If you love baseball and softball, how cool would it be to have your own baseball batting cage?
Obviously, you need to have the space for it, but if you have a large yard with some flat space, building a home batting cage is totally possible. Below I have some photos, links, and tips for how to set one up, and where to get the supplies. There are different options for how to build a home batting cage depending on how much you want to spend and the effort and space required.
Probably the easiest way of setting up a batting cage is to order a frame kit with all of the pieces and parts and a batting cage net kit. That way there is no design or engineering required, just some space planning and some elbow grease. This type of batting cage is costly and more permanent, but will last for years and require very little maintenance.
The first thing you will need to figure out is what kind of floor you want your batting cage to have. You could lay down some artificial turf which makes a really nice floor, or you could go the budget route and just have a dirt floor, which is completely acceptable. The drawbacks to a dirt floor are that dust always gets on everything and after it rains, it will be muddy until the dirt dries, possibly preventing you from using it. You could also put down some rubber flooring like they make mats out of, or even sports court material. Concrete is another option, but it’s pretty pricey.
Next, you will have to decide whether you want a more permanent home batting cage, or one that you can move around and possibly transport to other locations. There are many different options to choose from, including home batting cage packages that have all of the pieces included.
Permanent Home Batting Cage
This 70′ x 10′ Fortress Batting Cage comes with everything you need to get an awesome set up in your yard. The poles are galvanized steel and the net is a high-quality, weather-proof, UV treated mesh that won’t rot. These kits are also available in different sizes at Amazon.com.
If you decide to go this route, you will also want to get some rubber backstops to hang at the ends to diffuse the missed balls. A protective L-Screen is also a must-have accessory for your batting cage. This is the screen you stand behind while pitching and it protects you from getting hit with the ball.
Another great accessory for your batting cage is a pitching machine. These can be very expensive, so you will have to decide whether you want a pitching machine that throws real baseballs and softballs, or one that throws poly balls. Seeing real balls pitched is the best, but those machines are the most expensive.
Pitching Machines
This is an example of a high end pitching machine that throws real balls, and it’s a baseball fanatic’s dream. This machine can throw multiple pitches from 45 – 90 mph and can pitch a fastball, split-finger, slider and curve. It also comes with a 5-year warranty.
Another type of pitching machine you could go with uses poly-type balls instead of real baseballs and softballs, and these machines are considerably less expensive. This machine is very portable and has some nice options including simulating both right and left-hand pitches, and has a 360-degree movement to throw fly balls, ground balls, and pop ups. This saves a lot of wear and tear on your arm for practices.
Accessories
A couple of additional items you will need for your batting cage are a home plate stance mat and a home plate.
Also, if you plan on doing your own pitching, I would highly recommend a ball basket like this one to increase your productivity and save your back.
Batting Cage Kit
Another way you could go is to order a kit like this that includes all the batting cage hardware you need except for the poles which are expensive to ship. You can get those at your local home store.
This is a great option because you don’t have to worry about putting together the correct size frame and net. It comes with all of the corners, caps and screws, and you can order the net separately.
These frames and nets are available in different sizes, so make sure you order the correct net to fit on your frame.
This is another really nice batting cage kit with everything you need including all of the parts to build your own batting cage. It comes with heavy-duty powder coated heavy-duty steel tubing and a UV treated net. It’s advertised as easily movable which makes it very convenient.
Most reviewers give it 5 stars.
Portable Batting Cage
There are also simpler ways to set up a batting cage in your yard or other area. For example, you could use one of these portable net batting cages that set up easily, and are very inexpensive. This kit comes with the cage and a pitching machine at a great price.
Inflatable Batting Cage
This is a brand new inflatable model of batting cage that can be made in different colors and comes in a 40′ x 12′ x 10′ size. I don’t know much about this type of batting cage but it sure looks cool. There are some used ones available as well. This is just one of the many inflatable batting cages for sale. Awesome!
Batting Cage Ideas
Here are a few photos of homemade batting cage ideas that show some creative setups using narrow spaces. Some of these can be made with your own framing, and you can even make a homemade batting cage frame with PVC pipe and you can just order the netting to your size specifications. A photo of a PVC batting cage is shown below. A couple of these are the best home batting cages I’ve ever seen.
If you are interested in building your own batting cage, you can buy a batting net here, and this baseball website has some good info and plans for how to build a batting cage and even some plans for building a PVC batting cage frame.
