Batter's Box

Abstract

The Batter's Box device is an instruction tool to help children, primarily but not limited to ages 5-12, learn two aspects of proper hitting mechanics for baseball and softball: 1) feet placement base, and 2) stride. Stride has two components, length and direction. The batter's box teaches feet placement and stride by limiting the movement of the batter's feet. The batter's box is a rectangular frame that is placed on the ground. The batter stands in the frame of the batter's box and two bungee cords, one attached to the frame in front of the back foot and one attached to the frame in front of the lead, or stride, foot, create a barrier that will constrain the batter's feet (the back foot and the stride foot) if they move with improper technique. The batter's box is adjustable for player's of different height and size. The frame may be widened and the restrictive bungee cords can be placed at various increments to complement longer or shorter legs.

1 . A portable device for teaching proper batting stance and stride to a baseball player, comprising: a rigid frame that is substantially rectangular in shape and of a size which allows the player to stand inside the frame, the frame having an elongated near-side member and an elongated far-side member, wherein the near-side member and far-side member form the longer sides of the rectangle shape, wherein the area inside the frame is defined into a rear section, a middle section, and a front section, and wherein each of the rear, middle, and front sections contain at least one elastic cord, each elastic cords is attached to the rigid frame and each elastic cord is substantially parallel to each other such that the elastic cords span the rigid frame by being connected between the near-side member of the rigid frame and the far-side member of the rigid frame, and wherein elastic cords are adjustable to define a variety of sizes of sections within the rigid frame, and wherein the rigid frame has two or more folding joints to allow the device to be folded into a smaller size. 
   
   
       2 . The portable device of  claim 1 , wherein the elastic cords are bungee cords and attached to the rigid frame by using eyelet-hooks. 
   
   
       3 . The portable device of  claim 1 , wherein rigid frame is at least 0.5 inches in height and provides a raised boundary. 
   
   
       4 . The portable device of  claim 1 , wherein the device folds into a a compact unit that is substantially square in shape and measures from about 10 to 16 inches along each side and from about 1.5 to about 7 inches in height. 
   
   
       5 . The portable device of  claim 1 , wherein the rigid frame has a plurality of foot position indicators.