Becoming a Good Two Strike Hitter

I’ve been around many players who, with one strike, would rather swing and make contact on a bad pitch than risk getting a second strike called. If a second strike is called by the umpire, they risk striking out because they now have to bat with two strikes.

In order to be a good two-strike hitter, you need several things.

The first is confidence. No matter what situation you are in, you have to believe in yourself and believe that you can get a hit, whether you have no strikes or two strikes.

You cannot be afraid of striking out. You should not feel embarrassed if you strike out. Every player that has ever played the game has struck out. Realize that if you swing at a bad pitch with one strike and make contact, you are probably going to get out anyway. You might as well take the pitch and try your luck with two strikes.

Finally, you have to protect the plate. We discuss looking for “our pitch” in another article. But when you have two strikes, you can no longer look for your pitch. You have to protect the plate on any pitch that looks close and could be called a strike by an umpire.

Being a good two-strike hitter is not easy, but it starts with having confidence in yourself.

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