There's a District 12 tourney in a few weeks and we always put together a preparation tourney like this one with Oldsmar and Countryside... and Countryside always pulls out of it at the last minute, as they did this year.
Gabe had a good defensive series, but struggled at the plate as he's been trying to incorporate his hips into his swing. Since the tourney is just for fun, we decided to use these games to try and take this new technique from the batting cage to the game situation.
Unfortunately, it will take more games to get this new technique to where he doesn't have to think about it. Gabe slapped at outside pitches and made some bad choices in the batters box because he was thinking too much at the plate. He only incorporated his hips effectively on a couple of pitches. But, when he finally gets this down, he'll really start smacking the ball far. Defensively as a pitcher, shortstop and first baseman, he did very well.
You can watch Gabe's Highlights (offensive and defensive, look for #9) HERE. (Again, big file, Internet Explorer preferred).
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4 comments:
Hi Pete, what number is Gabe?
Only kidding...enjoyed #9.
Mary - funny story. When I told Gabe that Ted Williams was the last player to hit .400 he wanted to know all about him, so he started reading all about him in a couple of his baseball encyclopedias (and why he has the #9).
So, one day we're at a baseball clinic with the shortstop of the Rays and he asks who was the last player to hit .400. Gabe raises his hand and says "Ted Williams." The pro player asked, "what team did he play for?" Gabe replies, "Well, he played for the Red Sox, but then served in Word War II, then went back to the Red Sox."
Impressed and hoping to stump Gabe he said, "Okay, what team did he manage after he left the Red Sox." Gabe quickly responded "Texas Rangers."
The pro player gave up challenging him after that. I chatted with the player (Ben Zobrist) and his wife during the clinic and Gabe's nickname became "the baseball encylopedia."
It was very funny.
hey Gabe
its good that you are working on using your hips when you swing, once i learned to do that, i hit the ball a lot harder than before. I know that its hard to learn at first but here is a tip. When you start to swing really focus on keeping you weight (especially your hips) back. Most guys when they try to use their hips they want to lean forward and keep going forward, instead of really rotating the hips. If you focus on staying back then you can really get great rotation and start to lift the ball into the gaps. The third picture that my dad gave your dad, the one i signed from my long ball contest, is a good example of staying back. This was very hard for me to learn, but I'm sure you can learn it faster than I could.
Love
Jonathan Bauer
Gabe - I can't give you baseball tips (although I love watching baseball) but if you ever want to learn how to do a victory flip, let me know.
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