Train your hitters the same way the Colorado Rockies train theirs
Once our season begins, individual batting practice is nearly impossible to secure because pitchers simply aren’t available. Historically, baseball pitching machines were not used because hitters complained that their timing was destroyed. They couldn’t see the ball until it came out of the pitching machine and at that point it was too late to step! For this reason, many trainers felt that running these older machines did more harm than good.
Five years ago we did a survey of all the tilting machines on the market. It was frustrating to only be able to choose between somewhat portable two-wheeled machines that covered the ball, or non-portable arm machines that couldn’t throw smash shots at all.
Fortunately for my team, a few years ago I heard about Hack Attack. I immediately knew that all my worries about machines would be solved with this new and innovative tilting machine. The unique three-wheel design allows visibility of the ball before accelerating all the way to release. The feeding process was tuned to actually simulate live hand action and this is critical. Also, the breaking pitches mimicked the ones our hitters faced every day. This meant that our hitters could now hit all season by working on specific mechanics and working their way out of slumps.
The Hack Attack has proven so effective that when we are at home, the machine is placed on the mound and the starters take a few innings before a batting practice pitcher is brought in to complete regular batting practice. Our hitters even requested that we set the machine to match the best pitches of the pitcher they were facing in the next game! With great accuracy, plenty of speed and major league breakouts, Hack Attack has become an important and integral part of our daily pre-game routine.
Plus, our pinchers often warm up on the machine in our cage under the stands at the end of a game in preparation for pinching.
Hack Attack is the most effective training tool we have ever used. We have eight machines: one in our ballpark for in-season use and seven in our spring training facility. Our entire organization uses them.
I might add that the machines seem indestructible. We’ve never even changed a cast wheel.
I encourage you to do your own research. The Hacker attack helped our players from the start of spring training to the start of every game. I know it will help yours too. Good luck!
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