There are many different reasons why players will choose to choke up on the bat while they’re at the plate.
In this article, we’ll take a look at what choking up on the bat means, if choking up on the bat helps, and cover some of the advantages and disadvantages to choking up on the bat.
Choking Up On the Baseball Bat Helps?
The primary benefit of choking up on the bat is that it aids in the prevention of jamming. It not only makes the bat lighter, but it also helps batters reduce their swing. When a player’s swing is shortened, they are less prone to be jammed on a pitch.
Choking up on a bat shifts the grip closer to the bat’s heaviest portion, making it easier to swing.
A benefit that could be considered to go hand-in-hand with this is that choking up on the bat can help generate more contact between the baseball and the bat. If you’re able to make your swing shorter, it means you have less momentum traveling through your swing, so there’s a much better chance of making contact with the ball.
What is Choking Up?
Choking up on the bat is simply the act of making yourself shorter (from a physics perspective) by bringing your hands up towards the top of the bat. The general idea is that when you choke up on the bat, you give yourself more control over your swing and it allows you to react quicker in case there’s a ball thrown at you.
- For some hitters, choking up gets them closer to being in a position to swing at good pitches.
- Other players are more concerned with making contact when they have an idea about what kind of pitch is coming so that they can get on base.
- Choking up on the bat can be a way to both protect and extend certain parts of your body as well as make it easier to reach pitches that would otherwise be difficult to reach.
Choking Up On the Baseball Bat: Advantages and Disadvantages
There are several advantages and disadvantages to choking up on the bat, and each player will determine what is best for them.
Here is a list of some of the advantages and disadvantages of choking up on the bat:
Advantages of Choking Up On the Baseball Bat
Let’s cover how choking up on a bat could help the player.
- When players choke up on the bat, they are able to adjust their hand placement depending on how far they are from the plate. This is helpful when your hands are too close for a conventional grip and too far away for a proper grip.
- Choking up on the bat can also help players with hitting home runs because it does not require them to swing as hard. This is perfect for players that are not strong enough to maintain a proper grip but still want the opportunity to hit home runs.
- Choking up on the bat also helps with bunting against a defensive shift because it keeps the ball closer to the player. If players choke up too far, they can cause themselves to lose control of where they are hitting the ball.
This is helpful for players that want to play a more defensive game and still get on base.
Disadvantages of Choking Up On the Baseball Bat
Here is a list of some reasons that could prevent players from choking up on the bat:
- Players can become too reliant on choking up on the bat if they are not able to maintain their conventional grip. This could cause them to miss out on many opportunities that could be beneficial to their team.
- Players can choke up too far and lose control of the bat, which will cause them to hit weak grounders or pop-ups. This may result in outs when they would have otherwise had base hits if they had not choked up so much.
- Choking up on the bat can also be difficult for left-handed players, because it requires them to reverse everything that they know about hitting a baseball.
It is best for teams and players to experiment with choking up on the bat and see what works best for them during games or practices!
Why Choking Up On the Baseball Bat With 2 Strikes Help The Average Hitter
“I’m choking up on the bat, because I’m tired of striking out.” – A lot of players have said these words to their coaches in an attempt to give themselves a better chance at hitting the ball when they find themselves with two strikes.
When a batter has two strikes on them at the plate, they utilize a two-strike strategy. In youth baseball, several at-bats reach two strikes, therefore it’s critical to have a plan when the moment comes!
Choking up on the bat can help alleviate some swing problems that might cause you to strike out. It can also help your game in general.
It’s not easy at first, but hitters who move their hands up the bat ( towards the barrel) when they get two strikes on them are called ‘chokers’ for a reason; it really does improve their odds of putting the ball in play with a lot of regularity.
- By choking up on the bat, you are effectively reducing its size in your hands. When you choke up on the bat, it’s harder for you to hit pitches down and away because the barrel of the bat is no longer in your power zone.
- As a result, you’ll be forced to swing at better pitches to hit. Another benefit is that you’ll be able to react better on pitches in the strike zone because you can get your hands back quicker and stay back longer.
- If the pitcher throws a pitch over the plate and you’re choking up, there’s obviously less bat involved so it makes sense that you’d have an easier time putting the barrel of the bat on the ball.
It’s important to realize that you can’t go up and down the barrel of the bat with every pitch; you’ll still need to adjust your hands according to where the pitcher throws.
But, if you’re looking for a way to alleviate common swing problems (like having long swings or getting too much hand movement) then choking up on the bat will help you out.
How to Choke a Baseball Bat?
It may sound like a bizarre and improbable question, but the truth of the matter is that choking up on a baseball bat is an essential practice. Some players choose to choke their bats for safety reasons, while some do it to control the swing better. But whatever be your reason, you need to know how to do it properly.
Here are some easy steps that will help you learn how to choke up on a baseball bat.
Step 1
To begin with, hold the bat in your hands and place it over your right shoulder.
Step 2
Lower the grip of the bat so that it is closer to the barrel end. The barrel of the bat should be resting on your left palm, while your thumb is around halfway down the back side of it.
Step 3
Stretch your left arm away from the bat so that it is straight.
Step 4
Then pull back your right hand and rest it around the barrel end of the bat. Be sure to keep a firm grip on the bat in order to avoid any accidents.
Remember: Keep practicing this technique until you perfect it. You will soon be able to choke up on a baseball bat like the experts.
When to Apply the Choke Up on the Bat Strategy in Baseball?
It’s critical for the batter to be able to get his or her bat up quickly! Choking up on the bat is a common technique for batters facing a fast pitcher. If the batter is hitting off a tee, choking up is also an effective technique.
A common mistake for new players and experienced hitters is to choke way up on the bat handle. This will slow the bat speed down and make it harder to hit with any power. The right hand should be just under the knob of the bat with most of the bat in the left hand.
Having the bat at the right angle will help to take advantage of a perfect pitch. While it is important to make contact with a fast ball, getting hit by a pitch is not worth sacrificing an out. If you are choking up on the bat and there is a high chance that you can get hit, then don’t choke up on the bat.
It is also not worth giving away an out if you are choking up and there is a good chance that the ball will be hit to the right side for a double play. The chances of making contact with a fast pitcher may be too low, even when holding the bat at the correct angle.
The Choke Up on the Bat Strategy requires many skills to be successful. If you are choking up on the bat, then your top hand should be held in a loose fist. The bottom hand should have the index finger gripping tightly with moderate pressure throughout the rest of the fingers.
The Choke Up on the Bat strategy does not require that you choke up very far on the bat. In fact, choking up almost to the bottom of the handle will slow your bat speed down too much. There are many different ways to choke up on a baseball bat and each one requires practice both with a tee and against live pitching in order for it to be successful.
Conclusion
Choking Up on the Bat is a technique where the batter holds the bat closer to the knob at the end of the bat. Many batters use this technique when up against a pitcher with superior speed.
The idea is that if you choke up on the bat, it will allow you to hit perfect pitches or get on base more often even when it does not go as far. It will also prevent players from swinging at pitches they would have swung at before when using this technique.
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