SHORTSCREEN
We station a tosser seated behind an L-screen approximately 30 feet away from the hitter (tosser should wear helmet and stay well behind the screen.) The tosser can pinpoint the corners and move the ball up and down throwing a high percentage of strikes from this distance. The hitter is forced to react quickly.

To further the effectiveness of the drill we have the tosser shout a count just before delivering the ball (i.e. 3-0, or 1-2, etc.). This forces the hitter to think about the type of hitting situation that he is confronted with before offering. For example, in a 3 ball situation the hitter may decide to take a questionable pitch for ball 4 whereas in a 2 strike situation they must guard the dish. Also we will vary the situational hitting by having the tosser shout out where runners are as well as out count. This further reinforces the concept of productive at bats while giving a mental focus to what can otherwise become a repetitive drill.

Submitted by: Jim Pliner