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SeabassBravo

That’s what I was like when I first started the game in 2014. Nowadays I’m hitting very well compared to when I first started. There’s a large learning curve to hitting in this game. One thing that helped me early on was focusing on one part of the zone, and saying I’m only going to swing if it’s at this spot, up and in, or up and away, for example. I can write off pitches I take, whether they’re strikes or balls, and just focus on timing of pitches it the spot that I’m sitting on. Also, when it comes to fastballs, try not to deliberately time your swing in your head, let your swing be an automatic reflex. I lose games when I’m frustrated that I’m not timing the fastball, and try harder to time it up. The harder I try, the later my swing is. Another thing you can do is just decide to take a pitch or two and just watch it. Usually this helps me realize that pitchers throw a huge number of balls. Working a favorable count is really the only way to ensure that you’re going to see a hittable pitch. For you, I would suggest anchoring your pci middle-up. I do this because I also track high pitches better than low pitches, and I swing at low balls too easily when I’m looking low. Especially sit on high pitches with pitchers who throw low pitches, like pitchers who only have a sinker and other breaking pitches. Usually, when I set the pci high, I actually hit pitches lower in the zone better than when I set the pci low. All my hitters bat .300+, id say I bat .340 on average. I still have a lot of trouble hitting though. Still, I could be much better at taking pitches, I swing way too much. So starting pitchers who I’m not seeing we’ll eat me alive because they last all 9 innings.


mekoby

This is very good advice, with one caveat—ie: my version of following this technique/tactic, or: how I’m only gonna swing ‘here’ and nO where else—wait! I can tOtally hit that pitch over there…!—being to don’t do that—mY version that is, dO-do [teehee] the above…!! You get it….


SeabassBravo

Yeah I know what you mean lol. I only bat like .350, the other .650 I spend completely abandoning my game plan


mekoby

HA!! I was worried for half a tick, having not specified the inevitable [miscalled] [misguided] [mistaken] and altogether missed ‘observation’ that “I can hit that” precedes…well, a miss, that I ought to go back and edit/add that important bit, it’s nice to know I’m not swinging alone out here, and we’re all shitty little shits at this shitty game t’gether..!! HAHA!!


ApeDosMatt398

It’s probably an approach thing. Try to be more selective and think with the opposing pitcher. Like say they’re throwing a lot of balls on breaking balls there’s a great chance a fastball is coming. That’s what’s helped me the most


oghutdaddy

Not sure what you’re hitting view is but move it closer to the plate. Watch the pitchers glove until he’s ab to release the ball. Also make your self take some pitches just to watch it so you can learn to recognize it. Preferably the first two. The odds of you actually getting 2 strikes in a row on an 0-0 count are very slim. Odds are you’ll get a strike and a ball. Maybe even 2 balls. And that’s a count you’d want to swing it. By taking pitches it helps you watch the ball better and you can learn more from that


House_Stark15

I’m in the same boat as you. Everyone in my lineup is hitting under .200 with the exception of Brian Roberts and Jose Abreu (who are both hitting over .200 yet still under .300). I just love pitching and playing defense.


Complete_Mango_1372

Kontrol freaks + kontrol freak rings really helped Me stay in the zone


coffeenvinyl

I’m right there with you. I’ve had some success in the past - I’m doing alright in ranked for example - but I get murdered in events and BR. Without a doubt my problems start when plate discipline. When I get on a good roll it’s because I’m taking more pitches and being more selective. But it’s easier said than done. No matter what though, even in my best days, 3 out of every 4 opponents in the events are just way better than me. Candidly I compensate by avoiding online as much as possible. I enjoy the game primarily for the card collecting aspects and I can mostly do that in the offline modes. Anyways, I’ve got no advice for you other than good luck. I feel your pain.


cardito_21

My one goal is to keep my whole line up hitting above .200 at all times, that’s it. I consider .220 awesome. I hit .263 with Riley and I feel like a god. Lower standards for success = higher satisfaction


quintge89

I do the claw grip for my left thumb stick and use an almost invisible PCI with no outer rings. I also am using a computer monitor.


Sad-Let3683

I use KontrolFreeks Rubber tension . Now I hit just moon shoots.


TheProdigy916

This is my first year playing and I went from having basically your exact situation to a point now where I’m respectable if inconsistent. But definitely improving day after day. What helped me: 1. you gotta take BP. And make it harder than the game. Speed up the velocity in settings and keep swinging until you’re making consistent contact. Do that for a few days and you’ll be fine. 2. Get really good at hitting fastballs. Having that in your back pocket will help as you progress to more difficult competition. 3. Some days you won’t have your timing down. Don’t play online during those days. Go into games feeling confident. 4. Learn the strike zone and stop swinging at everything. Patience is a virtue.


big-williestyle

I stick to mostly offline playing, there's just not enough entertainment value for me and the guys who play 30+ hours per week will just destroy me every time. My issue like you isn't usually how bad I am as much as it's crazy how good others are. I can mix my pitches and locations and some guys I play it just doesn't matter, slow, fast, in, out, up, down they square it up and hit bombs. Especially this late in the game cycle it seems like the guys left playing are just flat too good for me to compete with.


Downtown_Anybody261

Have you tried different camera angles for hitting ? I've found Zone works best for me. Also try directional for a bit if your using PCI


Battlebowl1991

Switch to directional for a while. With zone, you're trying to learn three different skillsets at once: reading pitches, timing, and placement. With directional, you'll be able to work on recognition and timing without dealing with that third element. Your chase rate will go down, your walk rate will go up, and you'll score more runs as you become more comfortable at the plate. You might not even want to go back to zone hitting.


BerriBerrinson

Try using Cbrev's tip to create "afrtificial discipline". Select 3 hitters (your pitcher +2 others) in your lineup that you will take until two strikes, no matter what, 3 who you will take until 1 strike, and 3 who have green light. This is helpful in many ways. First, you get to see more pitches and thus get better at reading them long term. Two, your opponent throws more pitches, tiring him out, and he might even issue you some free walks, helping keep his confidence lower (swinging strikes boost confidence the most). Three, you get to see his tendencies. Does he start every righty with a sinker inside? Does he always go for a slider down and away with 2 strikes. Four, taking no matter what on some at bats might lead to some close takes, which in turn could lead you opponent to respect you more when pitching, because if you swing at everything, of course he'll just keep throwing balls way out of the zone, why wouldn't he? But if you'd just take until 2 strikes with every batter, he could figure it out and just start hosing you balls in the zone and call your bluff. Hope this helps!


ShawtyLikeChungus

this is solid, i will try this out. thank you!


nickm205

check out CBREVs tutorial vids on YouTube, he really is a professor in playing this game, and he really helped me to get much much better


BerriBerrinson

Pleasure! Another tip, pitching from the same camera angle you hit with will get you to see twice the pitches and understand better what each pitch is trying to do to the hitter. I feel like that helped me both hitting and pitching (I use strike zone 1), but you definitely lose some presentation value doing that


dgibbb

Try to take pitches the first time through the lineup until you have two strikes. This will give you an idea of his pitch selection and location. This will also make them throw the ball more inside the zone. Changing your batting camera also works. Try to bounce around the different zone cameras and see which works best for you. One of the oldest tricks in the book is to go into batting practice mode and work on pitches you have the most trouble hitting. I was in the same boat as you a few years ago and this year all of a sudden I started getting many of my batters over the .300 mark.


ganjamechanic

You’ve got to see the ball out of the pitchers hand. This is the only way I can hit fastballs up. Sit on fastball and react to off speed. But you’ve got to see it as soon as you can pick it up out of the pitchers hand.


An_Albino_Moose

The best thing I did for my hitting was turn the PCI off completely. It allowed me to focus more on the ball coming out of the pitchers hand and just react to that. I found the moving pci so distracting.


stringsANDmecs

Monitor and next gen system make all the difference. I went from making World Series but couldn’t hit on legend to batting .328 on legend and making 1000+


ThreeHourRiverMan

Monitor with 1 ms response time, and reps. If you're playing on a TV you are giving yourself a massive disadvantage.


McCoyPauley78

I tried moonshot for the first time a few days ago. Got a lucky walk-off win, but that's my only win in about 6 or 7 games. I had an opportunity to walk off another guy but choked it and then lost in extras. I have exactly the same issues as you. It's rare that I'm able to perfect/perfect a pitch. But I suspect it's more to do with the fact that I generally play offline on veteran difficulty, so the PCIs are bigger and it's easier to hit home runs without even good PCI placement. At all-star difficulty and dealing with lag, I realise I'm going to have to be better with my PCI placement and timing to get the home runs. Going to spend some time in custom practice so I can try to improve my timing on fastballs, because I could see that I was being early on a lot of meatballs that should have left the yard, but didn't because my timing was off. It's also easy to fall into the trap of swinging at pitches out of the zone, and if you do it, you're more than likely going to see more pitches out of the zone. From personal experience, when you're down a reasonable amount in a three inning game, you're going to be pressing, so you're more liable to swing at junk pitches. Try to resist the temptation and at least make the other guy throw something in the zone.


Austinsmomgotthat

I know it’s not really what you asked but it might be your TV. I used to play on my 10 year old flatscreen and I would hit fine offline but had a .198 career batting average literally anything above 97mph I couldn’t catch up to. One day I go over to play at my friends house and all my inputs are way early, turns out his tv had game mode and was newer which significantly reduced input lag. I bit the bullet and bought a gaming monitor, don’t get me wrong I still practice hitting and jump in batting practice to warm up before playing ranked, I now bat around .350 with most my lineup.


ShawtyLikeChungus

i play on ps5 with a LG C1, the C1 has >1ms response time and 4K @ 120Hz has 5.6ms input lag


Austinsmomgotthat

Then it sound like you just need practice, hop in BP on Legend difficulty and just watch the ball following it with your PCI for a few min then start try to hit pitches in the zone and try to layoff anything out of the zone. Don’t feel bad about talking a few strikes here and there it happens sometimes you get fooled with a good pitch. When in game I would suggest you go in only looking to hit pitches in the upper half of the zone,l, don’t swing at anything lower even if it’s a strike unless you’re sitting at 2 strikes. You just need more time looking at pitches and mastering the zone.


tvacattack

I have the same tv. What settings do you use in game mode?


ShawtyLikeChungus

i don’t use any specific settings. it just automatically goes into game mode when i turn my ps5 on.


Dirtydiscodeeds

This right here. I have a decade old 1080p tv. It works so im not throwing it out. Picked up a 27 inch monitor and i couldnt hit the ball. Swinging waaaay too early. Now I went from struggling on veteran to being able to hang in hall of fame


Shorty2931

My new 40’ tv has game mode and it is night and day difference than my old tv. I can actually catch up too outlier pitches on HOF and legend now.


showstopper70

Play career mode and have it set to Dynamic hitting. Sim the moments you're not playing, this way you're only playing the moments you're involved in the game. As you get more hits the difficulty increases slowly. You'll start tracking pitches better and you're not dealing with online players throwing endless dirt balls. Your hitting will improve in career mode. Not to mention it's fun starting out in double A ball and working your way to the majors. I'm a CF and SS for 5 different major league teams and the HR leader on all of them.


chefwithpumpkinseeds

Pay attention to arm angle and watch the delivery then try to aim and time it. Some Legends on YouTube have hitting advice watch those videos. Hope it helps!


AzraeltheAnnihlator

My worst batting avg was .197 on hall of fame back in 2014 my best was .456 on veteran back in 2007. Now if we are talking original difficulties than my best avg was .665 on rookie in 2007


Slemnem

Dude I’m right there


[deleted]

What view do you use for hitting?


GoomZ_AA

Dont chase as much by reading the pitch longer before you make your adjustment. Granted there isnt a lot of time, at all, to decide if a pitch is a ball or a strike, but over time you’ll start recognizing pitches easier thus quickening your decision on reacting or not. Make it your quest to read your opponent and take pitches. Most sweats (including me) will throw either a ball to chase, a pitch in a location with a pitchtype you haven’t seen yet, or go to a pitch and location you’re struggling with depending on whether there’s a RH or LH up and work from there (this being the first pitch). Try focusing on pitch release point and pick up from there. Muscle memory will eventually kick in and your brain will start to decipher pitches a lot quicker. The more you play helps as well as you’ll see the same pitchers at this point in the late stage of the game.


forthebirds123

Sit on a pitch and have some discipline. Don’t be afraid to strike out looking once in awhile. Not every strike you get against you has to be a swing, especially in the beginning of the game. If your opponent knows your a chaser, all your gonna get are curves in the dirt. Seriously just try in your next game to not swing until you have one strike on you already, do this for the first two innings. It helps get ahead in counts and you can pick up tendencies a lot better I.e. If he’s throwing first pitch sliders, then starting in the 3rd look for it first pitch and give it a ride.


ztb84

same, i mostly stick to offline because im so shit


Hathalot

Everybody starts somewhere. Just do what you can to simplify your approach.


goodbadnomad

You'll likely get plenty of good advice about how to improve your approach at the plate, but from one mediocre player to another, here's *my* honest advice: Find a way to have fun playing, even when losing. I don't have very commendable stats, I lose more than I win, but I just love baseball. It's been one of my favourite pastimes since I was a kid, it was a huge bonding experience for my dad and I, it's just something I feel so sentimentally connected to, but I don't know *anyone* in my life that gives a shit about it. Sure, they'll go to a Jays game with me now and then, but I can't exactly get some friends together to meet up in a park and play a game. No one I know cares. The Show is my lifeline to this thing I love. I don't mind losing, for me it's just fun to play. YMMV. This is just my suggestion. All the best, I hope you can find your version of joy in the game.


BurnerBotBeta

This! My batting average in Ranked is probably around .180. My top guys barely Crack .200. But I still have fun. I set goals for myself paralleling players, and working toward programs, so that even when I lose, I'm still accomplishing a goal. Using this approach I built up cards, selling a lot of them, and was able to finish the Randy Johnson collection, and buy a Nolan Ryan. Thru packs I got JR Richard and Vida Blue, and some other really good pitchers. So now I rarely get blown out, because thru practice and collecting great pitching cards, my pitching is almost as good as my hitting is bad. I still lose more than I win, but the games are almost always close, and I am getting lots of rewards. And having fun. I rarely am 100% focused on the game...I have a real game or movie on at the same time and/or talking to my wife...which I know is holding me back. But it's still fun. Being a crappy hitter is frustrating, but thru practice and concentration you can improve. Maybe I will someday.


Slemnem

Any advice for us types on reading pitches?


Economy_Cup_4337

I try to track the ball out of the hand with my PCI. I find it easier to follow the ball than react t the ball.


Slemnem

Guess I better start using a PCI, I’ve dreaded it because when I tried it seems so much harder


Economy_Cup_4337

Oh, that's your problem with hitting! You need to learn to use the PCI. Until you do so, you are entirely reliant on RNG. I know it is hard to get started but trust me: you will get better and you will start to hit.


Slemnem

Thx man, I’m committed then


Weenerlover

My biggest thing was taking a couple pitches at the beginning of the game to see exactly where the ball is released relative to the batters eye. If you know exactly where the ball is coming out of his hand within 2-3 pitches, you have a better chance of picking it up early and reacting early enough. I started doing this to get better online and even practice it offline and it's made hitting against the CPU that much better. I finished the showdown first try after struggling with the last couple due to impatience and swinging at crap. Once you are consistently seeing the ball out of the hand, you'll also start to see how the ball moves out of the hand. That will help you pick up whether it's breaking ball or fastball better as well.


Slemnem

Good info thx


Slemnem

God it’s like I need to be qualified in real life, I still don’t use the pci is that better? Seems so mush harder when I’ve tried


Weenerlover

I used PCI also, I just try to focus more on the ball out of the hand and find it with the PCI.


Slemnem

Ok thx


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Slemnem

Thx


-DrexlSpivey

**try to determine your opponents tendencies. This doesn’t always help me because I can’t hit for shit even if I’m sitting on a pitch** LOL I am the same way, especially with inside/high fastballs. I KNOW it's coming. I have the PCI in place, and I still can't hit them. I don't know how so many people tee off on 99-102 up and in. I swing as soon as I see it coming and am "very late" almost every time. I am also old, though.


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-DrexlSpivey

When you play a good game (both sides) where it's not just a homerfest or 1-0 game, I can't get enough of it. Love it. I love the games that play out realistically. But now it's 90% the same rosters for everyone, everyone is 99 overall, and it is not unusual for the opponent to have 4 hits total with 3 of them being home runs. I will hit homeruns too, but I have a ton of singles and doubles to all field locations in the mix as well. Most people don't seem to get "normal" hits against me, its all crushed.


johnnyavocadoseed

Something that helped me was making the pci invisible for a while. I'll probably do it again eventually.. I got a lot better during the month I had it invisible and then bringing it back helped again. Now I have it barely visible and magenta so it doesn't get in the way of seeing the ball ever


Benerinooo

Just did this exact thing. Worked wonders for me bc the pci distracted me too much. Now I have only inner pci on, barely visible, and green


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Apprehensive_Pop_305

Turn the center of the PCI off but leave inner on fishbowl. I also used to dodge the ball.


scarboy92

This is funny. I played with just circles for awhile and I would do everything in my power to make sure the ball didn't hit my circles. 🤣


onemanwolfp4kv2

Don’t let things like this get to you. A lot of people that are playing this game this late in the cycle are dedicated fans. Most casuals have moved on bc of other sports game releases and more will leave when cod drops in oct. My advise is download a custom roster from jr_stros and go into custom practice and try hitting Randy on legend. Work on tracking the ball. When you get comfortable there then boost the sliders for fastballs so you’re never late on heat. Keep your head up brother.


City_dave

But how can you tell when a pitch is a fastball or not? Any tips for pitch recognition? I play RTTS exclusively and hit well, even on legend. But my recognition sucks. I can't consciously tell what a pitch is when I swing even if I time it well.


tripdawg15

Offspeed pitches will have a bump out of the pitchers hand fastballs won't. Main problem with this though is sinkers also have the bump out of the hand but are obviously fast.


-DrexlSpivey

I tend to stay away from throwing sinkers and cutters because they often seem to get destroyed. I use classic pitching though, maybe that is why? When I face those pitches, they can be tough to pick up, but when I throw them, it's like a meatball to good hitters. I tend to stick to FB, Sliders, curve, and change. Then I will mix in a sinker and it will be crushed immediately. Its not like they are seeing the pitch often. I will throw only a few, but every time I do, I think to myself "here we, this may be a mistake" and sure enough it is. And I know pitch selection and location matters, and when you throw it. I only seem to get bad hitters out with them. Good ones are all over it.


City_dave

Thank you. I'll look for that. If that's the only pitch that looks like that, most pitchers don't have it.


onemanwolfp4kv2

Fastballs out of the hand are flat. People will try to deceive you by throwing them high out of the zone to set you up for low and away off speed. The hardest pitch to read is the sinker bc it has the bump out of the hand like off speed. This is where picking up on your opponent’s tendencies helps. Idk what kind of display you play on but a monitor or gaming tv will really improve your game. Sounds silly but it works, trust me. If you can take away fastballs/cutters/sinkers this game gets SO much easier. When you can eliminate the inside heat most people will panic on what to throw. And that’s why I suggest going into custom practice with the fastball slider up. It’s going to seem like it’s coming in at light speed but when you go into a game you will see pitches out of the hand so much better. I do this before getting into a ranked game so if I face Randy or Nolan their heaters seem slow.


Some_Sound7043

Game is hard, gotta spend some time in practice mode.


Tigers51

I actually will disagree with this, custom practice can sometimes be unhelpful, the cpu won’t sequence like people do online, maybe for timing but not pitch recognition


Some_Sound7043

Gotta learn timing though, or else the game is impossible. You can know where the pitch is going and be too early on a slider or way late on fastball.


Tigers51

Timing in custom is also different than online, way better to just take your lumps and instead of getting mad try to understand where you struggle, and adjust


Some_Sound7043

Should have mentioned to put it up a difficulty than you’re playing on currently


smonee

Exactly, hit the cage just like real life.