Batter-Ox Softball Swing Training System

BATTER-OX IS AN AMERICAN COMPANY SOLELY DEDICATED TO MAKING BASEBALL AND SOFTBALL PLAYERS BETTER HITTERS

David Riggle is a former player, travel-ball parent and hitting coach. The Batter-Ox story began when David started to create training drills designed to help his daughter develop her swing but noticed her hitting production was waning. Perplexed as to why her form was breaking down on certain pitches but was flawless on others, he had an idea.

After studying video, he realized his daughter’s inconsistent hitting was not an athletic or mechanical issue – it was a mental issue. She had a delay in her decision-making process, and this delay was taking her out of rhythm and negatively impacting her form. David determined that the only way to correct his daughter’s dilemma was to train her brain to recognize pitches quicker. She needed skill development around REACTIVE RESPONSE.

REACTIVE RESPONSE AND A PLAYER’S SWING

Having immersed himself in brain research for the past twelve years to help care for his youngest and autistic son, David brought a unique understanding of how the brain works to the development of his drills. To hit well, you need to be able to make split-second decisions to swing or take a pitch, and this quick decision making is called REACTIVE RESPONSE. Unfortunately, it is impossible to develop with stationary tee work and most traditional drills.

Further research proved his theory to be correct – that the difference between good hitters and great hitters was that great hitters were extremely disciplined and did not swing at balls. As David says, “This is a processing speed issue. Some people are blessed with fast brain processors, and the rest of us have to train for it. The great thing is, if you know how the brain works, you can train for it.”

REAL RESULTS AND BETTER BATTING

Shortly after applying David’s newfound techniques to his daughter’s hitting training, her batting average jumped from .350 to .600 with an OBP of .702. For David, “It was like a light switch was flipped. She was swinging at better pitches and letting the junk go. She hit more, she walked more and her confidence exploded.”

Along the way David ran into one major problem: he needed a trainer that made his drills simple for anyone to perform. David used his mechanical design and engineering background and set out on a course to do what had never previously been done. He designed a versatile trainer that:

• Is lightweight and portable
• Is robust and flexible
• Is effective in dissipating the kinetic energy of a hit
• Shows the extended, tethered-ball flight

With over three years of research and development, hundreds of thousands of hits and evidence-based data to support test results, David was awarded domestic and international patents for his design. In early 2015, a state-of-the-art manufacturing plant was built in Louisville Kentucky and thousands of satisfied customers have become better hitters as a result.