See a defensive workout that covers many situations a defense will have to face during games.

Mike Stith shows us the defensive team workout that has made his older teams successful and prepared his players to compete at the collegiate level. Coach Stith begins practice with warm-ups and throwing, and also introduces many fielding drills with a conditioning component. He uses these drills, along with hitting many repetitions of live batted balls, to build consistent defenders.

Warm-up and Throwing
Throughout Coach Stith's warm-up throwing routine, careful attention is paid to throwing with correct technique, something that is important to avoid injuries and keep the player's arms healthy. Stith has his infielders practice short hop drills with each other, and the team moves into a Four Corners Drill. This drill incorporates a lot of throwing, with an emphasis on accuracy. This drill is helpful to allow the players to practice a few of the basic but critical fundamentals of the game, such as throwing, catching, footwork, and communication.

Conditioning Drills
Once warmed-up, the entire team participates in three softball specific conditioning drills, which also allow the players to practice fielding fundamentals. The conditioning drills begin with the coaches rolling ground balls to players, gradually increasing the distance between the fielders and the balls. These drills are important as they give the players a chance to focus on fielding fundamentals, good footwork, and seeing the ball all the way into their gloves. These drills progress into the next set of drills, which involve live ground balls hit balls off the bat.

Fielding
Coach Stith believes fielders should be hit a lot of ground balls off the bat, as there is no substitute for reading the ball off the bat and reacting to the ball. The infielders are put in their positions and hit numerous ground balls to each side. They are also given smaller gloves and hit baseballs, forcing them to focus hard on seeing the ball. Fielding numerous ground balls is necessary for fielders to become consistent and develop confidence in their fielding skills.

Group Drills
The outfielders get a chance to participate in the next set of drills, which involve balls hit to the outfielders in each position of the outfield. The outfielders must field or catch the ball, and throw to certain bases. The infielders then throw the ball around the infield, alternating bases, to incorporate more throwing practice. Finally, the coaches hit balls with runners on base, to help simulate more realistic game situations. The fielders must make the play and react to the base runner.

Use Coach Stith's defensive ideas to run a practice that will prepare your team to face any game situation with confidence.

75 minutes. 2013.

Maximize your potential at the plate!

There is a well-defined list of absolutes that every accomplished hitter follows. But within those absolutes, there are also styles. Style can be different for every hitter, but every successful hitter needs to be good at the absolutes. In this unique video, two-time Big 12 Coach of the Year, Ehren Earleywine describes the absolutes and distinguishes the styles.

Coach Earleywine discusses the differences between absolutes and styles in hitting. Moving in expert step-by-step detail from the stance to finish, Earleywine categorizes the multiple swing mechanics that must be present in a great hitter's swing and the absolutes associated with each.

This video includes 10 hitting phases: the stance, negative move or load, positive move, toe touch or launch position, rotation, bat path, connection, contact, extension, and the finish. These "absolutes" are explained in detail, demonstrated by current players, then shown in a live game with video analysis software. He also includes side-by-side video analysis of experienced hitters and beginning hitters executing these mechanics.

No matter what level you're competing at, Coach Earleywine's hitting mechanics breakdown will enable you to understand the difference between the "style" of your swing and the "absolutes" a great hitter must possess.

You don't need every absolute to be successful, but continued pursuit of the absolutes will definitely maximize your hitting performance. Softball Hitting Absolutes enables you to pursue the absolutes efficiently and effectively.

69 minutes. 2013.

Learn 24 key drills to improve and correct errors in the softball swing. Three-time College World Series coach Ehren Earleywine, provides an overview of the 10 key phases of the swing. Earleywine provides an in-depth breakdown in the video Softball Hitting Absolutes. To help illustrate the 10 phases, Earleywine analyzes video clips of his Missouri hitters compared to amateur hitters and points out key absolutes for each phase of the swing.

Each drill includes excellent demonstration, coaching points and what to look for as you teach and execute the drill. In addition, Earleywine demonstrates drills that he uses to prepare his athletes for different types of pitchers and pitches, including a timing drill, a two-tees drill to correct improper bat path, and drills for hitting rise balls and drop balls.

Coach Earleywine also offers advice about drills in general, pointing out that he stays away from gimmicks and wants any drill he uses with his hitters to be as realistic and game-like as possible.

Ramp up your run production this season by fully training and developing each phase of the swing!

74 minutes. 2013.

Most softball coaches agree that speed doesn't slump. Now 2x Big 12 Coach of the Year Ehren Earleywine helps you take advantage of your team speed using effective slap hitting mechanics.

Coach Earleywine begins by presenting a few of the major goals of slapping. He discusses the three different types of slaps - The Tap Slap, Regular Slap and Power Slap - and the mechanics needed to be consistent from the plate regardless of the pitch. For each type of slap, Earleywine shows video of his Missouri slappers and has a few of his players demonstrate correct and incorrect mechanics.

Next, Coach Earleywine reveals four variations of footwork that slappers can utilize. As his players demonstrate the footwork, he discusses the pros and cons for each. He also discusses slappers having either slow or fast feet, and the benefits and drawbacks of both.

Coach Earleywine moves on to the hands and introduces four different types of grips that slappers can use. He covers the correct positioning of the hands, bat angle, and approach to the ball for slappers. Earleywine talks about the ideal bat plane for a slapper and how that bat plane will vary based on the type of pitch they are thrown. He has his players demonstrate and shows video to further explain his approach.

You'll also hear Coach Earleywine's discuss his coaching philosophy on slapping. He talks about when to slap, some common situations when slapping would be an ideal weapon, and which type of slap to use. He also points out a few situations when slapping would not be a go-to strategy. Finally, Earleywine offers some general tips to slappers about strategy and practice ideas.

Use Coach Earleywine's mechanics and strategy ideas to turn your slappers into base hit machines!

65 minutes. 2013.

Get the most out of your practice time with slap drills that will keep your slappers' batting average up and strike out percentage down.

Ehren Earleywine follows up his slapping mechanics DVD by introducing 18 different drills he uses to help develop his University of Missouri slappers. For each drill presented, Coach Earleywine discusses the key coaching points as a few of his slappers demonstrate. He also presents video analysis of three different types of slaps, to help address coaching points for several of the drills.

These drills cover every aspect of slapping, starting with footwork and the importance of slappers running in a straight line out of the batter's box. Earleywine introduces a toe touch tee drill to put the slapper into the launch position and isolate the mechanics of the upper body.

Many of the drills Earleywine talks about emphasize developing the proper bat plane. To illustrate the importance of getting on plane with a pitch, he shows video of his slappers hitting various pitches. Earleywine introduces a few of the tee drills he uses to work on bat plane with rise and drop balls. He also shows a few innovative ways to throw front toss that simulates rise and drop balls, including a tennis ball bounce drill.

Often, slappers are naturally right handed, and therefore have weaker left hands. Coach Earleywine shows one-handed slap drills to strengthen the left hand, as well as hitting away and using a heavier bat.

Bat control is also of vital importance to slappers. Earleywine provides two drills designed to work on bat control through ball placement. You will also learn a few drills for eye hand coordination and timing.

This DVD will be an asset to softball coaches at any level. Use Coach Earleywine's drills to develop every aspect of your team's slapping game and dominate the batter's box!

47 minutes. 2013.

Three-time NFCA Midwest Coach of the Year Ehren Earleywine provides thorough explanations and demonstrations of the mechanics of infield play that often times get overlooked or undervalued. Coach Earleywine breaks down everything from how to take a throw at every base to applying tags. He also demonstrates the importance of pre-pitch movement, double play transitions and footwork, and infield throwing mechanics.

Coach Earleywine begins by examining the pre-pitch movements needed for corner and middle infielders, including how they differ from each other. You'll see detailed instruction on the mechanics of fielding a routine ground ball, including the proper approach to the ball, fielding position, glove work, and footwork.

Earleywine covers three different types of backhands, three variations on forehands, and fielding two different types of ground balls on the run. For each, he explains the fielding mechanics in detail, and has a few of his players demonstrate.

You will learn the necessary footwork for tag plays and how to set up at each base for steals, pick off plays, and throws from the outfield. Earleywine has several of his players demonstrate each play at each base.

In the throwing segment, Earleywine explains why a three-quarters arm slot is preferable for infielders, but also demonstrates a sidearm throwing technique for rushed throws. Good throwing mechanics will help keep your players free of injuries.

Earleywine explains how his middle infielders change their positioning with runners on base. He then has his players demonstrate the footwork for turning a double play from every position on the field, as well as several variations of the footwork at second base.

Finally, Coach Earleywine talks about an infielder's most important tool, their glove. He explains the characteristics each position would want in a glove as far as size and pocket shape, including how to break a glove in properly, and the pros and cons of different ways to treat gloves.

This video includes the same infield mechanics that have made the Missouri Tigers a national contender and produced a nationally ranked defense.

78 minutes. 2013.

University of Missouri Coach Ehren Earleywine follows up his infield mechanics DVD with this all inclusive DVD on infield drills - enough to fill up entire week's worth of practice!

Coach Earleywine introduces you to 12 drill sets he uses with his infielders. In each drill set, several coaches are hitting to different infielders at the same time allowing the infielders to maximize repetitions and work on several different skills simultaneously.

Earleywine also offers an alternative called "Twos" that is better suited for teams that don't have several coaches or managers available to hit. He also shows you how he uses a short game scrimmage to work on bunt and slap coverage, and practices defensive situations with an 'infield only' defensive drill.

This comprehensive infield includes instruction on:

• Infield warm-up and a daily throwing routine to polish mechanics and prepare for practice.
• Short hop drills for developing quick hands.
• A four corner drill, with several variations, for different types of ground balls and throws.
• Basic drills using a paddle to work on soft hands.
• Pick off plays and rundowns.
• And more!

Strengthen your defense today with these proven infield drills!

62 minutes. 2013.

Myndie Berka has trained hundreds of successful pitchers. Her pitchers have:

• earned scholarships at over 60 different colleges and universities
• competed at the Women's College World Series at the NCAA DI, DII, NAIA and JUCO levels
• been named collegiate All-Americans
• been collegiate national strikeout leaders at both the NCAA DI and DII levels

Pitching is a complex skill that must be performed correctly for the pitcher to maximize her power and control. Because each movement in the pitching motion builds sequentially on the prior movement, any flaw or inefficiency can cause the pitcher to lose power, accuracy, or even result in injury.

Myndie Berka provides a great understanding of what the proper mechanics and key checkpoints in the pitching motion are by using slow motion video analysis software. She discusses correct pitching mechanics, then shows pitchers with inefficiencies and identifies 12 common flaws in the pitching motion. Coach Berka also offers 25 drills to help correct the flaws.

Correct Mechanics

For any motion, it's helpful to know what the correct mechanics look like in order to learn and successfully execute the movements. Coach Berka uses video to identify key checkpoints within the pitching motion from the set up, weight shift and load, and upper and lower body position at toe touch. She then works through the pull down phase into the release and finish position, again identifying key upper and lower body checkpoints. With each movement, Coach Berka explains why it's important to the overall pitching motion.

Lower Body Mistakes

Coach Berka identifies eight common pitching mistakes associated with lower body mechanics and four mistakes pitchers make with their upper body. Some of the mistakes covered include:

• The weight shift and load
• Drive foot problems
• Glove arm problems
• Balance problems
• Locking out the pitching arm
• Arms and legs not in sync
• Tight or unnatural follow through

For each mistake, Coach Berka shows the flaw on video, fully explains the issue by identifying what happens when pitchers haveeach flaw and how it hurts them, and then offers several drills to correct the issue.

Drills to Correct Pitching Flaws

After identifying particular flaws in the motion, Coach Berka introduces a variety of drills to help correct each of them. These drills are done using live pitchers and provide appropriate progressions and cues to help pitchers feel what an efficient motion should feel like.

For example, one of the mistakes is when pitchers lock out their pitching arm, which makes their arm circle and subsequently pitch slower. To remedy this flaw, Coach Berka offers a bottle drill, which involves a pitcher holding a water bottle and performing their arm circle. If the pitcher locks out her arm (the incorrect movement), the water will spill out of the bottle, while the correct movement causes no spillage.

Coach Berka's simplifies the pitching motion into key checkpoints and then shows what poor pitching mechanics look like. You'll also receive drills to correct common flaws, making this one of the best pitching videos on the market.

73 minutes. 2016.

Arizona Softball pitching legend Nancy Evans shares the "daily dozen" drills that catapulted her to 1998 National Player of the Year and have made the University of Arizona a "softball pitching factory" (Evans, Jennie Finch, and more) and a national powerhouse in collegiate softball. Coach Evans presents a wide variety of unique, practical pitching drills for pitchers of all levels and abilities. These individual drills will help pitchers develop and master all of the elements of successful pitching such as 'violent' wrist snap, correct spin, control and accuracy, muscle memory, effective leg drive, proper mechanics, arm strength, and velocity. Coach Evans strongly emphasizes building an arsenal of pitches using these drills by teaching the principles and mechanics of the fastball, rise ball, curveball, screwball, drop ball, and change-up. Effective teaching points and quality demonstrations will help you put a polish on your favorite pitches!

76 minutes. 2005.

with John Tschida,
University of St. Thomas Head Coach;
member of the NFCA Hall of Fame (2016);
Over 900 career wins; highest winning percentage in D-III softball history (.840 winning percentage);
3x national championship coach, first coach to win national title at two schools;
2x NFCA Division III National Coach of the Year; 12x MIAC Coach of the Year;
has now led St. Thomas to the NCAA Tournament each of the last 15 seasons

Develop better control and more explosion in your pitchers.

This extensive library of pitching drills features more than 90 exercises from three-time national championship coach - John Tschida. Coach Tschida demonstrates drills that will help you work with your players to correct common mistakes in their pitching form to develop effective throws.

Starting with wrist snaps to build the throwing motion, Tschida demonstrates drills that encourage your players to maintain a loose wrist and loose arm. These drills will eliminate restrictions in your pitchers delivery, which will give you top velocity. Tschida moves to drills that will help keep your players balanced and develop a consistent stride to maximize the effectiveness of their pitches.

From there, Tschida shares drills that focus on the rotational part of the pitching motion and the follow through that work on finishing off pitches properly. Tschida closes with drills to increase velocity and build control. He also includes some competitive drills that bring all of the elements together and force your players to focus on the entire motion to throw a quality pitch.

Many of these drills presented provide your payers with immediate feedback so they can adjust their mechanics as needed. With these drills you will be able to work with your players to develop their pitching mechanics and fundamentals.

147 minutes. 2009.

Lindsay Leftwich shares her extensive knowledge of the catching position including framing, blocking, throwing, and fielding bunts. For each skill, Coach Leftwich provides you with a thorough explanation of the mechanics involved, explains why the mechanics are such, and offers several drills and work-ups.

Framing
When done properly, framing can help make borderline pitches look like strikes to the umpire. Coach Leftwich has her catchers demonstrate four drills to practice framing fundamentals. She also demonstrates the basic stance catchers should assume to ensure move quickly and effectively receive the ball.

Blocking
Being a good "blocking" catcher will give your pitchers confidence that they can throw any pitch in any situation, because they know their catcher will stop the ball, no matter where it goes. Coach Leftwich explains the correct mechanics of blocking and offers eight drills and work-ups to help catchers master the skill. You'll see how to block pitches right at the catcher and pitches thrown to either side.

Throwing
Learn the quickest way to transfer the ball from glove to throwing hand and learn the footwork required for throwing to each base. Ball transfer and foot quickness can compensate for average arm strength or enhance a catcher with a strong arm. Leftwich also explains several drills and work-ups for throwing out runners attempting to steal second base, as well as pick off throws to first and third base.

Bunts
Take the pressure off of corner infielders and stifle your opponent's short game! Catchers who are proficient at fielding bunts can wreak havoc on your opponent's offense. Learn the drills, footwork techniques and approaches to the ball that your catcher needs to make plays on any bunt.

Coach Leftwich does a great job not only explaining the proper mechanics for the catching position, but also the "why" behind her philosophy and teaching, often citing research and video analysis.

This DVD will produce a more productive and efficient catcher to get your pitcher more strikeouts and to get those tough outs on defense.

68 minutes. 2013.

with Peter Turner,
San Jose State University Head Coach;
the winningest coach in San Jose State program history (over 300 wins);
2017 Mountain West Conference Champions; 2x Conference Coach of the Year;
member the ASA National Softball Hall of Fame (2007);
former USA Softball Men's National Team coach ('02 - '13)

Don't have enough time to cover everything you want in practice? Feel like your team isn't making the best use of practice time? Some coaches waste too much time hitting ground balls and fly balls to one player at a time while the rest of the team waits their turn.

Peter Turner shows you how to run an efficient practice where infielders and outfielders practice the skills they will need most on game day. Additionally, you'll get a unique pitcher's workout that uses a lot of run-through drills to build on accuracy as well as conditioning and fielding.

With over 20 drills showcased, Coach Turner takes you "behind the scenes" and allows you to learn from a program that gets the most out of practice time.

Practice Philosophy

Learn how to avoid long practices by drilling the skills needed most on game day. Coach Turner shares his practice philosophies and offers simple suggestions to make practices and drills you already run more efficient. He teaches how to plan a practice and what to cover at various parts of the season - pre-season, mid-season, and post-season - and how to maximize your staff and their abilities.

Infielders Catch and Throw

Cut down on throwing and catching mistakes and you will eliminate a lot of your team's errors, in general. Turner shows you seven drills to work on game-like throwing and catching technique, while challenging your players to be quick.

In the 21 drill, players must make 21 perfect throws in a row. Just like on game day, they need to make 21 outs, while the coach times the group. This drill challenges players to be quick while applying pressure similar to the pressure they may experience in a game.

Infield Everyday Drills

Practice eight of the most common plays for infielders in a controlled setting using Coach Turner's everyday drills. These drills are designed to get infielders lots of reps where the player and coach can focus on fielding technique and fundamentals. Improve your infielders' glove work while ensuring that they take proper angles to the ball, which will give them more range. Key teaching points include:

• Stopping the ball with the glove instead of squeezing the ball for quicker transfers.
• Taking a 45 degree angle to the ball up the middle or in the hole.
• Assessing speed of the players around them, on the bases, and at the plate.

Outfield Everyday Drills

Get outfielders involved with four everyday drills of their own. These drills will help your outfielders take better angles to the ball, which will result in more caught fly balls. You'll see how to teach players to catch a line drive coming directly at them - one of the hardest plays for outfielders to read.

Pitcher Run-Through Drills

After the pitcher releases the ball, they're no longer a pitcher - they are a fielder! Help your pitchers improve their pitching and fielding skills with three run-through drills. These run-through drills will help your pitchers practice fielding the ball and improve their conditioning and athleticism.

Lower Half Pitching Drills

Coach Turner introduces two drills to improve the lower half of your pitchers that will get them driving harder and rotating faster in order to throw the ball harder. These drills will emphasize the importance of rotation and location in pitching. He also demonstrates six drills that work on improving accuracy while incorporating other aspects of pitching

Having enough time to cover all skills and give every player the reps they need is a challenge for coaches at all levels. This video gives you plenty of techniques for accomplishing more at practice in less time.

89 minutes. 2018.

with Chase Turner,
San Jose State University Assistant Coach;
member of the Men's USA Softball National Team

Chase Turner has done a great job of taking his own fast-pitch softball playing experience with ASA `A' National Championship teams and USA Softball teams and sharing it with the hitters of SJSU. In the eight seasons (through 2017) that Turner has been an assistant at SJSU, batters have set program records in team batting average, slugging percentage, on base percentage, runs, hits, doubles, home runs, RBIs, walks, and total bases.

Few coaches train their players using proven scientific principles. This is only one of the attributes that sets Chase Turner apart from the rest. Learn the biomechanical principles of ground reaction force, torque, and inertia and how utilizing these three concepts will help you turn your athletes into power hitters.

Hitting Mechanics

Learn how to make your swing as mechanically efficient and powerful as possible. Turner explains several scientific and biomechanical principles and applies them to the softball swing. See how a batter can use the Magnus effect to hit the ball in the correct location to put the desired spin on a batted ball, which will make it fly farther.

Ground Reaction Force

Draw power from the ground with Turner's four ground reaction force drills. In the Bucket drill, Turner shows you how to drive the back knee down and in toward the ground, into a bucket placed in front of the back knee. This will helps your hitters swing with more power because the force the hitter puts into the ground will be transferred into the swing.

Torque

Turner shows how to use drive your back side into your front side to create torque, which will power your swing. He also shares four drills to help get more torque and power out of your players' swings.

Inertia

Learn how to use the inertia your hitters create to hit the ball harder and further. Turner presents nine drills to train your hitters to start the swing tight to their bodies to maximize inertia, then let go of that inertia at contact and release to transfer force into the softball.

From A to Z, Coach Turner covers all the aspects behind power hitting. You'll see how to get the most out of your softball swing, and your body when hitting, with science on your side!

62 minutes. 2018.

featuring Mike Candrea,
University of Arizona Head Coach;
8x NCAA Champions, winningest coach in NCAA Division I Softball history (1500+ wins);
4x National Coach of the Year; named the Pac-12 Coach of the Century;
Distinguished member of the National Fastpitch Coaches Hall of Fame (1996);
2x US Olympic Softball Coach (Gold in '04, Silver in '08)

While all infielders must share certain fielding skills, each position requires a different skill set and mentality. Coach Candrea provides you with the essential background knowledge to make your infielders more efficient and more powerful.

Candrea dives into the intricacies of each position on the infield, while also addressing the basic fielding mechanics that all great infielders must master. You'll learn footwork, throwing techniques, base-covering tips, and other infield responsibilities to give your players the ultimate advantage.

Principles by Position

Most errors that occur in the game of softball happen in the infield. Coach Candrea provides an in-depth look for each infield position, by breaking down the necessary skills for third base, shortstop, second base, and first base. He provides specific tips to help each position player reach her full potential, covering:

• Throwing - Warm up and types of throws.
• Mentality - Fearless, athletic, creative.
• Mechanics - Glove work and basic infield footwork.
• Pop fly responsibilities.
• Cut-off responsibilities.
• Base coverage and tagging techniques.
• Double play footwork.
• Fielding bunts.
• Pre-pitch preparation.

Throwing Techniques

Teaching throwing mechanics is step one to having elite players. Coach Candrea describes how athletes at each infield position should throw the ball to maximize their power, strength, and decision-making. He demonstrates the "thumb flick" to describe the action used by the hands to get into a strong throwing position.

Footwork and Fielding

Candrea discusses how to field the ball at each base, utilizing "rake throughs," "get arounds" and "short hops" to get the ball in your players' gloves effectively and efficiently. These techniques lead to a higher fielding percentage and result in fewer errors and more outs.

A fielding drill Candrea shares will teach your infielders to choose the good hop by having them count the number of hops as the ground ball is being hit to them. The drill helps your players:

• Pick the short hop, not the long hop.
• Open up on the long hop.
• Make sure the glove is on the ground when the ball takes its last hop.
• Field the ball out in front of their nose.

Candrea provides philosophy on what type of athlete should play each position, as well as how they should line up. Also included is the strategy on when to play up or back, as well as multiple ways to cover a bag when receiving throws from both the infield and outfield. These points are often overlooked by young or inexperienced coaches and they can be the difference between a win and a loss.

If you want to know the ins and outs of infield play that oftentimes get overlooked and under-coached, you need this video from Coach Candrea!

55 minutes. 2017.

Patty Gasso opens up her softball drill library and delivers 24 fast and challenging drills that will stretch your team defense. These infield and outfield drills are designed to improve players' fielding skills, range, footwork and conditioning.

WARM UP DRILLS
In this working warm up, Gasso demonstrates a five drill warm up circuit. Before taking the field, she demonstrates drills that include a weighted glove reaction drill, slide board leg work, and several wall ball drills.

On the field, Gasso demonstrates two team warm up drills: Around the World and Touch & Go. Around the World doubles as a warm up and conditioning drill for both infielders and outfielders. The Touch & Go drill works on creating athleticism and maximizing the players' range.

These drills will energize your team and set the tone for practice.

INFIELD DRILLS
Gasso runs her players through eight Infield Drills. These multifaceted drills work players all around the infield focusing on range, glove work, footwork, short hops, sliding with the throw, throwing on the run and more.

OUTFIELD DRILLS
The Outfield Drills include nine drills that work on becoming efficient in the outfield. These drills fine-tune all ares of outfield defense, including footwork, fielding ground balls with the forehand and backhand, throwing to bases, hitting relays and recovering from bad throws, playing the ball off the wall, taking good angles to the ball and going hard to get the out in foul territory.

Coach Gasso has molded the University of Oklahoma softball program into a national power. She has placed herself among the elite college softball coaches in the country, winning over 700 games at Oklahoma - and these drills play a large part in her success. This DVD is a must for coaches looking to take their athletes to new heights.

91 minutes. 2010.

Myndie Berka has trained hundreds of successful pitchers. Her pitchers have:

• earned scholarships at over 60 different colleges and universities
• competed at the Women's College World Series at the NCAA DI, DII, NAIA and JUCO levels
• been named collegiate All-Americans
• been collegiate national strikeout leaders at both the NCAA DI and DII levels

Speed is a typical concern for pitchers; almost all pitchers want to throw harder. Throwing faster pitches puts pressure on opposing batters to make quicker decisions, which makes the pitcher more difficult to hit.

In this softball pitching video, Myndie Berka offers 25 drills and four circuits to make pitchers stronger. She breaks down the body into lower and upper body and drills each separately before putting it back together and training the whole body for producing power and speed. These challenging workouts teach hurlers not only the physical toughness they'll need to be successful on the mound, but also the mental toughness and discipline to become dominant pitchers.

Coach Berka does a remarkable job of explaining what some of the common flaws are and how to correct them during many of these challenging drills. She explains the value and purpose of every exercise and tool she introduces so you have a better understanding of the drills. Each drill reinforces proper mechanics as Coach Berka explains variations of many of the drills so you can cater them to each of your own pitchers.

Lower Body: Harness and Loading

The strongest part of the pitcher's body is their legs. Therefore, most of the power generated by a pitcher must come from the legs and lower body. Coach Berka introduces five harness drills that show pitchers what it feels like to get more power from their lower body. Three loading drills are also demonstrated, which put pitchers in a position to generate more power from the legs. Proper mechanical principals are emphasized and reinforced during these challenging drills.

Upper Body: Weighted Balls

If a pitcher has good mechanics, throwing with heavier or oversized balls can help strengthen the shoulder, arm and wrist, while also creating a faster arm circle. In these four drills, Coach Berka has her pitchers train with oversized softballs, over-weighted balls, and two softballs taped together to strengthen the arm and make pitchers be faster with the snap. She pairs this with throwing with a lighter ball to increase arm speed, resulting in stronger and faster pitches.

Walk-throughs and Distance

Putting the whole motion together, Coach Berka introduces three walk-through drills to help pitchers understand what it feels like to be more powerful. She also has her students demonstrate a distance throwing drill, and offers four drill options for throwing distance when confined in a small space. These drills are ideal for indoor practices when space is limited.

Circuits and Drills

Get in a challenging pitching workout while pressed for time! Coach Berka offers four pitching circuits, which combine several pitching drills and demand maximum effort from pitchers in minimal time. She also explains four other demanding pitching drills that are good for conditioning and can be used as an entire pitching workout. These drills will teach your players the physical and mental discipline necessary to complete a challenging workout.

The challenging drills taught by Coach Berka will help your pitchers develop physical strength and mental toughness, which will translate to more wins on the mound.

63 minutes. 2016.

Myndie Berka has trained hundreds of successful pitchers. Her pitchers have:

• earned scholarships at over 60 different colleges and universities
• competed at the Women's College World Series at the NCAA DI, DII, NAIA and JUCO levels
• been named collegiate All-Americans
• been collegiate national strikeout leaders at both the NCAA DI and DII levels

There's more that goes into pitching than just throwing a ball across home plate and hoping that batters don't hit it. All too often, developing pitchers focus on throwing strikes and fail to develop the discipline to throw to precise locations while mixing speeds.

Myndie Berka delves into the art of pitching, showing more advanced pitchers how to control and neutralize hitters by hitting spots and varying speed. She takes you through an ordered and detailed development of drills to help pitchers improve their ability to hit locations. You'll also learn a series of instruction on the development of alternative change-up techniques that will help keep hitters off balance.

Developing Focus Points

Teach your pitchers the physical adjustments they must make to hit their spots consistently. Coach Berka discuses focus points and release points, which helps pitchers develop the feel and visual focus needed to control the ball both in the zone when they need a strike and around the zone when they are ahead of the count.

Drills for Hitting Spots

Missed spots often result in the opposing batters making solid contact, so having good command is something pitchers need to excel at. Coach Berka offers 12 drills for pitchers to employ when practicing hitting their spots. These practical visual feedback drills require simple tools available to any pitcher. Advanced location drills are demonstrated and explained to provide a simple and effective training routine for pitchers to hone their location performance and begin to understand the selection of location, based on the count.

In one particular drill - One Skips - pitchers try to skip the ball off home plate to practice keeping the ball low. Gradually, pitchers progress to hitting a knee-high, then chest-high target. Throughout the drill, Coach Berka reinforces the art of pitching by helping players understand where they want to miss, if they happen to miss their spot. All pitchers miss spots, so it's important to know where to miss when it happens.

Change-ups

The changing of speed can be the most crucial part of controlling the hitter. Coach Berka teaches a variety of change-ups starting with the Flip, modifying it to develop a Curve Change, and then the Shove change using six different grip variations. For all change-up techniques, Coach Berka provides a logical sequence of drills and progressions for learning the pitch, as well as which one may be most beneficial based on the strengths of the pitcher.

Coach Berka teaches not just mechanics, but the art of pitching. This video will teach your intermediate and advanced pitchers how to control hitters by hitting their spots and changing speeds.

91 minutes. 2016.

Myndie Berka has trained hundreds of successful pitchers. Her pitchers have:

• earned scholarships at over 60 different colleges and universities
• competed at the Women's College World Series at the NCAA DI, DII, NAIA and JUCO levels
• been named collegiate All-Americans
• been collegiate national strikeout leaders at both the NCAA DI and DII levels

Competition between the pitcher and batter is at the heart of the game of softball. With the ball in the pitcher's hand, the outcome of the game is usually also in their hands. Pitchers must practice these pressure-packed, competitive situations to excel in live game situations.

Pitching coach Myndie Berka introduces multiple competitive games that can be done individually or with a fellow pitcher. Consequences are also built into the drills to help pitchers learn how to deal with the failure or stress that can occur during a game. Coach Berka's games and drills will force your pitchers to be uncomfortable and she discusses different strategies of how to deal with the pressure situations and failures that often occur during games.

Mechanics

Having a good mechanical foundation is important part of pitching, as poor mechanics can result in inefficiencies or injury. Mechanics can break down under pressure, so Coach Berka starts off with four mechanical competitions. These drills feature pitchers competing against a partner and challenges the pitchers to conquer basic mechanical concepts like staying balanced.

Movement Pitches, Change-Ups and Target Pitching

Throwing late-breaking movement pitches is vital to success on the mound, as these are the pitches that will cause batters to swing and miss. Coach Berka has her pitchers compete with a different drill for throwing fastball/change-ups, drop balls, and rise balls. Location is another critical component for success on the mound, and Coach Berka has three stations of drills to prepare her pitchers to hit their spots when the pressure is on.

Conditioning

Pitching is a demanding cardiovascular activity, so pitchers must be in top shape to be able to throw full 7-inning games. Coach Berka offers four competitive conditioning drills to challenge pitchers to execute their pitches while fatigued. In one drill, players must throw a pitch and sprint to the catcher to retrieve the ball, and then sprint back to the mound to throw another pitch. In this drill, the pitcher is competing with the clock, as the goal is to get seven pitches thrown as quickly as possible.

Games

Coach Berka helps pitchers develop the mental toughness it takes to work through the adversity that can occur during a game. She offers two competitive pitching games and two drills to replicate game-like situations. These drills focus on important concepts for pitchers like throwing strikes, hitting spots, and also challenge pitchers to understand the strategy behind pitching.

Pitching is one of the most pressure-packed positions a player can assume on the field. Coach Berka's drills will help prepare your pitchers to thrive in competitive game situations.

77 minutes. 2016.

with Shonda Stanton,
Indiana University Head Coach;
former Marshall University Head Coach;
the winningest coach in Marshall softball history;
2017 Conference USA Coach of the Year;
2013 Conference USA Tournament Champions; 4x Conference champions;
former Coach for the Akron Racers of the Women's Professional Fastpitch League

Put pressure on your opponent and make them make plays. Coach Shonda Stanton has compiled a video featuring a comprehensive set of sliding and baserunning drills to help your team "Take the next 60 feet."

Once on base, from stealing to making aggressive baserunning reads, Coach Stanton teaches what to look for as a coach and runner, and shares 24 drills to put pressure on the opposing defense.

Leads, Stealing, and Sliding

Getting off the base efficiently in the lead is the first step to stealing. Coach Stanton teaches you to avoid the five common base stealing mistakes, most of which start at the base. Learn the three things you need to know and the formula for success in stealing bases, as well as six stealing drills to help you swipe bases more effectively.

Sliding is a major part of the game, and knowing when to use a variation of slides at the right time will help you steal more bases and get more safe calls. Not only does Coach Stanton show you how to teach your players to slide into bases with no fear using six sliding drills, she'll also show various ways to slide and when you should execute each type of slide.

Baserunning

Being smart but aggressive baserunners allows your players to be in scoring position more often. Putting pressure on the other team ultimately leads to making them be perfect in their execution. Be more efficient around the bases and read the ball better with Coach Stanton's nine drills. In the controlled baserunning reads drill, the runners are placed in five common baserunning situations and they have to make reads off a hitter's batted ball. The runners learn to take into account the defense and how each ball is hit when making their reads.

Score more runs with smarter baserunning!

72 minutes. 2017.

with Shonda Stanton,
Indiana University Head Coach;
former Marshall University Head Coach;
the winningest coach in Marshall softball history;
2017 Conference USA Coach of the Year;
2013 Conference USA Tournament Champions; 4x Conference champions;
former Coach for the Akron Racers of the Women's Professional Fastpitch League

Good infielders are athletic, can move quickly, and are able to make difficult plays look easy. Coach Shonda Stanton brings you a fully comprehensive instructional video filled with over 35 innovative drills to make your athletes better infielders.

Teaching footwork to go along with glove work is a necessity to quality infield play. Working from the ground up, Coach Stanton isolates the hands and feet before putting it all together and drilling the full skill, which leads to the finished product: a complete, athletic infielder capable of making every play.

Mechanics of Fielding a Ground Ball

Coach Stanton takes you through what to look for in your players when they field a ground ball:

• Good footwork
• Smooth and quick hands
• Good posture (chest forward, butt out, create a hinge with wrist and elbow)
• Transfer ball at mid-line

She emphasizes the four key points above during each drill. You'll also see her team run through an assortment of drills to drive the key components of sound mechanics.

Glove Work and Footwork

Footwork and glove work are necessities to getting outs. Learn from Coach Stanton the pre-pitch movement to put your body in a good fielding position to make a play quicker. She cover six drills to isolate the footwork necessary to get to balls hit to all sides of a player, as well as 15 drills for hands and glove work.

In one drill, Coach Stanton sets out hula-hoops that her players have to step in to emphasize the need to gain ground on their first steps. The first steps are the most important, as you cannot make up for a poor start to a ball.

Infield Fundamental Drills

Putting it all together, Coach Stanton offers 19 infield drills she uses to develop athletic fielders. She progresses her drills from working with a stationary ball, to rolling, and finally fungo fielding. Teach your players several key pieces to being an athletic infielder, including:

• How to make plays and field a ball while moving
• How to react quicker
• How to transfer the ball faster

At the end of the video, Coach Stanton gives an assortment of drills that puts everything together for the athlete. The Scramble Drill has base runners and infielders competing against each other. It incorporates fielding, throwing and tagging runners out as well as slides for the runners.

You can't make an out unless you field the ball first! Coach Stanton gives you over 35 drills to help even the newest infielders develop into great players. Mastering the skills in this video will help your players become complete infielders.

80 minutes. 2017.

Jenny Allard uses her years of experience as a Division I Head Coach and an All-American pitcher to guide players and coaches through the the basic principals of pitching from the grip, spin and stride. She breaks the motion down into manageable steps that players of any age or ability will be able to comprehend and implement, giving you an understanding of the common flaws young pitchers make when starting out and how to correct the mistakes.

Coach Allard opens up by explaining how to correctly grip the softball, and adjustments that can be made based on the size of the pitcher's hands. Young pitchers may or may not be big enough to grip a 4-seam fastball, so teaching them a grip for a 2-seam will help them get the proper rotation on the softball. She then moves on to the proper wrist snap and release. Using a couple of young pitchers as demonstrators, Allard introduces a series of pitching progression drills that train pitchers to lead with the wrist and stay behind the ball. These begin by isolating the wrist snap, and gradually build up, moving the arm further and further back, until the pitcher is doing almost a full arm circle.

Coach Allard then introduces four drills she uses to isolate the arm circle. Pitchers begin by practicing the arm circle on a knee, and after mastering that, stand up and gradually incorporate more use of the legs. Again, Allard has two of her beginning pitchers demonstrate each step. Getting good leg drive is one of the biggest struggles for young pitchers. Legs are crucial to the speed and power of your pitcher. As an introduction to proper leg use, Allard gives you some basic instruction on how to use the legs to generate more power behind the pitch, as well as the basics for how to line up the pitcher's feet on the pitcher's mound. She also presents three drills for learning how to load and drive with the legs. Also discussed is the optimum stride length for young pitchers, as well as a few teaching cues for coaches to allow them to drive out farther, creating more velocity and less time for the hitter to react to the pitch.

Pitching is a difficult skill to master, and learning the correct fundamentals is essential for later success. Coach Jenny Allard will help young pitchers develop the basic pitching skills that will frustrate opposing batters for years to come.

70 minutes. 2013.

Usually, pitching instruction has been targeted at beginners and advanced level pitchers, neglecting a very large segment of pitchers who fall in the in-between. Jenny Allard gives instruction targeted for intermediate pitching students, those pitchers who are beyond the beginner level but are not quite advanced. These pitchers have the basic fundamentals and coordination of the pitching motion, but still need some correction and development on additional pitches.

Usually, with an intermediate level pitcher, their hands will be big enough that they can grip the ball along the "C" of the seams, giving a four-seam rotation to help the ball spin. She introduces six drills she uses to further develop an intermediate pitcher's wrist snap and release. A good wrist snap will create more power and velocity on the ball. These drills build up from isolating the wrist snap and gradually incorporating more arm circle, until the pitcher is throwing with a full arm circle motion.

For each drill, Coach Allard explains and gives instruction, as one of her intermediate level pitchers demonstrates.

Coach Allard then moves on to the legs, aiming to teach her intermediate pitcher better leg drive and follow through. She demonstrates three drills she uses to teach leg drive, including starting the pitcher from a loaded position, walk-throughs, and long toss. Allard also alludes to some of the mental game of pitching, giving some advice for pitchers who need to make corrections in game, explaining that they should say a cue word off the mound, then have a clear mind when they step on the mound and pitch.

Finally, Coach Allard talks about throwing four types of change-ups, explaining the grip and mechanics for each. Not every athlete is successful with the same type of change-up, her instruction will give your pitcher options to see what works best for them. She explains how she develops the pitch, beginning with flip drills, the building up using a snap progression, and finally throwing full distance.

Coach Allard will show you how to develop these intermediate level pitchers and help them step up their game!

44 minutes. 2013.

with Caitlin Lowe,
University of Arizona Assistant Coach;
member of the 2008 US Olympic Team (Silver Medal); 4x All-American (and only one of two players in Arizona history to be named 1st team All-America 4x at Arizona);
part of 2 NCAA Championship teams, winner of the adidas Golden Shoe Award (for the nation's best base-stealer);
Arizona's all time leader in stolen bases, 2nd all time in career batting average (.446), 4th in hits and triples and 7th in runs scored;
played for the USSSA Pride for 6 seasons, 3 National Pro Fastpitch titles, 2012 Player of The Year & USSSA Hall of Fame (2106)

Outfielders are often an overlooked aspect of the game, and this video allows you to see how a commitment to these players can help develop world-class technique and solid and repeatable performance of your athletes.

Caitlin Lowe takes you through the full slate of outfield training activities used at the University of Arizona. She offers 10 drills, plus a 4-step rolling progression and a 9-step throwing progression, to build an outfielder's physical skills. She also addresses the mentality and anticipation that separate good outfielders from great ones.

Characteristics and Philosophy

Learn the mentality every outfielder needs, as well as the pre-pitch preparation needed to be in the right position. Lowe explains five characteristics of a good outfielder, and also explains her philosophy on outfield play. Outfielders must have certain physical tools to be successful, but they also must embody several mental characteristics, like fearlessness. Learn to instill the fearlessness necessary for your outfielders to aggressively and intelligently make the routine and big plays.

Throwing Progression

One physical tool great outfielders must possess is a strong and accurate arm. The outfielders at Arizona demonstrate a 9-step throwing progression to help improve throwing mechanics, arm strength, and simulate some of the throws they may make during a game. Learn how to get rid of the ball quickly to get a force out, or run through a do-or-die and crow hop for more strength on a longer throw.

Drills

Coach Lowe begins with the outfielders gloveless and catching tennis balls, then incorporates a 4-step roll progression before hitting balls to the outfielders. She also introduces a drill series to practice robbing home runs over the fence. In one particular Fly Ball Ladder Work drill, the outfielders must use quick feet to step through an agility ladder, then sprint out and gather themselves as they round a cone and catch a fly ball. This helps teach outfielders to get behind the ball, which will help them avoid drifting and allow them to make a stronger and more accurate throw.

Great outfielders make the game look easy because of their pre-pitch preparation and anticipation skills - they always seem to be in the right spot at the right time.

From throwing out a runner rounding third and heading home to robbing a home run over the fence, Coach Lowe shows you the skills and drills that help great outfielders make difficult tasks look easy!

71 minutes. 2017

with Caitlin Lowe,
University of Arizona Assistant Coach;
member of the 2008 US Olympic Team (Silver Medal); 4x All-American (and only one of two players in Arizona history to be named 1st team All-America 4x at Arizona);
part of 2 NCAA Championship teams, winner of the adidas Golden Shoe Award (for the nation's best base-stealer);
Arizona's all time leader in stolen bases, 2nd all time in career batting average (.446), 4th in hits and triples and 7th in runs scored;
played for the USSSA Pride for 6 seasons, 3 National Pro Fastpitch titles, 2012 Player of The Year & USSSA Hall of Fame (2106)

Over the years, one thing the University of Arizona has been known for its speed. Former Wildcat great-turned-coach, Caitlin Lowe, shows us the mentality and skills that helped make her one of the best ever.

Lowe shows you what to look for at each base for base running, and then dives into slapping mechanics, types, and strategy.

Slapping Mechanics

Knowing where to stand in the box and having good footwork is important to minimize time to first base after hitting the ball. Coach Lowe shows you the footwork that will keep you on-line, but allow you to move quickly out of the batter's box. Learn the bat path and contact point that will keep your bat in the zone as long as possible to increase the chance of making contact with the pitch. Lowe also offers advice for how to get to first base faster - every slapper's ultimate goal!

Types of Slaps

Give your slappers the tools they need to make the defense wrong and improve your chances of getting on base. Lowe discusses and demonstrates the different "weapons" a slapper can utilize during an at-bat. The drag bunt, soft slap, chop slap and hard slap are all discussed, demonstrated and taught.

Lowe also shares what to look for in the defense to know when to use each type of slap. She also covers situational slapping and how you can use each type of slap strategically depending on where runners are on base

Base Running

Proper base running techniques are often overlooked and under-practiced. Smart, aggressive base runners are a commodity, and win you more games. Lowe shows how you can incorporate base running practice into your batting practice to get more done in a shorter amount of time

Base by base, Lowe shows you how to anticipate and react to the situation. As demonstrated by the Wildcat players, runners start at first base and react to the batted balls. Learn when to be aggressive and when to be a little more conservative at second base, and how to be aggressive with a down angle at third base, as well as the philosophy behind what type of leads to take at each base.

Use Coach Lowe's tactics to turn your offense into a nightmare on the base paths for the opposing team!

44 minutes. 2017

with Tony Abbatine,
Founder, Frozen Ropes;
2018 USA Softball National Team Coaching Staff - overseeing the mental and visual skills;
Has worked with the New York Mets, New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Colorado Rockies, and the Los Angeles Dodgers as a player development department consultant;
Adjunct College Professor, Sports Psychology, St. Thomas Aquinas College;
author of numerous articles on player development featured in: Sports Illustrated, ESPN, USA Today, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Baseball America and various television media.

Build an elite level swing by keeping things simple! Efficient swings have few holes for opposing pitchers to exploit. Tony Abbatine offers a clear progression of hitting drills to develop top-tier baseball or softball hitters.

Coach Abbatine provides several drills important to developing consistency while minimizing over-coaching and over-complicating hitting. This drill series does a great job of isolating various swing flaws, helping players understand the best fixes available while maintaining a commitment to the full process of hitting.

Utilizing Drills

While drills can be an important part of practice and development, coaches have to understand how to use them effectively to truly help the player develop to their maximum ability. Coach Abbatine presents a quick overview of his hitting style, and then goes in-depth about how he uses drills to teach these principles. Each drill that Abbatine shares has purpose, and every one builds on the drill before to give players the greatest chance at development.

In addition to offering a proven teaching style, Abbatine also shares details of how to best evaluate hitters. These techniques are critical for evaluation in the recruitment process and in player development.

Barrel Control Drills

The core of Coach Abbatine's hitting philosophy is getting the barrel to the ball. He introduces a three-drill progression he uses to help teach barrel control - an essential element of hitting. The Punch, Rifle, and Sword drills each take the swing one step further until the hitter is taking almost a full swing, focusing on controlling the barrel.

Hitting Drills

Coach Abbatine opens his library of hitting drills to the viewer. While his drills address all aspects of the swing, most of them help the hitter to keep things simple. Using this resource, learn how to develop a complete hitter that is dangerous even against the most effective pitching. You'll see:

• Selfie drills that allow hitters to work individually, warm up, and develop coordination.
• Body Control drills to help hitters develop consistency in their mechanics from stride, to launch point, to finish.
• Hand position drills that help hitters develop an appropriate launching point and barrel control.

Abbatine provides an informative resource for developing hitters that is simple and educational. This video is great for both novice and professional coaches, as well as any player seeking improvement in their hitting!

56 minutes. 2018.

with Tony Abbatine,
Founder, Frozen Ropes;
2018 USA Softball National Team Coaching Staff - overseeing the mental and visual skills;
Has worked with the New York Mets, New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Colorado Rockies, and the Los Angeles Dodgers as a player development department consultant;
Adjunct College Professor, Sports Psychology, St. Thomas Aquinas College;
author of numerous articles on player development featured in: Sports Illustrated, ESPN, USA Today, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Baseball America and various television media.

The first and possibly the most important part of hitting success is the visual ability of the batter. The visual component of hitting involves so much more than 'see the ball, hit the ball.'

Tony Abbatine explains the mechanics and strategies to put your players' eyes in a better position to see the ball. Through 10 drills, he shows you how to improve athletes' ability to see pitches, pitch rotations, and pitch locations to become the best performer possible in the batter's box.

Visual Mechanics and Strategies

Learn the mechanics and strategies that will allow your players to see the ball earlier, longer and clearer. For example, you will learn how to relax the eyes to pick up on more visual cues that the opponent's pitcher gives out. Coach Abbatine suggests a few physical mechanics that may be making it more difficult to see, and gives easy-to-remember cues to put your eyes in the best position to see.

Visual Drill Work

Limited space and resources? Coach Abbatine teaches three easy-to-use visual drills that can be done anywhere. Learn to catch without moving the head, and allow the eyes to do the work with No Look drills that force hand-eye coordination to advance. J-line drills force hitters to recognize and actively train the eyes and brain to react quickly to pitches.

Visual Cage Work

Combine vision work and hitting for the ultimate visual benefit. Coach Abbatine introduces seven drills that incorporate the skill of hitting while the focus stays on the eyes and seeing the ball better. Make a foundational drill that you already do, like hitting off the tee, more realistic and effective! Abbatine also shows some variations of flips and tosses that will give them more of a visual component.

A perfect mechanical swing is almost worthless if you don't have good visual skills. Coach Abbatine gives you the visual strategies and drills to help players see better without having to visit the optometrist!

70 minutes. 2018.

with Tony Abbatine,
Founder, Frozen Ropes;
2018 USA Softball National Team Coaching Staff - overseeing the mental and visual skills;
Has worked with the New York Mets, New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Colorado Rockies, and the Los Angeles Dodgers as a player development department consultant;
Adjunct College Professor, Sports Psychology, St. Thomas Aquinas College;
author of numerous articles on player development featured in: Sports Illustrated, ESPN, USA Today, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Baseball America and various television media.

At the higher levels of baseball and softball, physical skills don't separate the good from the great players; it's the player's mental skills that are usually the greatest differentiator. Most coaches don't spend enough time on mental skills, often because they don't understand the mental game or how to teach mental game.

Tony Abbatine, who is also a professor of sport psychology, guides you through the understanding of mental dominance. He provides proven techniques for reducing stress and anxiety and also shares what Hall of Fame-level players do mentally to create the best chance to perform.

Weapons of Mental Dominance

Coach Abbatine introduces you to the nine "Weapons of Mental Dominance" that help players identify their personal readiness for success. These techniques are the building blocks of a routine that allows players to perform at their best, even in the most pressure-packed situations. He provides specific approaches to improve players in the areas of controlled breathing, mental imagery, positive self-talk, and goal setting. These are all techniques that coaches know are important, and this video provides easy cues and teaching points that will benefits players and coaches of all experience levels.

Abbatine also gives details regarding the negative thoughts that can prevent players from achieving their full level of success. He gives tips for time-tested techniques that rid the mind of those harmful thoughts, as well as approaches for replacing them with mental skills that increase the opportunity to dominate.

Additionally, you'll get vehicles for goal setting, performance analysis, and techniques for self-coaching that will allow players to feel fully prepared and sufficiently confident to let the body perform at the highest level. There is a clear relationship of how a strong mind and controlled emotions can produce the best physical performance!

Dealing with Pressure

Where does pressure come from? Coach Abbatine answers that question, and many others, as he explains how to re-frame pressure. When you understand that humans create the 'three evil sisters' you will start to understand how we can get rid of them too.

Team Physics

Team physics is a phrase to describe team chemistry. Coach Abbatine turns the idea of physics around on the coaches, saying that they must model what they want out of their athletes. Learn the attributes of successful coaches, and how you can better lead your athletes.

Baseball and softball are often defined as being 80-90% mental; taking advantage of these proven performance techniques from Coach Abbatine is an absolute must!

69 minutes. 2018.

Myndie Berka has trained hundreds of successful pitchers. Her pitchers have:

• earned scholarships at over 60 different colleges and universities
• competed at the Women's College World Series at the NCAA DI, DII, NAIA and JUCO levels
• been named collegiate All-Americans
• been collegiate national strikeout leaders at both the NCAA DI and DII levels

Superior spin is the secret weapon of dominant pitchers. Blazing speed is an effective weapon for an inning or two, but late-breaking movement pitches can keep batters guessing for a full seven innings.

Too often, developing pitchers believe that once they have the grip, movement is automatic. Myndie Berka covers the rise, curve and the peel and turnover drop balls to give your pitchers what they need to get maximum spin on every throw.

She begins with variations of grips for each spin and ends with drills to help pitchers learn where pitches should be breaking. Coach Berka uses her own students to demonstrate each drill and includes feedback as they move through the progressions. This feedback will help you learn what to look for in your pitchers as you introduce them to the different pitches.

You will also learn when a pitcher is ready to progress from one stage to the next, appropriate cues to use so pitchers will know what the pitch should feel like and look like, different ways to challenge a pitcher to master a pitch. You will learn what are some fixes for some common problems that pitchers have when learning a pitch and what drills work when a pitcher is struggling with a particular spin.

Rise Ball

The rise ball is the ultimate strikeout pitch. Coach Berka explains the grip and snap necessary to develop late-breaking movement on the rise ball, and offers two drills for rise ball spins. She also explains eight spin stations with spin trainers to help the pitcher feel coming underneath the ball, which will create the backwards spin that makes the rise ball jump.

Curve Ball

Throwing the curve is similar to the grip and snap of the rise ball, except the pitcher snaps around the ball to give it the sideways spin that makes the pitch dance away from the hitter's bat. Coach Berka explains how to put proper spin on the curve ball and uses a spin progression with Frisbees to demonstrate. This is a fun drill that teaches pitchers the snap move of the wrist, while providing them with immediate feedback as to how successful they are. Coach Berka also offers five spin stations to help pitchers get the feel of proper spin.

Drop Ball

The drop ball is a great pitch to have in a pitcher's arsenal as it produces a lot of ground ball outs and is not frequently hit for home runs. The drop can be thrown two different ways, and Coach Berka explains each while having her pitchers demonstrates a four-step drill progression for learning and perfecting the wrist snap.

Body Position and the Full Pitch

Once the grip and snap is mastered, the goal is to put the body in the correct position to help the pitch spin. Coach Berka has her pitchers demonstrate three body position drills, which are different for each of the three movement pitches. She also offers a drill for each of the three pitches to help your pitchers execute late-breaking movement, and one light flight drill that can be used with any pitch.

Coach Berka breaks down the grips, wrist snaps, and body positions required to throw the rise ball, curve ball, and drop ball. You'll get 24 total drills which will help your pitchers feel the correct movement and execution of each pitch.

73 minutes. 2016.

Howard Dobson shares twenty-seven of the drills he uses at all levels of the game to build better hitters starting from the ground and working up.

These are the same drills he uses with his hitters at LSU. Dobson provides a thorough explanation of how to correctly perform each drill - including any variations. He explains drills to work on every aspect of the swing working from the ground up, starting with the legs and moving on to the upper-body.

Lower Body
Power for hitting comes from the ground. By leveraging their legs correctly, your hitters will maximize their power in every swing. Coach Dobson introduces several drills that will develop your hitter's lower body.

These drills help the hitter get their legs in the correct position and set them up for a correct load, stride, and weight shift. Each drill is designed to help the hitter recognize the correct feeling associated with whatever hitting skill is being taught.

Upper Body
Develop your teams' ability to make consistent contact with the ball and stay long through the zone. Coach Dobson introduces drills designed to teach the hitter the correct grip, path to and through the ball, and finish. He shows how proper hand placement during the swing brings the contact point out in front of the body allowing the hitter to have better control of ball placement.

Dobson also shares a few drills he uses to improve a hitter's bat speed, which is an important component for power.

Using Coach Dobson's innovative drills, your hitters will develop the feeling of a correct, mechanically sound swing, which will ultimately help them reach their potential and put runs on the board.

102 minutes. 2013.