Not every player is born as a natural power-hitter. If this is you, there is no need to worry! Bunting, if learned and executed properly, is an essential tool to becoming a successful hitter.
Even if you are a power hitter, bunting is just as important for you because you’ll always have teams on their toes expecting a hit while being wary of the bunt. Either way, every successful hitter needs to learn how to bunt properly because bunting creates options!
There is one fundamental bunt that every softball player should master — the sacrifice bunt. This bunt should be ingrained in a hitter’s mechanics, so that it becomes second nature. This guide will explain the sacrifice bunt so that you can become a reliable, confident, and savvy bunter.
The Bunt
A bunt is completely different than a swing. When the pitch comes, rather than swinging away and trying to hit the ball as hard as you can, you’ll hold the bat loosely in your hands in front of home plate.
When the pitch comes, the ball makes contact with your bat and drops to the ground. The key element here is that the ball hits the bat; you should never force the bat at the pitch. When bunting, think of your bat as a soft wall. When the pitch hits your bat, try to absorb some of the force so that the ball drops right to the ground rather than being propelled forward.
Bunting is for Every Hitter
Bunting is not only for batters having trouble hitting. Bunting is most often a strategic move, and is typically a successful and reliable way to advance a runner.
The term “sacrifice” comes from the fact that the bunter sacrifices her own out so that the runner on the base path safely advances to the next base, getting in better position to score.
Perfecting the Sacrifice Bunt
Sacrifice bunting is the most elementary form of bunting, so learning the technique is extremely important.
First and foremost, you have to be confident. You have little hope of succeeding at the plate when self-doubt creeps into your head. Trust your abilities!
When learning how to sacrifice bunt, think of the entire process as a series of small, executed steps:
Position Yourself in the Batter’s Box
For a sacrifice bunt, you want to be in the very front of the batter’s box because you’ll be called out if you bunt the ball straight down into the box. Starting in your regular batting stance, pivot both feet so your toes, chest, and hips are now facing the pitcher (you may stagger your stance only slightly for better balance). Your front foot should be just behind the front line of the batter’s box.
Many young players often mistakenly line up their feet across the batter’s box rather than keeping one foot behind the other. Try not to do this; It’s much easier to get out of the way of an inside pitch, or reach for an outside pitch when your legs are staggered in the box.
A good way to check your stance is to think about how you would position your feet if you were going to sprint towards the pitcher. This is precisely how your feet should look in the box.
Hot Tip: Do Not Stab at the Ball
A lot of bunters have a bad habit of moving their hands out to meet the ball. This can be referred to as “stabbing” at the pitch. This is poor bunting technique. The pitch should come meet the bat, not the other way around!
The more you move your hands, the higher chance you have of popping it up or bunting it too hard. A hard bunt is like saying, “Here’s the ball, third baseman. Now, let’s race to first!” It is effectively a ground ball, which won’t do the team any good. Let the ball come to you, and make sure you bunt it softly.
Show the Bunt
Square around for the bunt immediately. A sacrifice bunt is not supposed to be a surprise to the opposing team. You want them to know you are bunting so they’ll try to get you out, not the runner on the base path. Once you step into the box, square around to bunt.
Hold the Bat Properly
Your bottom hand should be one to two inches away from the knob of the bat. Your top hand should be about two inches from the bottom of the barrel. Your top hand controls the bat; this grasp should be secure enough that the ball won’t knock the bat out of your hands, but your knuckles should not be white from gripping it so tightly! With an extremely firm grip, your bat will not soften the bunt as effectively.
Your bottom hand controls the angle of the bat. By making the slightest movement of your bottom hand, you will be able to angle your bat in order to place the bunt wherever you choose. When you are learning to bunt, hold the bat by “pinching” it, rather than grabbing it with your entire hand. Pinching the bat will expose less of your hand to a potentially painful pitch.
Bend Your Elbows
Bend your elbows so that your arms form the letter “L” and keep them in close to your body. Never extend your arms out fully while bunting; keeping your elbows loosely bent and close to your body will help soften your bunts.
Angle the Bat
Your bat should be at approximately a 45-degree angle, which means it should be positioned diagonally from the pitcher’s perspective. You should be able to see the top portion of your bat out of the corner of your eye while you are looking straight ahead at the pitcher.
Do Not Move Your Arms
Never move your arms up to reach a ball. Any pitch for which you need to reach upward is going to be out of the strike zone. Let it go! The pitch will be called a ball, and you can try to bunt the next one.
If you need to move the bat downward to reach a lower pitch, don’t just reach down with your arms. The only movement should come from your legs, as you bend your knees in order to bunt a pitch at the bottom of the strike zone.
Bunt Placement
Since sacrifice bunts are shown so early, the third and first basemen will most likely be crashing. Therefore, you’ll need to think about where you want to place your bunt. This starts by surveying the infielders before you even square around.
- If the third baseman is playing back, bunt towards her.
- If the first baseman is playing back, bunt towards her.
- Look at their speed. If both corners are crashing and one seems a bit slower, bunt it towards her.
You don’t want to place the bunt where an infielder can turn a double play or make a force out on the runner you are trying to advance. The best spot on the infield to place your bunt is either on the left or right side of the pitcher. You only want to bunt to the pitcher if she is slow on her feet, and even then it’s a dangerous tactic.
Also try to avoid dropping the ball directly in front of home plate. You don’t want to set up an easy play for the catcher to take a step, retrieve the ball, and throw out the runner on the base path.
Get it Done!
Using the sacrifice bunt is one of the easiest ways to get runners around the diamond. Don’t doubt your hitting abilities if you are constantly being asked to sacrifice bunt. Teams can only win by scoring runs. If your sacrifice bunt is successful, you are putting your team in scoring position. Take pride in your abilities because not everyone can be a dependable bunter. You can consider yourself a strong batter if you can successfully bunt in any situation.
