Lesson 1: The Target Test

Today's Lesson

“Most hitters think they can bunt, until someone puts a target down and keeps score.”

A bunt only counts if it dies where the defense can’t make a play. In this lesson you set two target boxes and find out how many of your bunts land where they should. Most misses have three causes, and you will check all three: a late base, a barrel that drops below the hands, and a grip that squeezes the bat. Grip: slide the top hand up and pinch the bat between the thumb and the side of the index finger, fingers behind the bat. Feet: pivot on the balls of both feet so the chest faces the pitcher, or square around with the back foot even with the front. Be set before the ball leaves the hand. Barrel: keep it above the hands, at the top of the zone, and bunt the top half of the ball.

Why It Matters

A bunt that rolls to the pitcher is an out and a lost runner. A score shows whether you have a real short game or just a hopeful one, and the fix is usually feet and barrel angle, not hands.

Today's Work

• Set up: a towel or hoop about 3 feet wide, 15–20 feet up each foul line, just inside fair territory.
• Baseline test (8 minutes): 10 bunts off front toss, 5 to each line. Score it before you fix anything.
• Footwork check (5 minutes): film 10 bunts from the side. Mark each one: set before release, yes or no. Use pivot if you want to hide the bunt longer, square-around if you need more balance.
• Barrel check (5 minutes): dry squares in a mirror. Barrel above the hands, bat at the top of the zone, angled slightly toward your line.
• Retest (5 minutes): take the Target Test again.

Track It

Write down your baseline score out of 20, your set-early reps out of 10, and your retest score. Count pop-ups in each test. Note how many first-test misses came on late-set reps.

Next: Lesson 2 turns the bat into your strike zone and teaches you to catch the ball with the barrel.