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re: Alabama Baseball (42-21 (18-12)) (Schedule & Roster 2026)
Posted on 6/17/26 at 11:31 am to bamabenny
Posted on 6/17/26 at 11:31 am to bamabenny
quote:
I’m fine with Coach Vaughn but we definitely need some new blood as the hitting coach. That much is obvious.
How do you actually measure whether the hitting coach is doing good or bad? Some of the players have private hitting coaches once they break for the offseason and some go work on their swing in the offseason on their own. There's only so much a hitting coach can fix and what he can fix is with minor adjustments and mental approach advice. How much one on one time do college hitting coaches actually spend with each player?
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Posted on 6/17/26 at 12:22 pm to NWLA_Bama
quote:
How do you actually measure whether the hitting coach is doing good or bad? Some of the players have private hitting coaches once they break for the offseason and some go work on their swing in the offseason on their own. There's only so much a hitting coach can fix and what he can fix is with minor adjustments and mental approach advice. How much one on one time do college hitting coaches actually spend with each player?
Bingo
Posted on 6/17/26 at 2:38 pm to NWLA_Bama
quote:
mental approach
Bama’s mental approach was terrible. So passive!! Batters took so many 2-0, 2-1 pitches right down the pipe with the count in their favor. So frustrating!
Too many batters made no adjustments during the course of a game. Consistently getting pitched to certain areas in the zone and never adjusting to that spot…..Torres and LeBron getting pitched on the outside part of the zone are examples. And they went game after game trying to pull it. LeBron’s avg fell like the Titanic, and Torres is just a .225-240 hitter, regardless of where in the order he bats or what pitches he gets. Hines can hopefully figure this out, too, because his swing is on the same plane regardless of the pitch.
Vaughn and Steele invariably took a first pitch FB strike to put themselves in the hole. So did other guys at the bottom of the order who started at some point in the season
As everyone knows, an 0-1, or 0-2 count is a tremendous advantage for a good pitcher. It makes hitting a lot harder. There are some really good ones in the SEC and post-season, but our approach at the plate has pretty much sucked all season. How many times did it look like our batters were really challenging a pitcher? Refusing to strikeout? Owning the plate? Daring the pitcher to throw them a strike?
My $.02 worth.
Posted on 6/17/26 at 3:26 pm to Kashmir
Oh I get it. I watched the same thing you did. But I don't know how much of that is the fault of the hitting coach or players just not being able to make adjustments during live at bats.
Posted on 6/17/26 at 4:32 pm to NWLA_Bama
If bama is not doing film analysis of every hitter on the team regularly, (fall and spring), and addressing issues, whether bad habit or player stubbornness, then the hitting coach needs to go!
I guarantee you could set a T on the outside black of HP, and Torres and Steele would have to do something different with their hands in order to hit it to the right side of the field. And that is the kind of stuff a hitting coach should be working on. And give LeBron some reps too.
Hitting wise there is nothing more pure than line drive doubles into alleys because that’s where the ball was supposed to be hit.
I guarantee you could set a T on the outside black of HP, and Torres and Steele would have to do something different with their hands in order to hit it to the right side of the field. And that is the kind of stuff a hitting coach should be working on. And give LeBron some reps too.
Hitting wise there is nothing more pure than line drive doubles into alleys because that’s where the ball was supposed to be hit.
Posted on 6/17/26 at 5:49 pm to bamabenny
quote:
While I agree we need better personnel I’d like to hear any argument on continuing to slot Torres at 4 and Hines at 6 when Torres was beyond struggling most games.
Hines really wasn’t much better at the plate in a consistent basis IMo. He was feast or famine plus hitting in the 4 hole adds a different pressure than batting a true freshman in the 6 hole.
Posted on 6/17/26 at 10:55 pm to labamafan
quote:
Hines really wasn’t much better at the plate in a consistent basis IMo
.289 to .231 is a pretty stark contrast. Hines was much better than Torres. Are you high?
Posted on 6/18/26 at 5:15 am to FightingOkra
Conference play Hines is 267 and Torres was 202. That is a Yuge difference to me. Hines didnt become an every day player until midway or so in SEC play.
In SEC play only one player was over 300
In SEC play only one player was over 300
Posted on 6/18/26 at 9:55 am to mrbroker
Can we just stop pointing fingers at any player or coach on a damn CWS team?
Y’all act like we’re LSU and get there every other year.
There are certainly positions where I wish we had an “upgrade” and there’s some players that were forced into positions they shouldn’t have been in due to injuries.
27 years fellas
Still grateful as frick for the experience this year and excited for Opening Day 2027.
Already a good start to the transfer portal as well.
Let’s enjoy the ride.
Y’all act like we’re LSU and get there every other year.
There are certainly positions where I wish we had an “upgrade” and there’s some players that were forced into positions they shouldn’t have been in due to injuries.
27 years fellas
Still grateful as frick for the experience this year and excited for Opening Day 2027.
Already a good start to the transfer portal as well.
Let’s enjoy the ride.
Posted on 6/18/26 at 11:08 am to Freight Joker
Keyboard coaches
Posted on 6/18/26 at 3:15 pm to Freight Joker
Our fans need the equivalent of European World Cup fans to let us know how stinking great we have it.
On another note, the air in my Jag is out, and I've got a GoFundMe. It is hard to sleep at night when it is this hot.
On another note, the air in my Jag is out, and I've got a GoFundMe. It is hard to sleep at night when it is this hot.
Posted on 6/18/26 at 3:53 pm to Freight Joker
A BA is a fact and someone posted certain players. I was responding to their comments. Isnt this what an effin chat board is. Fans talking about their team and their players. Should our comments only be colored with crimson lens. We made the WS due to pitching for the most part. And when pitching failed us we were left with a BA that mimicked the season BA in SEC play only.
Posted on 6/18/26 at 4:30 pm to mrbroker
Some people want this to be Tidefans 2.0
Posted on 6/18/26 at 6:04 pm to bamabenny
quote:
Some people want this to be Tidefans 2.0
Holy false analogy fallacy, Batman.
Posted on 6/18/26 at 7:13 pm to LovetheLord
quote:
Holy false analogy fallacy, Batman.
Holy can’t take a frickin joke, Batwoman
Posted on 6/18/26 at 10:30 pm to bamabenny
Batwoman. Sick burn .
Posted on 6/22/26 at 7:37 am to Kashmir
quote:
As everyone knows, an 0-1, or 0-2 count is a tremendous advantage for a good pitcher. It makes hitting a lot harder. There are some really good ones in the SEC and post-season, but our approach at the plate has pretty much sucked all season. How many times did it look like our batters were really challenging a pitcher? Refusing to strikeout? Owning the plate? Daring the pitcher to throw them a strike?
I fully agree. I also wonder how much of this is how these kids are being trained by private hitting coaches and HS coaches. I coach a 19 yr old showcase team full of players from different HS around the region. They ALL watch WAAAAY to many strikes and get to too many 0-1 and 0-2 counts. If the pitch isn't perfect, they don't swing. It's almost as if they treat every count like it is a 3-0 count. I tell them all the time, "Once you get 0-1 and 0-2, the odds of your success are not good, nowhere close." Yet, this past weekend, we played in a tournament and the same thing happens, even AFTER I basically give them a green light to be overly aggressive at the plate. And guess what? They got the same result. A lot of strikeouts and hitting pitchers' pitches. We won ONE game all weekend.
This post was edited on 6/22/26 at 7:40 am
Posted on 6/22/26 at 9:40 am to NWLA_Bama
This is all true, but I will note that the statistics are very poor for swinging at the first pitch of an at-bat.
That said, when the pitcher has 7 guys standing behind him, your odds are never great.
That said, when the pitcher has 7 guys standing behind him, your odds are never great.
Posted on 6/22/26 at 12:54 pm to LovetheLord
quote:
but I will note that the statistics are very poor for swinging at the first pitch of an at-bat.
quote:
First-pitch swings generally yield higher batting averages (.267 vs. .248) and power (more home runs). However, as the count gets deeper (e.g., 0-2 or 1-2), batters take more defensive swings, meaning contact rates and batting averages drop significantly.
I don't know how much you trust AI's research, but according to AI, first pitch swings yield higher batting averages.
The caveat is taking the first pitch on a pitcher that's NOT struggling throwing strikes. When a pitcher gets 0-1 on a batter the pitchers success odds are 70% to get an out. The batter's odds of getting out become 70% when going down 0-1. So, unless you're facing a pitcher who's struggling throwing strikes, taking the first pitch can immediately decrease your batter's odds of success.
This post was edited on 6/22/26 at 2:25 pm
Posted on 6/22/26 at 2:48 pm to NWLA_Bama
I feel your pain!!!
Hitters should be getting timing down in the on-deck circle. If the first pitch is a strike, they better be pulling the trigger!
Ain’t none of them Pete Rose, who was the GOAT at taking strikes to size up the pitcher. He watched the pitch all the way into the mitt. He was processing!
One thing I insisted on once there were two strikes: Widen your stance, no stride, stay back, choke up, and try to hit the ball up the middle.
It worked pretty well after they got used to it, and lots of gassers for not doing it. It was non-negotiable, but our 2-strike hitting improved.
Google “pitch count vs average” Print the chart and give them a copy. Post a copy in the dugout by the bat rack.
Good luck!!
Hitters should be getting timing down in the on-deck circle. If the first pitch is a strike, they better be pulling the trigger!
Ain’t none of them Pete Rose, who was the GOAT at taking strikes to size up the pitcher. He watched the pitch all the way into the mitt. He was processing!
One thing I insisted on once there were two strikes: Widen your stance, no stride, stay back, choke up, and try to hit the ball up the middle.
It worked pretty well after they got used to it, and lots of gassers for not doing it. It was non-negotiable, but our 2-strike hitting improved.
Google “pitch count vs average” Print the chart and give them a copy. Post a copy in the dugout by the bat rack.
Good luck!!
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