately she is having some trouble with batting, in that she is consistently hitting the ball to right field and sometimes up the center so it makes it harder to get to 1st base. She is right handed. I noticed that she wasn't always lining up her feet at the plate and that sometimes her right foot was a little behind the imaginary line where her feet should be lined up. I hope that makes sense. We have been working on that, but it doesn't seem to have been making a difference. Also, she doesn't always "squish the bug" with her right foot. One coach told me that she sometimes seems to be taking a step with her right foot when she bats. I haven't seen her do this. What reasons can you think of as to why the ball usually goes to right field or 1st base? She is very strong and has a strong swing. I know it's hard without actually seeing her bat, but do you think it's more of an alignment issue at the plate or a timing issue with when she swings. Also, the coach has been pitching her faster balls recently in order to get her prepared for the 10U division. Could this have something to do with it?  

Answer
Hello Leslie

Consistently hitting the ball to the right side for a right handed batter could be a timing problem however it抯 not solely caused by a timing problem. Much of the problem is often rooted in the batter抯 swing mechanics. From your description she may be casting her hands (a long, round, sweeping swing).

For a quicker swing the hand path should be "inside-out". Have her practice on a tee driving the "knob straight to the ball". This encourages an inside-out path. Where the knob goes the barrel follows.

A website that you might find useful for hitting mechanics and troubleshooting is http://www.hittingacademy.com  there is a small onetime access fee for unlimited access. I抳e been a member for several years and the information there has been invaluable. If you don抰 use it pass the link on to your daughters coaches.