Batting tees: the good, the bad, and the ugly

The batting tee is one of the oldest tools known to baseball coaches.  There are some really, really good things about batting tees, but there are many abuses as well.

The Good

The BEST thing about batting tees is that they are great uses of space in large practice settings.  I have 25 players on my varsity roster and one batting cage.  It takes over an hour and a half to get all of our players through the batting cage, even if we split the cage in half and have two arms throwing.

That takes up two of our coaches, and isn't really that efficient.  Thats where batting tees come into play.  We are able to set up three or four tee stations outside of the cage, so players can stay active, engaged and get something out of their hitting sessions.   In this setting, tees CAN be a great tool to maximize practice space.

Tees can also be used to make swing adjustments and to develop muscle memory.  If there is a mechanical change a hitter is working on, or if they are working on adding intent to their swing, the batting tee can be a great place to start, and a great way to get many reps so when they get into the cage or game, they will have a mechanical base to work with.

Get Our Top 5 Hitting Drills Here

The Bad

While the batting tee can be a great tool, it often lacks one major component of quality batting practice, and that is the requirement that a decision is made prior to swinging.  This happens in every pitch of every game, yet isn't often a requirement of batting practice or tee work.

Once a player moves past the initial skill development phase, they need to be REQUIRED to make decisions prior to swinging the bat.  Again, that is the way it happens every pitch in every game, so we should make them do it as often as possible.

While this is difficult to do on a tee, it is not impossible.  Check out our top 5 hitting drills that translate skills to game performance for a couple of ways to add decision making into your tee work.

The Ugly

We all know what's coming here... the player who gets on the tee with no goal, no plan, no intent, and is simply there to "get their swings in."

I cringe when I hear coaches say players need to get "x" number of swings off a tee per day.  Well, what if a player takes 200 swings off a tee with no focus, no visualization, and no decision making?  What have they really accomplish.

So much of the effectiveness of the a tee is on how the player uses it.  Few players have been taught how to truly utilize a tee to maximize its usefulness, that many players are simple there to "get their swings in."

Again, batting tees CAN be an effective tool for team or individual practice.   If you have a 1:1:1 coach to cage to player ratio, then you probably won't need tees.  If you have a more realistic set up, then a batting tee can maximize space and give your players skills that will translate into game play if it is utilized correctly.

Check out these 5 drills that translate practice to game performance:

Get Our Top 5 Hitting Drills Here