Patent ID: 7775911

Claim:
An apparatus for use by a trainer and a trainee in which, as part of a training exercise, the trainee strikes a designated part of the apparatus with a bat, the apparatus comprising: a substantially rigid elongated rod having a distal end and a proximal end for holding by the trainer; a spherical ball-like object positioned near the distal end of the elongated rod, having a bore-hole at least partially therethrough; and a robust connecting means for rigidly connecting the ball-like object to the elongated rod, at a substantially right angle to the elongated rod; said robust connecting means being constructed to withstand a high-velocity impact from a bat without deformation or damage to the apparatus, said robust connecting means including: (i) a sleeve surrounding a portion of said elongated rod near the distal end of said elongated rod; said sleeve including a protruding neck portion extending at a 90 degree angle to said elongated rod; (ii) a collar surrounding said protruding neck portion of said sleeve; and (iii) a cylinder passing through at least a portion of said borehole in said spherical ball-like object and said collar surrounding said neck portion, and being connected to said sleeve.