Busy week. No one told me when I enrolled my 6-year-old that Tee Ball would consume my life for the entire month of June. No time to post a video this week but since we’re on the subject, I thought I’d share some of my recent observations. (That’s not my daughter below, she’s way more focused and camera shy.)
The other night some of the other tee ball parents commented, “Has your daughter been practicing? Look at that arm!” I didn’t want to admit it publicly but she definitely had not been practicing tee ball. But then I thought… she did have a volleyball camp. Plus she tosses the volleyball to herself and hits it across the living room pretty much every day. That had to be it!
And it works both ways. Because we don’t focus too much on tee ball, we consider it a social event where our daughter can be a part of a team and work on her arm swing. (What? We’re a one-sport household.)
Throwing a ball (even one as small as a baseball) uses the same fluid motion as an arm swing in volleyball. Even in a Division I program, we approached with tennis balls and threw them over the net to practice our arm swings. Don’t agree? Here are a couple steps to throwing a baseball. Let’s compare them to a swing in volleyball.
Grip- ok. not applicable. I said similar not the same.
Wrist- In baseball it’s common, that young players throw with a stiff wrist. It’s very difficult to throw the ball accurately with a stiff throwing wrist. This is a skill that young players should work on from the start. Practice this skill by bending your throwing arm at the elbow with your forearm vertical. Keep your arm in this position, practice throwing the ball with just your wrist and fingers. It may feel strange at first, but keep working on this skill. The wrist and fingers play a major role in the accuracy and strength of your throw.
In volleyball, we’re always told to “snap” our wrists when hitting. Like baseball, many young or inexperienced players don’t snap their wrists so the ball sails out of bounds. To correct this, use the baseball practice tip above or… in your arm warmup with a partner, toss the ball to your hitting arm and snap your wrist at the highest point of contact. After you hit the ball you’ll look like you’re trying to reach into a cookie jar on the top shelf. (We call these Cookie Jar swings).
Arm motion- In baseball, the motion your arm makes when throwing the ball is a circular motion. If you’re throwing a short distance, the circular motion will be smaller than when you are throwing farther, but it’s still a circular motion. The circular motion will aid your throw by providing more natural momentum than simply bringing your arm straight back and then forward. The circular motion should begin when you’re pulling the ball from your glove. If you are making a longer throw, your arm and hand should drop down and by your back knee. This will provide you with the longest circular motion possible.
Take this one with a grain of salt. In volleyball, if you bring your arm all the way down to your knee, you’re gonna have problems. You will have what we call a “roundhouse swing.” It’s very bad for the shoulder and takes a lot more time to get to the ball. But, I could see where the circular motion would apply. I teach my girls to “bow and arrow” (see image above) or to reach back and grab their ponytail before they make contact with the ball. That’s really all the wind up you need.
Front shoulder- When throwing a baseball you want your front shoulder to point in the direction of where you are throwing. So after fielding the ball you will be turning your body sideways and pointing your lead shoulder in the direction of the throw.
Yes. Yes. Good. Good. Of course, there’s no fielding in volleyball. But there is digging. In a dig to attack situation. This is a good example. The digger has her hips, shoulders square to the hitter. Dig the ball, then as she approaches, she turns her body sideways to put her (off hand) shoulder in front.
Lower body- If you follow the logic of having your front shoulder facing the target then you might have guessed that you also want your lower body lined up in the same manner. Your back foot should be perpendicular to the target and your hips should be closed and also pointing in the direction of the target.
This description also explains a volleyball approach just before you jump, (which is only done by really good baseball players when they’re in a hurry.) See below.
Ok. I’ll be honest. I didn’t realize just how similar the two actions were until I laid out these similarities. Looks like Tee Ball is sending my daughter well on her way to having a good arm swing! (Of course, having a coach as a parent helps a little)
