Batting Cages - Helping To Improve Skills

By Dave Smith

Baseball has been America's pastime since the sport was started. Baseball is a game played on a diamond with 2 teams of 9 players and one ball. A pitcher pitches to the batter and the batter hits the ball hoping to score runs. Batting skills are a pivotal skill in baseball as the only time a team can score runs in baseball is by hitting the ball.

To help a batter work on their own batting skills, there are batting cages. A batting cage is an enclosed rectangle with a pitcher or a pitching machine at one end and a batter at the other. This cage is enclosed to help with the retrieval of the balls. The baseballs are kept close and are not lost.

Batting cages are both indoor and outdoor. Outdoor cages like the rectangle design are most often found near baseball diamonds. These are used during baseball practice where the players work on their skills. A pitching machine makes this feat so much easier. The machine is placed on one end with the batter at the other end. The balls are thrown at the same constant speed and retrieval of the balls is made easy by the cage enclosure.

Other versions of outdoor cages are of a slightly smaller scale. There are cages that can be purchased for the backyard. There are mini cages which is a smaller version of the enclosed rectangle design. There also are solo trainers. This is basically a stand up net with a ball dangling from the top and you hit the ball at the net. The net stops the ball from flying too far and the string the ball is dangling from keeps the ball close as well.

Indoor versions are available. These batting cages are usually in buildings that are set up only to be batting cages. On one wall are many pitching machines lined up and on the other end is where the batters go in. The floors of these types of facilities are sloped so after the ball is hit, it follows the floor sloped and is returned back to the machine for continuous batting.

Pitching machines can be used by anyone of any age or skill because the speeds of the machine can be adjusted.

Baseball has always been America's pastime and will continue on this path. This sport is played in every city and town across the county. Batting cages allow baseball players and anyone looking for afternoon fun to develop their skill and enjoy baseball at the same time. - 31492

About the Author:

Dave shows people how to build indoor batting cages and batting cage equipment to consider.

Sports History Of Arlington Texas

By Josh Barnes

Arlington Texas is one of the largest cities in America. It has plenty of attractions for everyone, from Dallas Cowboys to Texas Rangers MLB team. Arlington is the home of the Texas Rangers baseball team, and is the home of the Dallas Cowboys. The Cowboys' new stadium will host Super Bowl XLV in 2011.

Local sports

As in the rest of Texas, Friday night high school football is a widespread obsession with fans of all ages. Arlington High School owns the city's only state football championship, having won it in'51 under head coach Mayfield Workman. Lamar High School nearly pulled off the same feat in'90, but had to settle for a state runner-up title.

In recent years, Bowie High School, Martin High School and Mansfield Summit High School (a Mansfield ISD school located within Arlington) have enjoyed some success. The University of Texas at Arlington used to field a football team, but the program was canceled in'85 due to funding issues and waning attendance. The football vacancy at the campus stadium, Maverick Stadium, was quickly filled by Arlington High and subsequently Bowie High School. Cravens Field, on the campus of Lamar, and Wilemon Field, on the campus of Sam Houston, are home to the other four teams in the city. Both have enjoyed a history of close and dramatic games.

Did you know that Arlington is the home of several notable athletes.'98 American League Rookie of the Year Ben Grieve graduated from Martin High School in'94. Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Vernon Wells grew up in Arlington and attended Bowie High School, Houston Astros outfielder Hunter Pence attended Arlington High School and played collegiate baseball at UTA, and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim pitcher John Lackey also played for UTA. Lamar High School alumnus Jeremy Wariner won two gold medals in the 2004 Athens Olympics, and the 2005 world championship in the 400 meters in Rome. UTA also produced Doug Russell, who won two gold medals in swimming at the Mexico City Olympics in'68 and for whom a park on campus is named.

Champion bodybuilder (Mr. Olympia'98-2005) and former Arlington police officer, Ronnie Coleman resides in Arlington. Houston Comets Guard Erin Grant grew up in Arlington and attended Mansfield high school where she became the first high school basketball player to win four state championships. She currently holds the Big 12 assist record. Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Mark Clayton graduated from Sam Houston High School in 2000 and was part of the University of Oklahoma's 2001 national championship team. Jared Connaughton, sprinter for the 2008 Canada Olympic team, was a sprinter for the UT Arlington team. - 31492

About the Author:

Arlington Texas has a wide variety of sports to go to. So why no plan the perfect trip with Arlington Hotels there is a wide variety for all budgets. Eve better if you book through Arlington Cheap Hotels for extra discounts on your stay.

Some Things About Fantasy Baseball Leagues

By Jacob Biggs

Forming and finding Fantasy Baseball Leagues can be a great way to have some good fun. In order to make a league, you need to have at least ten to twelve different teams, and the number can go up to as many as 4. Every team involved needs to have 23 players. Sometimes the rules for these leagues will limit you to either the National or American league.

The first move is to choose yourself a team, and the next move is to start the team building. You have two separate options for building the team. You can choose to use the 'draft' system, or you can go by way of 'auction'. The draft is done by rotation and picking players when your turn comes around. You make the decision at the beginning about whether or not to clean the slate after the season. Or you can opt for 'protecting', or keeping back, a certain number of players and carry them over to the next season.

In the auction bidding, you're given 260 credits to bid with. Deciding player eligibility is based on the player playing in at least 20 games in a certain position. Should the player you have not have a position in which they have played for 20 games, then he will be assigned the one he played the most.

The scoring in fantasy baseball leagues is a pretty involved process. It's based upon the statistics of the games. Home runs are counted, along with batting averages, runs batted in, stolen bases, wins, saves, run average, home runs, and finally the 'WHIP'. The WHIP is a figure that's derived from taking the Walks and dividing them by the Hits. The scores for all the categories get added up at the end of the season to determine the winner.

The roster for each team has a total of nine pitchers, with five outfielders, then two catchers, just one first baseman, and a single second baseman, then one third baseman, one shortstop, than a corner man, a middle infielder, and finally a single miscellaneous player. This miscellaneous player is used differently from the American League (used as a designated hitter) to the National League (he's used as a utility man).

The thing about fantasy baseball leagues is that there are so many different ways to play. There's no way that's chiseled in stone, and the many variations would take you a while to learn. But for many people, it's a past time that they have a real passion for. There are places for playing and making money, if you feel you're up to that caliber of player.

If you're a beginner, and you want a fast-track way to start, then you can go online and order yourself a draft guide. These are great for getting you quick-started into competing. You can sign up for magazines that will feed you information and help you to learn all you need to know about this extremely popular form of baseball.

Fantasy baseball leagues are fun ways to enjoy the sport that so many Americans are so passionate about. There's a lot to learn, but it doesn't take long if you understand baseball. While there's a lot more than you can find out in just this one article, there's plenty of information to be had online if you search for it. Go ahead, take the plunge. You could be the next big winner! - 31492

About the Author:

Learn more about Fantasy Baseball Leagues. Stop by Jacob Biggs's site where you can find out all about leagues and what it can do for you.