with Josh Bloomer,
Duke University Assistant Coach;
2021 ACC Tournament Champions;
former Louisville Male High School (KY) Head Coach;
2019 National Fastpitch Coaches Association Champions (undefeated, 39-0);
2019 Kentucky State champions; 6x Regional Champions;
2019 USA Today National High School Coach of the Year finalist;
former Mercy Academy Head Coach;
2012 Kentucky State champions; 5x Regional champions
Balance, timing, and vision are so important to good hitting, yet many coaches often don't know how to teach hitters to improve in these critical areas. Josh Bloomer shares the daily hitting drills he uses with his team that contributed to the terrific success enjoyed by the Blue Devils in the 2021 season.
Coach Bloomer provides extensive commentary on each drill, including what each drill addresses, how to perform the drill correctly and things a hitter might do incorrectly when performing the drill, allowing you a complete understanding how to provide on-the-spot feedback for improvement. Multiple camera angles are used so you can see the hitter's movements from different angles and also see the results of the swings.
Key Drills and Techniques
Using a combination of familiar drills with new twists and several new and innovative drills, you will see what good balance looks like, how to maintain balance throughout the swing, and how to practice timing and vision.
In many of the drills, Bloomer creatively uses a variety of equipment to help simulate a specific feeling or a desired outcome. In the Pitch Recognition Drill, for example, hitters swing at a ball set on one of two tees, depending on which tee the tosser is throwing to from the other side of a screen separating the tosser and hitter. This is an excellent drill for vision, timing, and decision-making under duress. In the One Bat, One Swing Drill, hitters use a different bat for each swing and are forced to account for the varying length, weight, and barrel size of the bat from one swing to the next. These drills are not only useful and challenging, but the creativity and randomness add an element of fun.
In other drills, Coach Bloomer incorporates techniques such as having a tosser use a double toss or having hitters use verbal cues or start with their eyes closed, which help them slow down in the stride phase, time their load and stride better, and make quick decisions. In the Call Ball Drill, hitters call "ball" when the ball leaves the tosser's hand to help the hitters time the beginning of their forward movement with the release of the pitch. Hitters experience having to wait longer and move slower, which in turn, helps them realize that they have more time than they think they have. Bloomer offers two variations of this drill for more advanced hitters.
Coaching Tips
Throughout the video, Coach Bloomer also shares other nuggets of wisdom, such as suggesting that coaches ask hitters "How did that feel?" in an effort to get hitters to take that first step toward ownership of their swing. He also reminds coaches to give their hitters the chance to work through the drills, rather than expect perfection from the first rep.
This is a great collection of drills that fills in a gap left by other hitting videos, which tend to focus on the mechanics of the swing. Learning the importance of moving slowly forward, with good balance, good vision and good timing, is what will help coaches of all levels take their hitters to the next level.
63 minutes. 2021.
SD-05881B:
with Josh Bloomer,
Duke University Assistant Coach;
2021 ACC Tournament Champions;
former Louisville Male High School (KY) Head Coach;
2019 National Fastpitch Coaches Association Champions (undefeated, 39-0);
2019 Kentucky State champions; 6x Regional Champions;
2019 USA Today National High School Coach of the Year finalist;
former Mercy Academy Head Coach;
2012 Kentucky State champions; 5x Regional champions
Coaches often need to refill their repertoire of hitting drills to incorporate training specific to a modern hitting approach. In this video, Duke hitting coach Josh Bloomer takes you through a complete series of drills tailored to the High Level Pattern hitting philosophy. Any coach intent on helping players develop this skill set and philosophy will find the depth of drills inside a valuable resource. Coach Bloomer goes through a total of 16 individual drills that can be expanded based on the skill level and age group to include tee work, soft toss, and front toss.
Swing Development
The drills taught by Bloomer work on four elements of swing development: arm spacing and bat path, development of rhythm and timing around the unlocking of hip coil kinetic chain, mastering the behind the ball attack mode of the HLP swing, and developing the proper body position and posture to access power.
Constraint Drills
Of particular interest and unique to Coach Bloomer's approach are the Split Grip and Barrel Tilt drills, which focus on the unique elements of the HLP swing pattern.. These drills help players develop rearward rotation and initiate the bat path to opposite field that is unique to the HLP. They also illustrate spacing concepts that are often discussed and usually poorly clarified from other drill videos.
If you are adapting to and transitioning to HLP training, this video will be a great resource for your program's hitting development. While there are certainly some advanced skills shown and discussed by Coach Bloomer, he explains them in a way that will make sense to coaches and players of all levels.
59 minutes. 2021.
SD-05881C:
with Josh Bloomer,
Duke University Assistant Coach;
2021 ACC Tournament Champions;
former Louisville Male High School (KY) Head Coach;
2019 National Fastpitch Coaches Association Champions (undefeated, 39-0);
2019 Kentucky State champions; 6x Regional Champions;
2019 USA Today National High School Coach of the Year finalist;
former Mercy Academy Head Coach;
2012 Kentucky State champions; 5x Regional champions
Coaches are always in need of solid, unbiased reference material for training their athletes in the bio-mechanical skills unique to hitting. In this video, Duke's Josh Bloomer takes you through a complete series of drills that will aid any hitter in learning to use their body more effectively. Biomechanics and optimizing the ability of an athlete to move their bodies in an efficient manner to generate maximum power is a complex matter that requires full mastery of the specialized skills of physical therapy and strength &conditioning.
Movement Drills
Coach Bloomer provides drills that focus on essential elements of swing development:
- Development of proper body position in the hitting stance
- Decoupling and mastering independent rotational movement of the torso and lower half
- Activation of the key power source in the glutes
- Removal of slack from the hand path
- Integrating movements and sequencing to master the "coil-based" kinetic chain
Throughout the video, the player demonstrators showcase proper mechanics and also illustrate common flaws and how they manifest in executing the drills.
Drill Adaptability
The drill sequences shown by Bloomer can be executed with minimal specialized equipment, and any that is required is simple, inexpensive, and DIY-able for the average coach. The body movement drills presented are not hitting drills, but instead focus on the underlying movements that allow successful execution of hitting drills.
Of particular interest and unique are the Scap Load, U-turn, and Med Ball Load and Throw drills. These three drills represent key check points of a High Level Pattern body movement - taking slack out of the upper body motion, activation of the swing from the pelvis/femur, and capturing the early load and carrying it through to toe touch before release. These drills will help players learn the "tensing the rubber band" body motion that HLP hitting is built around and tie together parts of other drills.
The training in this video is highly technical and may be a challenge for coaches who are not versed in biomechanical style training regimens. Because of this, it is generally geared towards higher level and older athletes. However, with simplification and a focus on a limited set of some of the less physically demanding movements, young players (and novice coaches) can find some benefit too!
64 minutes. 2021.
SD-05881D:
with Josh Bloomer,
Duke University Assistant Coach;
2021 ACC Tournament Champions;
former Louisville Male High School (KY) Head Coach;
2019 National Fastpitch Coaches Association Champions (undefeated, 39-0);
2019 Kentucky State champions; 6x Regional Champions;
2019 USA Today National High School Coach of the Year finalist;
former Mercy Academy Head Coach;
2012 Kentucky State champions; 5x Regional champions
In this video, Coach Josh Bloomer teaches you how to prepare your infield to handle a variety of balls that they could be hit throughout the course of a game. Since ground ball hops can be so unpredictable, Bloomer instructs his players how to make the read on the hop, field the hop, and make great throws in all situations - leading to more outs and less uncertainty.
Timing Drills
Coach Bloomer starts by teaching how to get your players moving and ready to field a ball with "pre pitch" timing drills. This is important for your players' ability to get to balls faster. A body in motion will get to a ball quicker then one that is not.
Fielding and Situational Play
As Bloomer progresses in the video, he teaches how he instructs his players to field various types of ground balls. You never know what type of ground ball you may get and what kinds of hops they may take. Coach Bloomer talks in detail on how to field a variety of hops with the most effective and efficient foot and glove work, and his players demonstrate those drills on the field.
Finally, Bloomer discusses situational play and how he instructs his players to move and position themselves in bunt defense, slap defense, and double play situations. This is valuable information for any coach as they learn how to adjust to the other team's hitters. These adjustments will lead to more outs and fewer runs given up.
If you are looking for a video that teaches infielders the most effective and efficient way to utilize their footwork and ground ball fielding skills, this is the video for you. Coach Bloomer goes over everything from "prep step" movement before the pitch, to how to field and throw a ball while on the run. This video features terrific infield fielding techniques you will want all of your players to learn!
63 minutes. 2021.