So, I’ve been messing around with this thing I’ve mentally dubbed my “Brady Ward baseball experiment” for a good few weeks now. Not like I’m aiming for the big leagues or anything, trust me, those ships have sailed, sunk, and become coral reefs. But you hit a point, right? You just wanna tweak things, get a tiny bit better, or at least feel like you’re not just flailing around out there.
How This Whole Thing Kicked Off
It was pretty out of the blue, to be honest. I was watching some college ball highlights online – you know how it goes, just bouncing from one clip to another – and this player, Brady Ward, he just sorta stood out. Wasn’t even a massive home run or a crazy dive. It was more his whole vibe at the plate, his approach. Something about it just made sense in my head. I thought, “Huh, wonder if there’s something I can pick up there.” My own swing in the beer league had been feeling, well, “sad” is probably the best word for it.
Getting Down to Brass Tacks: My “Practice” Grind
So, I figured I’d make a little project out of it. My method? Definitely no high-tech stuff. More like good old-fashioned trying stuff until something stuck. Here’s a rough idea of what I did:
- Just Watching Phase: I hunted down whatever game footage I could find. Stared at his stance, his timing, how he reacted to different pitches. Wasn’t really looking for the flashy plays. More the everyday stuff, like how he took a borderline call, or how he battled with two strikes.
- Taking It Apart: I tried to zero in on one or two specific things. For me, it was his rhythm before the swing and how he managed to keep his hands from flying open too soon. My classic screw-up is lunging, getting all my weight forward before I should.
- Cage Time: Then came the part where I actually tried to do it – heading to the local batting cages. Man, those first few swings trying to copy what I saw? Absolute garbage. I felt like my arms and legs were all over the shop, no coordination at all. My timing was a joke.
- My Version of “Film Study”: No fancy slow-mo cameras for me. Sometimes I’d just drag a buddy along and yell, “Hey, what’d that one look like? Did I look like a complete idiot?” Other times, I’d just try to feel it. You know when it’s bad, even if you can’t say exactly why. I’d make little notes in my head, like, “Way too quick on that one,” or “Definitely dropped my shoulder there.”
The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly Swings
Let me be straight with you, it wasn’t some smooth ride to becoming a better hitter. Some days I’d walk out of that cage more confused than when I walked in. It’s one thing to watch a talented guy like Ward do his thing, it’s a whole other ball game trying to make your own clumsy body do the same. He’s got years of muscle memory. I’m just a dude trying to avoid grounding out weakly to third.
But, bit by bit, a few things started to feel less awful. I really focused on staying balanced, trying to get that sense of calm he seemed to have. I wasn’t trying to be Brady Ward, obviously. More like trying to borrow a page from his playbook. The biggest thing I noticed? I felt a little less like a deer in headlights at the plate. My contact started to be a bit more solid. Fewer embarrassing pop-ups, you know?
So, What’s the Verdict?
Well, I’m still not hitting nukes like Brady Ward, no shocker there. But this little self-imposed experiment has been pretty decent. It’s forced me to actually think about what I’m doing up there, instead of just closing my eyes and swinging for the fences. Last league game, I actually managed to draw a walk after being down 0-2, and then I laced a single. Small wins, folks, small wins.
It’s kinda funny how you stumble onto these things. For me, recently, it’s been watching some Brady Ward baseball and just trying to pick apart what makes him effective. It’s still a slog, always will be, but it’s been a worthwhile bit of practice.
