Fast-Pitch Softball

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Fast-Pitch Softball

Why would a fast-pitch softball player, coach, parent or organized program go through a hitting camp that was created by a coach with a baseball background?

...Great question and one that deserves a detailed answer.

If you have surfed through our website already, you probably know we did a detailed film study using the best baseball hitters on the planet as our study subjects.

That study led to our FACT-BASED hitting developmental program that has been very well received.

We are curious people and we wondered what a similar study observing the elite fast-pitch softball hitters on the planet would reveal?

Could it be? Is the softball swing similar or even exactly the same as the baseball swing?

OK, I know this is going to be controversial but, film does not lie. Some softball "purists" probably do not want to read on. The results of the study were obvious and very, very clear ... the swings are the same.

For you who are still reading this, thank you ... I am just the messenger. We have looked at as much video as we can get our hands on and the answer still has not changed.

I have a few questions for the fast-pitch softball world...

When you are at softball games, are there enough good swings and enough hard hit, line drives or deep fly balls for you?
The pitchers dominate the game, and some are very talented, but why do they control the game as much as they do? Is it because the hurlers are really that good or because the hitters have not reached their potential ?

The result of the curiosity and the ensuing study was our Krush Hitting development program for fast pitch softball.

We have done camps in all across the United States and are looking to expand annually.

What topics are covered
in the Hitting Camps?
Click here

Puyallup, Washington

What a great game...

The Krush Guys presenting a coaches clinic
in Puyallup, Washington in early November

NW Krush, led by Mark Larsen, had a nice inaugural season in the Seattle area.

"I have known Billy since his days
in El Paso where he openly shared
his knowledge and ideas of how to
make better hitters.
Since then, I work with him as often as
possible as he does just that ... make
hitters better!
I believe all coaches and for that matter
players, at least inquire about the program.
It is based on facts ... how can one not
want to know the truths about hitting?
It helps ... period."

Joel Prickett
Head Coach
Odessa (TX) College

Krush Hitting Fast-Pitch Clinic in Indiana

Jay working a fast pitch softball camp in
Puyallup, Washington

The CHAMPS!
Blue Ridge High School Yellow Jackets

The 2009 Blue Ridge High School Lady Jackets brought home the Arizona 3A State Title. Coach Fraze and the girls completed a tremendous season by winning it all in Phoenix!

The Study... why we teach, what we teach

As I was introducing myself to the Fast Pitch Softball world in 2005, I observed as much as I could. Living in Arizona, I was lucky to have some of the best programs in the country from recreational teams to the University of Arizona and Arizona State University is just minutes from my home.

I was intrigued by several observations I was making.
Then, I just started asking questions, and more questions, and more questions to anybody who would listen ...
I then started asking the "experts" some questions.

I was trying to get a picture painted as to how this sport paralleled the other diamond sport in as many aspects as possible...

What are the similarities?
What are the differences?
Are there aspects that are exactly the same?

The reason for this is I have had nearly 35 years of experience in the "other" sport.

Why re-invent the wheel if I don't have to?

Enough babbling ... here is what I concluded from my initial introduction to the sport.
1. There are similarities ... shocker
2. There are differences ... another shocker.
3. A major difference was the lack of functional strength in the game.
4. A majority of coaches think baseball & softball are as opposite as night and day.
5. Just as in "the other sport", most well-meaning coaches were teaching concepts and hand-me-downs techniques instead of what really happens (much more on this) in the swing.

I had done a study on the best hitters on the planet in the sport of baseball just a year earlier. I wondered what a study on the best fast pitch softball hitters in the world would tell me? I was very interested to find out especially because we had already done about 5 hitting camps for softball players and because nearly 90% of fast pitch coaches had voiced their opinions on the differences in the two games.

The Study (a quick synopsis):

I gathered as much video and still photographs as I could get from Team USA, UA, ASU and other top programs.
After getting enough information, I did the same exact study I did with the baseball players.
I identified movements and/or positions in the swing and gave them names.
I then went player by player and charted if they made these movements and/or were in the common positions.
The criteria were that 90%+ of the players had to make the movement or get in a certain position for me to call it a commonality.
The results surprised even me.

The Results ...

Disclaimer - If you are one of the 90% of coaches, parents or players I spoke with in 2005, you might not want to hear/read this ... but you should... it is the truth, not my opinion.

The results were identical, yes ... identical ... the girls had the same 9 commonalities of the best baseball hitters in the world. The actual swing was the same.

Video does not lie.
Photos do not lie.
It is what it is ... fact:a truth known by actual experience or observation.

The Response:

At the beginning ...

We held a hitting round table in a mid-western city. We had about 20 coaches and most of them were softball coaches. One of the 1st questions I asked was, "Is the softball and baseball swing similar or even the same?" One person thought they were similar or the same.
I then showed still photos of players of each sport in the same positions. They were identical ... I asked the same question again. Only a few more people raised their hands.
I then showed video of hitters from both sports ... again, the commonalities were obvious.
I asked the question again ... only a few more hands went up. I was trying to grasp this. I just showed several examples of the swing commonalities. Commonalities of all great softball hitters and commonalities between the baseball and softball swing and at least half of the people still didn't believe it.
I then realized what we were up against ... the history of fast pitch softball.

The last few years...

We call it "cracking the shell".

We start by letting people know that we are really not that smart, just a couple guys without jobs and time to do a detailed study.
We then SHOW them example after example via photos or video.
We offer examples of excellent softball coaches with baseball backgrounds
Team USA, University of Arizona & Arizona State University coaches all have common backgrounds
Then, if we are lucky enough, we go through the program with them.

Krush Hitting Company

"Integrating the Art and Science of Hitting"