Batting cage
Encyclopedia
A batting cage is an enclosed cage for baseball
players to practice the skill of batting
.
It is usually made of netting or a chain-link fence and rectangular in shape. A batter stands at one end of the cage, with a pitching machine
(or less often a live pitcher
) at the opposing end. The pitcher or pitching machine pitches baseballs to the batter, who hits them.
The cage is used to keep the baseballs within a certain range so that they're easy to pick up and are not lost. Batting cages are often found indoors, or where space is limited.
The interior floor of a batting cage may be sloped, to automatically feed the baseballs back into the automatic pitching machine.
The automatic pitching machines using sloped floors usually pitch out a synthetic baseball or softball, rather than an official leather-clad ball.
Commercial batting cages pitch with several different speeds, which can range from 30 (generally softball) to 90 miles (144.8 km) per hour.
Cricket nets
, used by cricket
batsmen are similar in purpose, but bowling machines are much less common than facing a live bowler (this reflects the fact that nearly half of the members of a cricket team are specialist bowlers, and therefore proportionately more bowling practice is needed in cricket than pitching practice in baseball).
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
players to practice the skill of batting
Batting (baseball)
In baseball, batting is the act of facing the opposing pitcher and trying to produce offense for one's team. A batter or hitter is a person whose turn it is to face the pitcher...
.
It is usually made of netting or a chain-link fence and rectangular in shape. A batter stands at one end of the cage, with a pitching machine
Pitching machine
A pitching machine is a machine that automatically pitches a baseball to a batter at different speeds and styles. Most machines are hand-fed, but there are some that automatically feed. There are some pitching machines that will compensate the weight of the ball to make the ball be pitched at a...
(or less often a live pitcher
Pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...
) at the opposing end. The pitcher or pitching machine pitches baseballs to the batter, who hits them.
The cage is used to keep the baseballs within a certain range so that they're easy to pick up and are not lost. Batting cages are often found indoors, or where space is limited.
The interior floor of a batting cage may be sloped, to automatically feed the baseballs back into the automatic pitching machine.
The automatic pitching machines using sloped floors usually pitch out a synthetic baseball or softball, rather than an official leather-clad ball.
Commercial batting cages pitch with several different speeds, which can range from 30 (generally softball) to 90 miles (144.8 km) per hour.
Cricket nets
Cricket nets
Cricket nets are practice nets used by batsmen and bowlers to warm up and/or improve their cricketing techniques. Cricket nets consist of a cricket pitch which is enclosed by cricket nets on either side, to the rear and optionally the roof. The bowling end of the net is left open...
, used by cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
batsmen are similar in purpose, but bowling machines are much less common than facing a live bowler (this reflects the fact that nearly half of the members of a cricket team are specialist bowlers, and therefore proportionately more bowling practice is needed in cricket than pitching practice in baseball).