Posted by: Torque (roscoethewestie@comcast.net) on Tue Sep 29 16:04:49 2009

> My 16 year old son has been making good progress this year in learning the rotational mechanics method of the swing. What do you all out there thnk is a reasonable amount of practice time for a kid at this age as far as swing work on a weekly basis? My thought is that it should differ depending on time of year. I hear stuff about how some guys in MLB take 200-300 swings a day virtually year round, while other guys definitely take a reduced load at times in the off season. One of my concerns is that he is not in MLB, is still a kid, has a tough academic load to handle, & just might want to do something else once in a while. He is very determined and while I appreciate how important practice is, I know a kid can burn himself out sometimes as well. What types of schedules do you recommend for someone his age?
>
> Ernie

I'm not a fan of dry cuts so this only applies to pitches, tee work or soft toss. Half an hour in the cage is plenty. Tee work can be done with about 25 to 40 hits. If hitting off the tee he needs to work areas of the field all line drives. Right center left center then center. Soft toss is a little harder to work the field but he should still be hitting line drives. Recommend getting on the field once a week at a minimum. The cage can be very deceiving and lead you to believe the ball is being hit hard when the hits are poor on the field. The field is the only thing that gives a hitter or coach correct feedback.