If you’re a softball coach, do you use special softball training balls?
Admittedly, quite a few coaches want to only use real softballs for training.
But many others say that specially designed softball practice balls can help coaches improve the skill levels of their softball players.
How Do You Use These Softball Training Balls?
There are several ways you can use these training balls. One simple way to use them is to have a friend toss you the balls so you can drive them hard into the playing field or a softball hitting net.
You can also use these balls to improve your throwing skills.
In softball, fielders need to throw hard and fast to get players out. Pitchers need to practice their pitching as well.
Newbies can familiarize themselves with regular training balls, and then the weighted balls can help improve their strength. You can practice using weighted and regularly weighted balls to help you to master your mechanics.
It’s not a good idea to use the super-heavy balls right away, especially without a proper warm-up. You may sprain something instead. So ease up on your use of weighted balls, and increase the weights gradually.
It may take time to become better using these training balls for practice. You may notice a few improvements after 6 weeks or so.
The Best Practice Balls for Softball
So which softball batting practice balls should you get?
There are actually plenty of options in the industry right now, and the prices for packs of balls range from a little over $10 to almost $80.
Here are some of your best choices:
Precision Impact Softball-Size Slugs. These are weighted softballs, and they offer several crucial advantages.
Since they’re heavy, these balls won’t ravel as fast when you hit them. That reduces the risk of players getting hit and hurt.
They weigh about 15 ounces instead of just 6 or 7 ounces, though the diameter is familiar at 3.65 inches. They also have this lurid pink color that can help make sure you don’t lose any of them.
SKLZ Impact Balls. These have distinctive yellow and black hemispheres, along with triangular cutouts.
They’re a bit heavier than regular softballs though they offer a very authentic feel.
There great for warm-ups when there aren’t any batting screens and cages.
What makes this unique is that it’s practically indestructible. They won’t shatter or crack, even after thousands of practice hits.
They also offer incredible impact feedback. It’s also weird that somehow, the balls don’t travel as far the harder you hit them.
Rukket 3 Weighted Baseballs / Softballs. These training balls propelled a tiny company in Delaware to become one of the fastest-growing training tools manufacturers in the US.
These weighted balls measure about 3 inches in diameter, and they weigh 16 ounces.
The way these weighted balls works is actually simple. You practice hitting the balls perfectly each time, so that you develop the muscle memory that makes hitting automatic for you.
With this design, you can feel the bat as you drive through your swing.
What’s more, if you hit the balls wrong, you’ll know it. Even if you’re just a bit off-center when you hit the practice ball, the ball will just wobble and fall safely into the ground.
Even when you do hit it perfectly, it’s still heavy so it won’t travel far. Rukket also sells safety nets, but even they say that you won’t need them for these balls.
- Lite Weight & Weighted Softball
- Optic Yellow Leather Cover
- For arm and Hand Strength
Markwort Lite Weight and Weighted Leather Softball. These balls come in different weights, because it makes sense that you don’t start with heavy practice balls right away especially when you’re a pitcher.
You can do yourself a serious injury particularly if you haven’t yet mastered proper throwing mechanics.
These balls have a 12-inch circumference, and they feature black stitching and raised seams. There’s a weighted cork in the center.
These packs of balls have weights ranging from 4 ounces up to 12 ounces. So you can gradually increase the weight of the training ball as you slowly boost the strength of your pitching or throwing arm.
Rawlings Sporting Goods B618 Softball Bucket & 18 Cork Center Softballs.
This is the priciest item on this list of indoor softball practice balls, but then you do get 18 training balls plus a huge bucket.
It actually comes with official balls, so you get them in the proper dimensions and weight. They’re designed for 12U softball leagues.
The balls are strikingly yellow, with prominent NCAA markings on the ball and on the pail to denote their official status.
The bucket also comes with a snap-on lid along with a cushioned seat for comfort. You can just sit on the bucket when you want to rest.
These 12-inch balls and the pail offer you a convenient way to bring official balls along for practice. These are Rawlings balls, so they’re made with durability in mind.
They have a solid cork center and long-lasting covers, and they should last for quite a while.
Use them for practice, and when the game is for real there’s no difference in the balls used.
How Do Precision Impact Softball Slugs Work?
The Final 2 Softball Practice Balls
Should You Get These Training Balls?
Picking the right softball training balls depends on what you want to use them for and what you personally prefer.
Just make sure that you use them correctly, and that you also warm up properly especially when you’re using the really heavy ones.
Always play it safe and monitor your aches. The point of using these training balls is to make you a better player—and that means avoiding injuries along the way!
If you love the game of softball and want to improve your game then yes, I would definitely recommend practice training balls.
Last update on 2024-04-26 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API