Zone hitting guide

[COMMISSIONERHBK9]

Hey guys anyone uses zone that can post some tips. I’m struggling now with the hitting. I’m using ridin 2.5 rosters and I’m the Yankees. When I first started I had no issues but with the recent patches I notice my hitting has fell off.

[NolanRyansSnowmonkey]

Quote: Originally Posted by COMMISSIONERHBK9

Hey guys anyone uses zone that can post some tips. I’m struggling now with the hitting. I’m using ridin 2.5 rosters and I’m the Yankees. When I first started I had no issues but with the recent patches I notice my hitting has fell off.

This is my approach, i am copying and pasting it from a post i made in 2017. I still use this same approach (or very close). I actually see better results on 18 than i did then. I play on Legend this year, and HOF last year so it doesnt really matter on that...

On Legend on 18 it is even more perfect for me

Here is my post from 17:

I used to waste many games chasing pitches. I still fall into this when I get tired or impatient or start a game too late lol.

I'm very disciplined now using zone. My approach works perfectly with Mr. Lowe's CPU pitching sliders because ball/strike ratios are almost dead on. This gets me close to the right mlb % for swings. I thought I would share what I've done so i play more realistically...

I know other players who use a similar approach. Here's how I do it.

I stopped moving the PCI. (Much). I dont mean i take my thumb off and leave it in the middle. I pick a quadrant of the strike zone, such as upper away. I move my PCI there before the pitch and hold it there. Part of my pci still covers the middle of the plate. So I dont miss those. And I leave it there (for now).

On the first pitch of an AB, I want that pitch to hit the dot in the middle of the pci, or be down the middle of the plate. And usually a fastball. If its not, I'm taking it. I dont care how good the strike looks. (That gets me at 70% takes on first pitch which is league average) (if the pitch is down the middle of the plate all i have to do is let go of the stick if i want. Don't yank it.)

On early counts, 1-0, 0-1, 1-1, and 2-1 i want a pitch in my quadrant (or at least that half of the plate) and lay off anything inside. And I usually lay off breaking pitches here. Unless it's a super fat hanger.

Hitters counts, 2-0, 3-1. My pci goes close to dead center. And again they need to hit the DOT in the middle of my pci. ANYTHING else, I take. (Dont worry- you'll be fooled enough here.) LOTS of walks dont happen here because people chase ball 4. Or let the pitcher back get to 2-1, instead of 3-0.

3-0. I dont swing. If i do it better be down the middle and on the pci dot, and only with the occasional exceptions of only a select 2 or 3 players on my team in the right situations.

2 strike counts, my pci goes near center also. But now it's so i can move it anywhere to protect the plate. I know that they're probably going to try to make me chase a couple, if they're ahead in the count. So I'm ready to lay off sliders off the plate and low change ups. If i strike out looking occasionally its ok. The game could use a few more user K's anyway.

Im not afraid to go down looking on 3-2 either. But im also ready to protect.

Basically- on 0-0, 2-0, 3-1 my pci barely moves, if at all. Hit the dot.
Anything less than 2 strikes- im picking a quadrant (or half, if the player has a big pci) and i want the pitcher to throw it "through my hoop (pci)" for me to swing.
2 Strikes - protect.

This is my basic approach. Game situations and specific players may call for something else. But 95% of the time this is my approach.

I dont yank the pci down nearly as often as I used to because of this approach. But i still do it on 2 strike counts more than I would like.

I've also started moving my pci higher than normal before the pitch. The game creates a lot of fly balls and this gets me a little closer to the right GB rate. Seems awkward at first but it seems to work. But not necessary.

This approach works for me. In fact I LOVE this approach. Its the closest to real baseball to me. And I get great results. A greater percentage of pitches i swing at are Hittable "hitters pitches" which increases my batting average, and I get more walks (over 3 a game).

I dont mind taking a lot of called strikes. Its ok. I probably should take even more. Looking at MLB stats, there are quite a bit more called strikes than swinging strikes. (But more swinging strikeouts than called strikeouts) Its easy to be swing happy on the Show. Which leads to people having to drop a level or adjust sliders to compensate.

This does take patience. And some in-game practice. And discipline. And more patience. Not for arcade players, or super fast games.

I still make a lot of mistakes and chase pitches that make me hit myself in the head. But this approach reduces those significantly, to a more realistic, MLB type level for me.

I dont have a PCI displayed anymore, because I like a clean screen. But i played with it long enough I can still "see" it in my mind.

"But what if the pitcher never throws it where my pci is?" I tip my hat. Then i adjust to his tendencies. But i don't assume. I need to see plenty of evidence first.


- Hope this helps

[COMMISSIONERHBK9]

Omg thanks bud so much appreciate for this. When you said up and away do u mean you move the pci up and left a little or just move it straight up?

Quote: Originally Posted by NolanRyansSnowmonkey

This is my approach, i am copying and pasting it from a post i made in 2017. I still use this same approach (or very close). I actually see better results on 18 than i did then. I play on Legend this year, and HOF last year so it doesnt really matter on that... On Legend on 18 it is even more perfect for me Here is my post from 17: I used to waste many games chasing pitches. I still fall into this when I get tired or impatient or start a game too late lol. I'm very disciplined now using zone. My approach works perfectly with Mr. Lowe's CPU pitching sliders because ball/strike ratios are almost dead on. This gets me close to the right mlb % for swings. I thought I would share what I've done so i play more realistically... I know other players who use a similar approach. Here's how I do it. I stopped moving the PCI. (Much). I dont mean i take my thumb off and leave it in the middle. I pick a quadrant of the strike zone, such as upper away. I move my PCI there before the pitch and hold it there. Part of my pci still covers the middle of the plate. So I dont miss those. And I leave it there (for now). On the first pitch of an AB, I want that pitch to hit the dot in the middle of the pci, or be down the middle of the plate. And usually a fastball. If its not, I'm taking it. I dont care how good the strike looks. (That gets me at 70% takes on first pitch which is league average) (if the pitch is down the middle of the plate all i have to do is let go of the stick if i want. Don't yank it.) On early counts, 1-0, 0-1, 1-1, and 2-1 i want a pitch in my quadrant (or at least that half of the plate) and lay off anything inside. And I usually lay off breaking pitches here. Unless it's a super fat hanger. Hitters counts, 2-0, 3-1. My pci goes close to dead center. And again they need to hit the DOT in the middle of my pci. ANYTHING else, I take. (Dont worry- you'll be fooled enough here.) LOTS of walks dont happen here because people chase ball 4. Or let the pitcher back get to 2-1, instead of 3-0. 3-0. I dont swing. If i do it better be down the middle and on the pci dot, and only with the occasional exceptions of only a select 2 or 3 players on my team in the right situations. 2 strike counts, my pci goes near center also. But now it's so i can move it anywhere to protect the plate. I know that they're probably going to try to make me chase a couple, if they're ahead in the count. So I'm ready to lay off sliders off the plate and low change ups. If i strike out looking occasionally its ok. The game could use a few more user K's anyway. Im not afraid to go down looking on 3-2 either. But im also ready to protect. Basically- on 0-0, 2-0, 3-1 my pci barely moves, if at all. Hit the dot. Anything less than 2 strikes- im picking a quadrant (or half, if the player has a big pci) and i want the pitcher to throw it "through my hoop (pci)" for me to swing. 2 Strikes - protect. This is my basic approach. Game situations and specific players may call for something else. But 95% of the time this is my approach. I dont yank the pci down nearly as often as I used to because of this approach. But i still do it on 2 strike counts more than I would like. I've also started moving my pci higher than normal before the pitch. The game creates a lot of fly balls and this gets me a little closer to the right GB rate. Seems awkward at first but it seems to work. But not necessary. This approach works for me. In fact I LOVE this approach. Its the closest to real baseball to me. And I get great results. A greater percentage of pitches i swing at are Hittable "hitters pitches" which increases my batting average, and I get more walks (over 3 a game). I dont mind taking a lot of called strikes. Its ok. I probably should take even more. Looking at MLB stats, there are quite a bit more called strikes than swinging strikes. (But more swinging strikeouts than called strikeouts) Its easy to be swing happy on the Show. Which leads to people having to drop a level or adjust sliders to compensate. This does take patience. And some in-game practice. And discipline. And more patience. Not for arcade players, or super fast games. I still make a lot of mistakes and chase pitches that make me hit myself in the head. But this approach reduces those significantly, to a more realistic, MLB type level for me. I dont have a PCI displayed anymore, because I like a clean screen. But i played with it long enough I can still "see" it in my mind. "But what if the pitcher never throws it where my pci is?" I tip my hat. Then i adjust to his tendencies. But i don't assume. I need to see plenty of evidence first. - Hope this helps

[NolanRyansSnowmonkey]

Quote: Originally Posted by COMMISSIONERHBK9

Omg thanks bud so much appreciate for this. When you said up and away do u mean you move the pci up and left a little or just move it straight up?

In that example i would move the pci slightly up, and to the right (for a right handed batter) so if you divided strike zone into four equal parts, my pci would in the upper right quadrant looking toward the pitcher.

I change this throughout the game depending on situations. If a pitcher throws a lot of sinkers, or two seamers etc, i might move it into the lower quadrant. You will have to see what works best for you.

The placement isnt as important as the approach. This is very similar hitting approach to a lot of MLB players and it works in the Show too. I have seen players play very very close to their ratings doing this. I love it.

It will take just a little getting used to, if you are used to just reacting to every pitch so stick with it. Took me two years to convince my friend to change to this more patient approach and now he finally hits like a pro. Soon it becomes second nature.

[taterskin]

Quote: Originally Posted by NolanRyansSnowmonkey

This is my approach, i am copying and pasting it from a post i made in 2017. I still use this same approach (or very close). I actually see better results on 18 than i did then. I play on Legend this year, and HOF last year so it doesnt really matter on that... On Legend on 18 it is even more perfect for me Here is my post from 17: I used to waste many games chasing pitches. I still fall into this when I get tired or impatient or start a game too late lol. I'm very disciplined now using zone. My approach works perfectly with Mr. Lowe's CPU pitching sliders because ball/strike ratios are almost dead on. This gets me close to the right mlb % for swings. I thought I would share what I've done so i play more realistically... I know other players who use a similar approach. Here's how I do it. I stopped moving the PCI. (Much). I dont mean i take my thumb off and leave it in the middle. I pick a quadrant of the strike zone, such as upper away. I move my PCI there before the pitch and hold it there. Part of my pci still covers the middle of the plate. So I dont miss those. And I leave it there (for now). On the first pitch of an AB, I want that pitch to hit the dot in the middle of the pci, or be down the middle of the plate. And usually a fastball. If its not, I'm taking it. I dont care how good the strike looks. (That gets me at 70% takes on first pitch which is league average) (if the pitch is down the middle of the plate all i have to do is let go of the stick if i want. Don't yank it.) On early counts, 1-0, 0-1, 1-1, and 2-1 i want a pitch in my quadrant (or at least that half of the plate) and lay off anything inside. And I usually lay off breaking pitches here. Unless it's a super fat hanger. Hitters counts, 2-0, 3-1. My pci goes close to dead center. And again they need to hit the DOT in the middle of my pci. ANYTHING else, I take. (Dont worry- you'll be fooled enough here.) LOTS of walks dont happen here because people chase ball 4. Or let the pitcher back get to 2-1, instead of 3-0. 3-0. I dont swing. If i do it better be down the middle and on the pci dot, and only with the occasional exceptions of only a select 2 or 3 players on my team in the right situations. 2 strike counts, my pci goes near center also. But now it's so i can move it anywhere to protect the plate. I know that they're probably going to try to make me chase a couple, if they're ahead in the count. So I'm ready to lay off sliders off the plate and low change ups. If i strike out looking occasionally its ok. The game could use a few more user K's anyway. Im not afraid to go down looking on 3-2 either. But im also ready to protect. Basically- on 0-0, 2-0, 3-1 my pci barely moves, if at all. Hit the dot. Anything less than 2 strikes- im picking a quadrant (or half, if the player has a big pci) and i want the pitcher to throw it "through my hoop (pci)" for me to swing. 2 Strikes - protect. This is my basic approach. Game situations and specific players may call for something else. But 95% of the time this is my approach. I dont yank the pci down nearly as often as I used to because of this approach. But i still do it on 2 strike counts more than I would like. I've also started moving my pci higher than normal before the pitch. The game creates a lot of fly balls and this gets me a little closer to the right GB rate. Seems awkward at first but it seems to work. But not necessary. This approach works for me. In fact I LOVE this approach. Its the closest to real baseball to me. And I get great results. A greater percentage of pitches i swing at are Hittable "hitters pitches" which increases my batting average, and I get more walks (over 3 a game). I dont mind taking a lot of called strikes. Its ok. I probably should take even more. Looking at MLB stats, there are quite a bit more called strikes than swinging strikes. (But more swinging strikeouts than called strikeouts) Its easy to be swing happy on the Show. Which leads to people having to drop a level or adjust sliders to compensate. This does take patience. And some in-game practice. And discipline. And more patience. Not for arcade players, or super fast games. I still make a lot of mistakes and chase pitches that make me hit myself in the head. But this approach reduces those significantly, to a more realistic, MLB type level for me. I dont have a PCI displayed anymore, because I like a clean screen. But i played with it long enough I can still "see" it in my mind. "But what if the pitcher never throws it where my pci is?" I tip my hat. Then i adjust to his tendencies. But i don't assume. I need to see plenty of evidence first. - Hope this helps

Great stuff. Use a very similar approach. Only differences I have really are I generally sit slightly inside and up when ahead in the count as you noted. Got sick of savvy pitchers showing beach ball only for me to have a pitch run inside just enough to slightly jam me. I try to get beyond 2 pitches in an AB as I can hit the ball hard early but my success rate early in counts isn't near as good as over 2 pitches in. If I get ball 1 I take pitch 2 99% of the time. I also encourage to pickup on pitcher tendencies . If you're playing strictly online opponents there may be few but when playing franchise, rtts, etc you will have divisional games where you see quite a few of the same guys.

[NolanRyansSnowmonkey]

Quote: Originally Posted by taterskin

Great stuff. Use a very similar approach. Only differences I have really are I generally sit slightly inside and up when ahead in the count as you noted. Got sick of savvy pitchers showing beach ball only for me to have a pitch run inside just enough to slightly jam me. I try to get beyond 2 pitches in an AB as I can hit the ball hard early but my success rate early in counts isn't near as good as over 2 pitches in. If I get ball 1 I take pitch 2 99% of the time. I also encourage to pickup on pitcher tendencies . If you're playing strictly online opponents there may be few but when playing franchise, rtts, etc you will have divisional games where you see quite a few of the same guys.

That works too. Yeah my friend looks low and away so there is no right or wrong. More than anything you want a selective approach.

I do like getting deeper into counts and seeing a lot of pitches, but if i see my pitch, im swinging, whether its the first pitch or 10th.

One goal of mine is to see 16 pitches per inning, which is about MLB average. So this approach accomplishes that. I dont always see that many, but over time it averages out. but i do sometimes take a strike or two just get that pitch count up. I like to run starters out by the end of 6 innings due to pitch count.

[C_Bailey24]

I've read through every guide and thread and i still can't hit. I've bought every version of this game since '14 and it's the same thing every year. I simply can not learn to Zone hit and it's very frustrating. So this leads me to play for a few days then out of complete frustration put the game down for a week or two, then come back, then put it down. I don't want to go down to the lowest level and/or mess with sliders. Because that won't help me accomplish what i'm trying to do and that's get better. Sure, i'll see waaayy more pitches in the heart of the zone and get more hits and score more runs by making all these adjustments but It's not so much about results as it is i simply can not get comfortable at the plate. I've tried all the hitting interfaces over the years and the other two get boring after awhile especially directional. I want my input to matter not simply ratings. I've tried different cameras and every one of them have a drawback. I started a Cardinals franchise back when the game came out mainly to work on hitting. Batting practice is fine but i also wanna see different pitchers etc and not hand pick them like you can in exhibition. Every one of my batters with the exception of maybe two are hitting below .200. Every pitcher feels the same. I can't tell the difference in facing DeGrom and facing Trevor Williams.. who just K'd me 11 times btw. But this isn't so much about the game as it is my inability to get over this hump. It seems every pitcher i face has some funky delivery where it feels like their throwing the ball from behind their head or their ear or their arm motion is so fast i can't pick up the pitch out of their hand.This leads to late swings and an overall unsureness of what im seeing. I'm down 0-2 or 1-2 every at bat and im not exaggerating. And it's not all from me swinging at bad pitches. It's simply the first two out three pitches are always strikes even when i don't swing. The CPU completely takes advantage of the whole wait for your pitch be patient thing by nailing pitch after pitch on the outer thirds and edges of the strike zone. My last game i swung at 49% of pitches thrown. I don't think thats too high maybe i'm wrong. In the rare times i have a pitch thrown to where i'm pre-aiming the PCI i still foul off or swing through half of those. So it's a mess and i'm at my wits end. I want to be able to move and track my PCI to the ball first and foremost and not have to rely on pre-aiming and hoping i get a pitch in that location because 90% of the time i don't and then the at bat is essentially over. Even when the pitch is slightly out of my PCI i freeze up and can't seem to move it and make a simple adjustment. I want to be able to stop swinging over the top of sliders and curveballs when i'm not fooled. Example, when i get a hanger i move my PCI to where it is instead of where it's going and i end up early and over the top if that makes any sense. So again this is not about results per sae. I'm not expecting to score a bunch of runs and hits every game but i also don't want to go into every game i play striking out 12+ times and knowing that if i give up more than 2 runs to the CPU then i'm screwed because i'm not gonna string enough hits together to come back. I want variety. I simply want to find a way to make more contact using this interface and the rest should take care of itself.

So does anyone have any techniques, drills, or tips that helped them improve that they care to pass along? Again, i'm talking tips to make contact and get better with the PCI not slider adjustments and the like...

[countryboy]

Quote: Originally Posted by C_Bailey24

I've read through every guide and thread and i still can't hit. I've bought every version of this game since '14 and it's the same thing every year. I simply can not learn to Zone hit and it's very frustrating. So this leads me to play for a few days then out of complete frustration put the game down for a week or two, then come back, then put it down. I don't want to go down to the lowest level and/or mess with sliders. Because that won't help me accomplish what i'm trying to do and that's get better. Sure, i'll see waaayy more pitches in the heart of the zone and get more hits and score more runs by making all these adjustments but It's not so much about results as it is i simply can not get comfortable at the plate. I've tried all the hitting interfaces over the years and the other two get boring after awhile especially directional. I want my input to matter not simply ratings. I've tried different cameras and every one of them have a drawback. I started a Cardinals franchise back when the game came out mainly to work on hitting. Batting practice is fine but i also wanna see different pitchers etc and not hand pick them like you can in exhibition. Every one of my batters with the exception of maybe two are hitting below .200. Every pitcher feels the same. I can't tell the difference in facing DeGrom and facing Trevor Williams.. who just K'd me 11 times btw. But this isn't so much about the game as it is my inability to get over this hump. It seems every pitcher i face has some funky delivery where it feels like their throwing the ball from behind their head or their ear or their arm motion is so fast i can't pick up the pitch out of their hand.This leads to late swings and an overall unsureness of what im seeing. I'm down 0-2 or 1-2 every at bat and im not exaggerating. And it's not all from me swinging at bad pitches. It's simply the first two out three pitches are always strikes even when i don't swing. The CPU completely takes advantage of the whole wait for your pitch be patient thing by nailing pitch after pitch on the outer thirds and edges of the strike zone. My last game i swung at 49% of pitches thrown. I don't think thats too high maybe i'm wrong. In the rare times i have a pitch thrown to where i'm pre-aiming the PCI i still foul off or swing through half of those. So it's a mess and i'm at my wits end. I want to be able to move and track my PCI to the ball first and foremost and not have to rely on pre-aiming and hoping i get a pitch in that location because 90% of the time i don't and then the at bat is essentially over. Even when the pitch is slightly out of my PCI i freeze up and can't seem to move it and make a simple adjustment. I want to be able to stop swinging over the top of sliders and curveballs when i'm not fooled. Example, when i get a hanger i move my PCI to where it is instead of where it's going and i end up early and over the top if that makes any sense. So again this is not about results per sae. I'm not expecting to score a bunch of runs and hits every game but i also don't want to go into every game i play striking out 12+ times and knowing that if i give up more than 2 runs to the CPU then i'm screwed because i'm not gonna string enough hits together to come back. I want variety. I simply want to find a way to make more contact using this interface and the rest should take care of itself. So does anyone have any techniques, drills, or tips that helped them improve that they care to pass along? Again, i'm talking tips to make contact and get better with the PCI not slider adjustments and the like...

The best tip that I can give you right now is to put it in your mind that you can't react to every pitch. In other words, go into the at-bat/pitch to pitch looking for a certain pitch in a certain zone. If its not there, then let it go. Unless of course there is two strikes, then do your best to get to it to foul it off and live to see another pitch. But if you go up to the at bat with the idea of trying to react to what the pitcher is pitching instead of reacting to what you're seeing based on what you're expecting, then you're going to struggle at the plate making solid contact and getting base hits.

Another thing that I HIGHLY recommend is using the Pitcher/Batter Analysis tool. This thing is amazing and will help you understand how the pitcher is attempting to get each of your hitters out. Try to pick up tendencies, such as he likes to throw the slider off the plate with 2 strikes when ahead in the count, or that he's pitching a particular hitter in a certain quadrant/zone of the strike zone (ie: low and away) and start looking there.

I think one of the biggest issue people have with hitting, zone hitting in particular, is that they try to react to each pitch and don't have a "plan" in place, thus becoming extremely frustrated.

So that is my tip...and hopefully it will work and lead to better at-bats. If you have additional questions or concerns, post them here and we can discuss.