Situational Hitting in Baseball: Moving Runners, RBI At-Bats, and Execution Tips for Every Level

By Jake Morrison April 22, 2026 24 min read

Last updated: March 22, 2026

I’ve spent the last two decades watching what separates winning teams from losing ones, and more often than not, it comes down to one overlooked skill: situational hitting. I’m not talking about launch angle worship or chasing exit velocity numbers. I’m talking about the hitter who moves the runner from second to third with nobody out, drops a bunt down the line when the infield is at double-play depth, or drives in a run from third with a soft liner to the right side. That is the art of situational hitting, and it is the single biggest gap between Little League teams who win championships and those who collect participation ribbons. The same is true at every level up through the big leagues.

This guide walks you through everything I teach my hitters about situational hitting, from the mental checklist before you step in the box to the specific drills I run with my own players. You will leave with a plan for every count, every base state, and every leverage moment you are likely to face this season. Buckle in, because we are going deep.

What Situational Hitting Actually Means

Situational hitting is the deliberate adjustment of your approach based on the score, the count, the number of outs, where the runners are, and what the defense is giving you. It is the opposite of the “see ball, hit ball” mindset. It is a hitter saying, “In this exact spot, what does my team need from me right now?” and then executing the at-bat that produces it, even if the result is a groundout, a sacrifice fly, or a productive out that never shows up on a highlight reel.

The 2025 MLB data made this clear. Teams that ranked in the top ten in batting average with runners in scoring position (RISP) won an average of 88 games, while teams in the bottom ten averaged just 72. That sixteen-win gap did not come from home runs. It came from productive at-bats in moments that mattered. The best lineups in baseball are built on hitters who know how to shrink the strike zone, drive the ball to specific fields, and put pressure on defenses without needing to be heroes.

The Pre-Pitch Checklist Every Hitter Should Run

Before you leave the on-deck circle, you should already know what this at-bat needs to be. I teach my players a six-point checklist they run every single time they step toward the box. If you cannot answer all six questions in under fifteen seconds, you are not ready to hit.

Score and inning. Are you protecting a lead, trying to tie, or trying to break a game open? A one-run game in the seventh is nothing like a six-run game in the third.
Outs. Zero, one, or two outs completely changes what a productive at-bat looks like.
Base runners. Is your leadoff guy on first? Is your best baserunner on second? Is the go-ahead run at third with less than two outs? Each changes your goal.
Defensive alignment. Are the corners in, at double-play depth, or playing back? Is the outfield shaded one way? This tells you what holes exist.
Pitcher tendencies. What did he throw on 0-0 last at-bat? What is his out pitch? Does he throw his breaking ball for strikes?
Count leverage. You will not be on 0-0 forever. Pre-plan what you want to do on 1-0, 2-0, 3-1, 0-2, and 1-2 before the at-bat even starts.

This checklist is not optional. I have watched All-Americans get buried in conference play because they stepped in the box thinking about mechanics instead of situation. Hitting is 70 percent above the neck, and the pre-pitch checklist is where that work gets done.

The Five Core Situational At-Bats

Every situational hitting concept flows from five core at-bat types. Master these and you will be a better hitter at every level of the game, from 12U travel to a Division I dugout.

1. Runner on Second, Nobody Out

Your job here is to move the runner to third. Not to hit a double. Not to pull the ball. Move him. That means hitting the ball on the ground to the right side of the diamond, between the first and second basemen. Even a well-struck groundout to the second baseman gets the job done, because now the next hitter can score him with a fly ball, a grounder to the right side, a wild pitch, or a sacrifice fly. A lineout to left with the runner frozen at second is a failure. A groundout to second that moves him to third is a success.

2. Runner on Third, Less Than Two Outs

Get the run in. Period. You do not need to drive the ball 400 feet. A medium-depth fly ball to any outfielder is a run. A ground ball to the shortstop or second baseman (with the infield back) is a run. A hard-hit ball up the middle is a run. The only at-bats that fail here are the strikeout, the infield popup, and the soft line drive right at somebody. I drill my hitters to look middle-away in this spot, because a middle-away pitch hit the other way almost always produces contact deep enough to score the runner.

3. Runners on First and Second, Nobody Out

This is a sacrifice bunt situation at almost every level below the college power conferences, and still is in many games above it. If you cannot bunt both runners over cleanly, you are not a complete hitter. If the bunt is off, the hit-and-run is on, or you are swinging away, your approach flips: you want a ball up in the zone that you can lift the other way so the lead runner can advance safely.

4. Runner on First, Less Than Two Outs

Avoid the double play. That is job one. You do that by hitting the ball in the air, hitting the ball hard through the middle, or hitting the ball on the ground to the pull side where the fielder has to cover more distance. The worst thing you can do here is roll over a weak grounder to the shortstop or second baseman. Target a pitch you can drive, and aim for the middle of the field or the gap.

5. Two-Strike Approach With Runners On

Choke up. Spread out. Shorten your load. Shrink your goal to “put the ball in play somewhere useful.” That might mean fouling off a borderline pitch you cannot drive. It might mean shortening your swing to slap a ball through the right side. With two strikes and runners on, your average should actually go up, not down, because you are selling out for contact in the biggest moment of the at-bat.

Situational Hitting Reference Table

Situation	Primary Goal	Target Contact	Acceptable Out	Unacceptable Out
Runner on 2B, 0 out	Advance to 3B	Ground ball right side	4-3 groundout	Strikeout, lineout to left
Runner on 3B, 0 or 1 out	Score the run	Fly ball or deep ground ball	Sac fly, RBI groundout	Strikeout, infield pop
1B and 2B, 0 out	Advance both runners	Bunt or ball in air	Sacrifice bunt	Bunt popup, double play
Runner on 1B, 0 or 1 out	Avoid double play	Ball in air or gap	Strikeout swinging	6-4-3 double play
Tie game, 2 out, RISP	Extend the inning	Hard contact any field	Hard lineout	Called strikeout
Leadoff at-bat of inning	Get on base	Middle of field	Deep count out	First-pitch weak out
Two strikes, any runners	Put ball in play	Up middle, opposite field	Productive contact	Strikeout

Counts and How to Hit Them

Every situational concept interacts with the count you find yourself in. The same base-out state calls for different approaches depending on whether you are ahead, behind, or even. I teach count leverage as three buckets.

Hitter’s Counts: 1-0, 2-0, 3-1, 2-1

These are the counts where you attack. 2025 MLB batters hit .315 with a .581 slugging percentage in 2-0 counts, which is roughly a superstar line in every count. On 3-1, the slugging jumps to .612. In a hitter’s count, you narrow your zone to one specific area, usually middle-in for power hitters or middle-middle for contact hitters, and you take anything that is not your pitch. Do not help the pitcher by swinging at a borderline slider because you are excited to be ahead.

Even Counts: 0-0, 1-1, 2-2

0-0 is the most important pitch of every at-bat. Pitchers threw a first-pitch strike 60 percent of the time in 2025 at the big-league level, and hitters who swung at the first pitch and made contact hit .342. The first-pitch fastball is the highest-quality pitch you are likely to see. If it is in your zone, hunt it. If you pass on it, you are playing from behind in every count that follows.

Pitcher’s Counts: 0-1, 1-2, 0-2

You are in defensive mode. 2025 MLB batters hit just .164 in 0-2 counts. Choke up, shorten the stride, expand the zone slightly, and look to foul off anything close. Your goal is to live another pitch, not to win the at-bat in one swing. A walk from an 0-2 count is a better outcome than a home run in a regular count because of how rare it is and how much damage it does to the pitcher’s confidence.

MLB Batting Splits by Count (2025 Season)

Count	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS
0-0 (first pitch swing)	.342	.344	.557	.901
1-0	.340	.462	.573	1.035
2-0	.315	.619	.581	1.200
3-1	.311	.580	.612	1.192
2-1	.328	.406	.557	.963
3-2	.225	.455	.410	.865
0-1	.314	.327	.499	.826
1-2	.175	.212	.279	.491
0-2	.164	.176	.256	.432

Look at the difference between a 2-0 count (1.200 OPS) and an 0-2 count (.432 OPS). That is an 800-point swing based on two pitches. This is why pitch selection on 0-0 matters more than anything else you do in an at-bat. Controlling the count is controlling the outcome.

Reading the Defense Before You Swing

A situational hitter reads the defense the same way a defensive coordinator reads an offense. Every positioning choice the other team makes tells you something about where they do not want the ball to go, which means it tells you where the hits live.

Corners in, no doubt about a bunt. If the first and third basemen are crashing, they are sacrificing coverage on line drives and ground balls down the line. A hard swing through the hole is unusually dangerous here.
Middle infielders at double-play depth. They have given up range in the gaps. A ball hit up the middle that would normally be an out becomes a base hit. Go middle of the field.
No-doubles defense. Outfielders are deep, corners are on the line. The entire middle of the field is open. Drive a line drive up the middle and you have a single that might turn into a double anyway.
Shift or overload. After the 2023 shift restrictions, teams still cheat positioning against pull hitters. If they are shaded toward your pull side, a hard ground ball the opposite way is a free hit.
Outfield shading pull. If the left fielder is creeping into the left-center gap against a right-handed hitter, the left-field line and the right-center gap are wide open. Drive the ball away from the shade.

I tell my players to make eye contact with the third baseman and shortstop before every pitch. Where are their feet? Are they creeping? That thirty-second read is worth more than any swing tip I could give them.

Executing the Sacrifice Fly and the Productive Out

A sacrifice fly is not an accident. It is the intentional product of hunting a pitch you can elevate to the outfield. I train my hitters to execute it in three steps.

Hunt a pitch up in the zone. Low pitches become grounders. High pitches become fly balls. On a sac fly attempt, you should be looking exclusively up until you get two strikes.
Let the ball travel. Early contact creates lineouts. A ball hit out in front with a lofted path travels for distance. Keep your hands back and let the ball get deep.
Finish high, not flat. Your follow-through should mirror your intent. A high finish produces a ball with launch angle. A flat finish produces grounders and topspin liners.

The productive groundout works the same way, in reverse. For a right-handed hitter with a runner on second and nobody out, I want a pitch away (or at worst, middle) that you intentionally hit to the right side. Stay inside the ball, let it travel, and think of your bat as a door swinging sideways rather than a hammer chopping down. If you execute this even 40 percent of the time, you will be one of the best situational hitters on your team.

Drills That Actually Build Situational Hitting

You cannot think your way to situational hitting. You have to train it. Here are the six drills I run every week in team practice and individual lessons.

Drill 1: The Four-Field Tee

Set up four tees in the cage: one inside, one middle-in, one middle-away, and one outside. Hit five balls from each tee, focusing on driving each pitch to the field that matches its location. Inside pitches go pull. Outside pitches go opposite. You are training your body to match swing path to pitch location, which is the foundation of hitting to all fields. Do this twice a week, and your two-strike approach will transform within a month.

Drill 2: The Situation BP Round

Replace one of your weekly batting practice rounds with a pure situational round. Before each pitch, a coach calls out a situation: “runner on second, nobody out,” “runner on third, one out,” “first and third, two out.” The hitter must execute the correct at-bat. You get scored on results, not intent. I assign point values: 2 points for a base hit in the correct zone, 1 point for a productive out, 0 for a neutral out, and -1 for a situation-killing result. Keep score across teammates and you will watch the competition turn into execution.

Drill 3: Two-Strike BP

Every hitter takes a round of batting practice where they start every swing with a two-strike count. The rule: choke up an inch, widen your stance, and focus on contact up the middle or opposite field. Coaches throw one in ten pitches as chase pitches (junk off the plate) and you must lay off. This drill builds two-strike muscle memory that you cannot manufacture in a game. My college hitters who adopted this drill routine raised their two-strike batting average by an average of 38 points in one season.

Drill 4: The Sac Fly Challenge

Place a runner at third base. The pitcher throws five pitches, all fastballs up in the zone. The hitter must produce five fly balls deep enough to score the runner from third (minimum 220 feet for high school, 180 feet for youth). Miss and you owe pushups or a conditioning penalty. This drill teaches launch angle on purpose, not as a byproduct of mechanical thinking.

Drill 5: Bunt for a Hit

Set up a strike zone target behind home plate. The hitter gets 10 pitches and must execute 5 bunts down the third-base line and 5 down the first-base line, each landing within six feet of the line before the catcher can retrieve it. This trains both the sacrifice skill and the bunt-for-a-hit weapon. A hitter who can drop a drag bunt at any time forces the defense to play honest, which opens up the entire field.

Drill 6: The Count Game

In a live BP setting, coaches call out counts before each pitch: “3-1,” “0-2,” “2-2,” “hitter’s 2-0.” The hitter must adjust their zone and approach to match. This trains the instant recalibration that great hitters do unconsciously. I have my hitters verbalize out loud their zone before each pitch: “3-1 means I am looking middle-in for a fastball. Anything else, take.” Saying it out loud burns it in.

Common Errors I See in Situational Hitting

These are the ten mistakes I see most often at the high school and college level. Fix these and you will jump tiers as a hitter without changing your swing.

Hero swinging. Trying to drive in a runner from third with a double when a fly ball would do. Result: strikeout or popup.
Pulling off outside pitches. With a runner on second, trying to pull an outside pitch to third base rolls over and gets outs that do not advance the runner.
First-pitch passivity. Taking a fat fastball on 0-0 because you want to “see a few pitches.” That fat fastball was your best pitch of the at-bat.
Not choking up with two strikes. Trying to protect with a regular grip kills your ability to cover the plate.
Ignoring defensive positioning. Hitting into shifts or overloaded defenses without adjusting your target.
Swinging at the same zone in every count. 0-0 and 3-1 and 0-2 all require different zones. Most amateurs use the same zone every time.
Bailing out on the breaking ball. Stepping in the bucket takes you away from the pitch you should be driving.
Taking on 3-1. The 3-1 green light is the single best hitter’s count in baseball. Letting it go by is a giveaway.
Swinging at 3-0 without a sign. Unless your coach gives you the green light, 3-0 is a take in 95 percent of situations.
Forgetting the score. Down by 5 in the first is a different approach than tied in the seventh. Many hitters never adjust.

Expert Voices on the Art of the At-Bat

I do not have to convince you alone. The best hitters and coaches in baseball have been preaching situational hitting for generations.

“A hitter has to know what he wants to do before the pitcher knows what he wants to do. If you step in the box without a plan, the pitcher has already won.”
Tony Gwynn, Hall of Fame hitter with a .338 career batting average

“I tell my hitters that a productive out is a language. If you can speak it, the game opens up. If you cannot, the game closes on you.”
Augie Garrido, College Baseball Hall of Fame coach, five-time national champion

“Hitting is about damage and it is about moving the line. Sometimes the line moves with a three-run homer. Sometimes the line moves with a four-three groundout that scores a run from third. A great hitter knows which one the situation is asking for.”
Kevin Long, longtime MLB hitting coach

These are not theoretical coaches. These are men who built championship lineups. If they are telling you situational hitting is the difference-maker, that is because it is.

Situational Hitting by Level

The situational concepts do not change across levels, but the execution targets absolutely do. Here is how I coach the same ideas at different ages.

Youth (8U to 12U)

Keep it simple. Teach them to look for a pitch they can hit, to put the ball in play, and to avoid strikeouts with two strikes. Introduce sacrifice bunting at 11U and 12U. Do not over-coach count leverage at this age. The biggest situational concept for youth is “protect the plate” with two strikes, which means choke up and battle.

Middle School and High School JV (13U to 15U)

Introduce the five core situational at-bats. Drill sacrifice flies and ground balls to the right side. Start teaching count leverage with a focus on 0-0 aggression and two-strike defense. Teach them to read the defense and identify a double-play depth infield versus a regular depth infield.

Varsity High School

Full situational program. Pre-pitch checklist on every swing. Count-specific zones. Defensive reads. Bunt-for-a-hit as a regular part of practice. Hitters should be able to verbalize their plan in the dugout before each at-bat.

College and Beyond

Advanced pitcher scouting becomes part of the prep. Hitters should know every pitcher’s out pitch, first-pitch tendency, and put-away sequence. Video study is daily. The margins at this level are tiny, and situational execution is often the tiebreaker between a starting job and a bench role.

Using Data to Sharpen Your Approach

Statcast and similar tools have made data available at every level, and high school programs are increasingly using systems like Blast Motion and Rapsodo. Here are the numbers I want every serious hitter tracking.

Batting average by count. Track your performance in 0-0, 1-0, 0-1, 3-1, 1-2, and 0-2 counts. If you are hitting below .200 in 0-0 counts, your first-pitch approach is broken.
Ground-to-fly ratio by situation. Are you hitting the ball in the air with a runner on third and less than two outs? You should be above a 1.2 fly-to-ground ratio in this spot.
Spray chart. Can you hit the other way on command? If 80 percent of your balls in play go pull-side, you are a liability with a runner on second.
Two-strike slugging. A great two-strike hitter slugs above .350. Anything under .250 means you are selling out too hard.
First-pitch swing rate. The MLB average is 30 percent. Good aggressive hitters are at 40 percent. Passive hitters are at 20 percent and below, and they are giving up run production.

Two-Strike Hitting Data Benchmarks

Level	Target AVG (2 strikes)	Target K rate	Target BB rate	Target Contact %
MLB Average	.175	26%	10%	72%
Elite MLB hitter	.235	14%	13%	85%
Division I Starter	.220	18%	11%	78%
Varsity HS	.210	20%	9%	75%
JV / 14U Travel	.195	25%	8%	70%
12U	.170	30%	10%	65%

Mental Routines That Make Situational Hitting Stick

The cognitive load of situational hitting is real. You are processing count, situation, defense, and pitcher in four to six seconds. To keep your mind from locking up, you need mental routines that automate the process.

The on-deck rehearsal. In the on-deck circle, mentally run your pre-pitch checklist. Visualize the situation and your target. You should step into the box already knowing what you want to do.
The between-pitch reset. After every pitch, step out. Take one deep breath. Re-run the count, outs, and zone. Step back in. This is non-negotiable at higher levels.
The one-word cue. Have a one-word cue for your approach. “Middle.” “Up.” “Away.” Say it under your breath before each pitch. It locks in your target and blocks out noise.
The reset after failure. A 3-1 swing-and-miss does not end the at-bat. You still have pitches left. Flush the previous pitch and treat the next one as its own moment. Hitters who carry failure forward strike out on 3-2 sliders they never should have swung at.

Situational Hitting FAQ

How long does it take to become a good situational hitter?

About 200 to 300 focused at-bats of deliberate situational practice before it becomes instinctive. That is roughly one full offseason of twice-weekly situational work. I have seen hitters transform their approach in eight weeks when they commit to the drills above. There is no shortcut, but there is no ceiling either.

Is situational hitting still relevant with modern analytics?

More relevant than ever. The analytics revolution told us that strikeouts are costly and productive contact is undervalued. Teams that chase slug at the expense of contact have lost in the playoffs repeatedly since 2021. Every recent World Series champion has ranked in the top half of baseball in situational hitting metrics like runners in scoring position and two-strike batting average. The data confirms what good coaches have taught for a century.

Should I change my stance for different situations?

Your base stance should not change. Your grip, stride length, and bat path should adjust. With two strikes, choke up an inch and shorten your stride. With a runner on third and less than two outs, widen your stance slightly and stay taller through the ball to encourage launch. Stance overhauls within an at-bat are too much load. Adjustments to grip and load are plenty.

How do I hit the ball to the right side on command?

For right-handed hitters, the key is letting the ball travel deeper into the hitting zone and swinging inside the ball with the barrel trailing the hands. Start with tee work where the tee is positioned slightly behind the plate. Hit line drives to the second baseman’s glove. Once that feels natural, move to soft toss with the same target. This is not a pull-and-hook swing; it is an inside-out approach that keeps the bat on plane longer. For lefties, the mirror image applies: let the ball travel and drive it to shortstop.

What is the single most important situational at-bat?

Runner on third with less than two outs. This is the highest-leverage situation in baseball in terms of run expectancy, and it is the at-bat where amateur hitters fail most often by trying to do too much. Learn to execute a sacrifice fly or an RBI groundout in this spot and you will outperform your slash line by thirty points of production per season.

Can I be a situational hitter and a power hitter at the same time?

Absolutely. The best power hitters in baseball are also the best situational hitters because they know when to expand and when to shrink. Aaron Judge, Mookie Betts, Juan Soto, and Yordan Alvarez all have higher-than-average RBI rates with runners in scoring position, which is not an accident. They adjust zones and approaches inside their natural power profile. You can do the same.

How much of situational hitting is coaching vs. player instinct?

Instinct matters, but it is almost entirely trainable. I have coached hitters with elite bat speed who could not execute a basic hit-and-run and I have coached hitters with modest tools who were elite in every situational category. The difference is not talent. It is the number of focused reps and the willingness to internalize the pre-pitch checklist until it becomes automatic.

What should I do if my coach does not teach situational hitting?

Do it yourself. Run the drills above on your own time. Keep your own spray chart. Ask a parent or teammate to call out situations during BP. The best players in every sport are self-directed learners who do not wait for a coach to give them a path. Situational hitting is one of the skills you can absolutely build on your own with a tee, a net, and twenty minutes a day.

Building a Weekly Situational Practice Plan

All the concepts in the world will not help if you do not build them into your week. Here is a sample weekly plan I give to my serious hitters from February through the end of the season.

Day	Focus	Drills	Duration
Monday	Four-field tee work	Inside, middle, outside tees; 25 reps each	30 min
Tuesday	Situation BP	Called-situation BP round; 15-20 pitches	45 min
Wednesday	Two-strike approach	Two-strike BP round + chase pitch laybacks	30 min
Thursday	Sac fly + bunt work	Sac fly challenge + bunt for hit drill	30 min
Friday	Count game live	Coach calls counts; hitter adjusts zone	40 min
Saturday	Game day reps	Normal batting practice + pre-game visualization	20 min
Sunday	Recovery + video	Watch your week’s at-bats; chart missed situations	30 min

This plan fits in three to four hours a week, which is completely doable on top of team practice. Do this for one offseason and you will be a different hitter by Opening Day.

The Bottom Line

Situational hitting is not a soft skill. It is not an afterthought. It is the thing that separates good hitters from great ones and the thing that wins championships at every level of baseball. The players who take it seriously, drill it, track it, and execute it are the ones who become irreplaceable members of winning lineups. Swing for home runs when the situation calls for it. Advance the runner when it does not. Score the run from third with one out. Bunt the ball down the line when the game asks you to. Control the count. Read the defense. Hunt the right pitch. Execute. That is how you build a hitter who belongs in the middle of the order on a winning team.

The next time you step in the box, run the checklist. Know the situation. Know the count. Know the defense. Know the pitcher. Know what your team needs from you right now. Then go get it done. That is situational hitting, and that is how you become the kind of hitter your coach cannot take out of the lineup.