When I met Barry Bonds at UCLA in 2007, I wanted to know how to improve my swing. But he taught me something that completely changed how I approached hitting. And it had nothing to do with my swing mechanics. He explained that pitchers typically want to establish their fastball down in the strike zone so they can play their off-speed pitches off that same location. That makes it harder for hitters to recognize what's coming. But here's what he wanted me to understand. If you start hunting fastballs up in the strike zone, something interesting happens. You begin taking more fastballs down in the zone. You also start laying off more off-speed pitches that finish down in the zone. And when a pitcher leaves an off-speed pitch up? That's a mistake. And those baseballs can go a LONG way when you hit them. So I started applying that approach. Instead of trying to hit every strike, I set my sights higher in the zone and looked for pitches I could drive. And here's what happened. My walks went up. I started making more hard contact. And I became more selective about the pitches I was swinging at. All because I changed where I was looking for the baseball. So here's what I'd recommend to young hitters who want to improve their pitch selection. 1. Hunt the fastball up in the zone. Especially early in the count, look for a fastball in the upper part of the strike zone that you can drive. 2. Be willing to take pitches down in the zone. If you're hunting the fastball up, you don't have to chase every fastball or off-speed pitch down. Make the pitcher bring the baseball into the area you're looking for. 3. Don't miss the hanging off-speed pitch. If you're looking up in the zone and the pitcher leaves a breaking ball or changeup up there, be ready to attack it. Those are pitches you can drive for extra bases. Now, this doesn't mean you should take every pitch down in the zone. When you get to two strikes, you have to adjust and protect the plate. But early in the count, you can be selective and hunt pitches you can do damage with. Because there's one thing Barry Bonds helped me understand... You don't have to swing at every strike to be a great hitter. You have to recognize which strikes give you the best opportunity to do damage. Stop trying to hit every pitch. Start hunting the pitches you can drive. Hope this helps, Jermaine Curtis P.S. - If you enjoyed this, share it. (This tells me you want more content like this)

"The guy that used to hit .300, I'm sorry to tell you, is going to hit .240, .250 today. It just is what it is." @JoeyVotto breaks down why the league does not have more players like Luis Arraez and explains how baseball's evolution has led to that trend.

A couple Bearcats turning heads 👀 #Bearcats | #TenGames

Parents If your son is good enough you won't ever have to worry about politics or playing time in baseball. Politics is reserved for the average and below average.

🚨 #1 Ranked Japanese HS I/O • High intensity reps • Constant communication • Quick transitions + throws ⭐️ The physical & mental edge that an elite warm-up can give a team is under-appreciated. Talk about setting a tone…

Committed @maruccispikes @BattlegroundBG @TJHSBaseball