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CaCO3Girl
1989 Posts |
 Posted - 05/18/2016 : 15:12:37
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Originally posted by ABC_Baseball
quote:
Originally posted by CaCO3Girl
A short compact swing has less moving parts and it will result in better contact and a better average. For those that don't understand why here is an example. 12u, I saw a boy start with his left foot back, almost like a sprinter start, bat jacked up high in the air, way beyond loading, twirling the bat in a circle. After around 60 mph he couldn't hit anything....why....because by the time he got his foot back in line with his other foot to give him a decent power base, body tilted back so he could shift his power, stopped the motion of twirling the bat, brought his hands down to where he actually needed to swing...yeah that ball was already in the catchers glove.
Less moving parts is what gets it done, it may not LOOK fancy, but you aren't there to look cool, you are there to get a hit.
I may journey off topic a little here.
I get the importance with of the big power swing. The cleanup hitter is a big thing and you want / need players that are going to clear the bases. A long/big swing tends to be more of a power swing.
When looking at the majors I see so much emphasis put on one type of player. They want the player that can crush the baseball and they are excited about the long ball. Nobody seems to care about strike outs. Not too many seem to get excited about the guy with the high average, high on-base % and low number of strike outs. After all, if you can't get guys on base, you can't outscore the other team.
I fought that battle last year looking for a team for my son and I'm sure I may have to do it again in the future. You take a big kid who crushes the ball in a tryout, everybody wants him. A kid slightly above average that lines it to the gap consistently doesn't really stand out or excite people that much. Part of it may be that you don't really see his true value until you look at a larger body of work.
I told my kid while we were doing some tee work the other day, "Don't every get it in your head that you have to change as a hitter." I don't know how long he will play this game, but he has a "leadoff" mentality and leadoff type skill. He takes his walks, he makes pitchers work, he runs well, and he will do almost anything to get on base. I've seen too many kids want to kill a pitcher throwing the slow meatball or put one over the fence on a short field so badly that they end up doing more harm than good. Patience and staying within yourself is as big of a factor as anything with hitting.
ABC, tell your kid to hang in there. The HR hitter is pretty to watch, but if he's on the small field he is likely to become the pop-fly out king here shortly. Slow and steady really can win this race. |
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sebaseball
101 Posts |
Posted - 05/19/2016 : 09:24:45
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quote:
Originally posted by Hurricane
sebaseball you or anyone else have any good drills for a kid that is out front, his weight too far forward when his front heel lands? I think it might be his stride is too short but not sure? Thanks Caine
I like to slow everything down and break the process into chunks. My immediate thing to do would be to have him do the "Stride Drill" where he strides & holds that position with you right across from him. While holding that position, you correct his weight distribution toward 50/50 & correct his hands and bat angle so that they're in the proper "launch" position. Let him feel it for a second or two and then go back and do it again. Keep doing that over and over until he's getting to 50/50 & the proper launch position on his own.
Once that's in place, I'd make sure that he understands where the correct contact point is for a pitch down the middle. Later on, you can work on the contact point for pitches that are inside & away. Doing tee work is the best way to accomplish this. I would have him do his stride drill, hold the position to make sure he's 50/50 & then "slow-motion" his swing & stop at the point of contact. By going in slow motion, you get to see if he is sequencing correctly, if his hand path is correct & what position he's in at the point of contact. Anything that is out of whack, you can change along the way and redo the drill until they have it all smoothed out. From there, he starts speeding up his swing off the tee until he gets to his normal swing speed.
There are some more advanced drills, but I'd start with establishing the stride & contact point first. |
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bama21
278 Posts |
Posted - 05/19/2016 : 12:22:27
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| Who agrees with the "swinging down" on the ball approach, theory is to create backspin? A lot of coaches teach this method, although I believe it is flawed and don't prescribe to it. |
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Marlin
109 Posts |
Posted - 05/19/2016 : 12:23:17
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A full mind is an empty bat.
Quit all the thinking and just get in there and put the ball in play. Learn situational hitting after you learn how to just hit. |
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ballsandbats
85 Posts |
Posted - 05/19/2016 : 12:25:47
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Originally posted by Punishers
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Originally posted by sebaseball
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Originally posted by Punishers
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Originally posted by bfriendly
We talking hitting in general, or two strike approach
With two strikes, the only thing I have taught my son is to go oppo with the fast ball so he can stay back on a change up.......with a pitcher throwing a bunch of change ups, then we may try to go oppo the entire AB. Always trying to hit a dinger though, wether its to the oppo field or not.
I would like some elaboration on this "Flag Drill" Mr Punisher..........please. It may be just what the OP was asking for in the first place
Can't expose all my training methods here.
It was something that I learned from my high school coach when I had problems with my bat staying in the hitting zone enough. Have no idea where he got it from, but he did play in the MLB. Helps with those who have more fast-twitch muscles and too quick for their own good. I went from fowl tips to hitting singles and doubles.
I'm sorry, but that is the most absolute lame excuse I've ever heard. Like you're going to give away the hitting secret that's gonna make you millions. Give me a freakin' break. Sounds like to me you have them swing a small flag or attach a flag to the barrel of the bat so that they can both hear and see the flag waving as they get on plane and extend through the hitting zone before releasing into the follow through. Basically a way to help them see/feel/understand how to be short to and long through.
Don't get your panties in a wad. Not too many trainers are going to expose their training methods unless they are already public domain. The master doesn't teach the students everything.
Looks like you have enough baseball intelligence to either figure it out or get close to it. Besides if I told you everything, what will you learn?
Someone told you! |
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Hurricane
351 Posts |
Posted - 05/19/2016 : 12:43:06
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Thanks, sebaseball, I have actually begun having him do exactly what you are saying. After a while of that we have been pausing in that position then swinging from there.
What do you think about a 6 to 8 pound medicine ball, striding stopping then rotating and throwing the ball? I am trying to get him to feel exactly how it should feel.
Thanks |
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sebaseball
101 Posts |
Posted - 05/20/2016 : 07:07:31
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quote:
Originally posted by Hurricane
Thanks, sebaseball, I have actually begun having him do exactly what you are saying. After a while of that we have been pausing in that position then swinging from there.
What do you think about a 6 to 8 pound medicine ball, striding stopping then rotating and throwing the ball? I am trying to get him to feel exactly how it should feel.
Thanks
I'm assuming you're talking about a two hand throw from the launch position. If so, yea, that's a good drill to both feel the rotation and build strength in the core by throwing the medicine ball. You're just incorporating a regular rotational medicine ball exercise into the stride drill.
Something else you can do along these lines that's baseball related is "Long Tee" hitting sessions. This is hitting off of a tee in a normal manner, but you're at homeplate of a field or somewhere that the ball can travel long distances. The goal is to hit linedrives that clear the infield dirt & land in the OF. This lets hitters see and feel how they create power to drive the ball; not just make contact. You can do this in a cage too, just need at least a 50' cage & the goal is to hit linedrives into the upper 1/3 of the net. I've found this to be a great drill for guys to figure out on their own how to get on plane and extend through the ball so that they get carry. If you roll over it or cut your swing off right at contact, you'll immediately see it. |
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CaCO3Girl
1989 Posts |
Posted - 05/20/2016 : 07:55:04
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quote:
Originally posted by bama21
Who agrees with the "swinging down" on the ball approach, theory is to create backspin? A lot of coaches teach this method, although I believe it is flawed and don't prescribe to it.
That is a major problem in youth baseball, many coaches are teaching this new thing and that new thing and very few are focusing on doing the fundamentals (like squaring up the ball)until it is second nature. Kids aren't great at the basics and then they teach some fancy crud and the kid is a jumble of 5 techniques, which is not effective. |
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sebaseball
101 Posts |
Posted - 05/20/2016 : 08:42:01
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Don't get your panties in a wad. Not too many trainers are going to expose their training methods unless they are already public domain. The master doesn't teach the students everything.
Looks like you have enough baseball intelligence to either figure it out or get close to it. Besides if I told you everything, what will you learn?
Someone told you!
Yea, El Tigre put me squarely in my place. Surprising response though because all of the actual Dominican players that I've had the opportunity to get to know on a personal and professional level were very helpful and willing to share anything they had. They're some of the best people (as a whole) that I've had the pleasure of knowing.
I just operate from the viewpoint that if you clench your fist around your knowledge, nothing will escape your grasp, but nothing new will be added either as there is no way in. Having an open hand of friendship allows information to flow both ways and can lead to accelerated learning & understanding instead of having to figure everything out on your own. Different folks have different viewpoints though. |
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sebaseball
101 Posts |
Posted - 05/20/2016 : 08:56:04
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quote:
Originally posted by bama21
Who agrees with the "swinging down" on the ball approach, theory is to create backspin? A lot of coaches teach this method, although I believe it is flawed and don't prescribe to it.
I was taught this approach in HS during the late 80's. Went from being a good, solid hitter to the "DHed for" guy at the end of my senior year. Thankfully, I got with an older gentleman who taught "old school" (what we now call rotational) hitting the summer before heading off to college and I got back on track. A little time spent on Youtube will net a mountain of of video evidence proving that the "swing down" approach is erroneous. |
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ballsandbats
85 Posts |
Posted - 05/20/2016 : 09:06:13
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quote:
Originally posted by sebaseball
quote:
Originally posted by Hurricane
sebaseball you or anyone else have any good drills for a kid that is out front, his weight too far forward when his front heel lands? I think it might be his stride is too short but not sure? Thanks Caine
I like to slow everything down and break the process into chunks. My immediate thing to do would be to have him do the "Stride Drill" where he strides & holds that position with you right across from him. While holding that position, you correct his weight distribution toward 50/50 & correct his hands and bat angle so that they're in the proper "launch" position. Let him feel it for a second or two and then go back and do it again. Keep doing that over and over until he's getting to 50/50 & the proper launch position on his own.
Once that's in place, I'd make sure that he understands where the correct contact point is for a pitch down the middle. Later on, you can work on the contact point for pitches that are inside & away. Doing tee work is the best way to accomplish this. I would have him do his stride drill, hold the position to make sure he's 50/50 & then "slow-motion" his swing & stop at the point of contact. By going in slow motion, you get to see if he is sequencing correctly, if his hand path is correct & what position he's in at the point of contact. Anything that is out of whack, you can change along the way and redo the drill until they have it all smoothed out. From there, he starts speeding up his swing off the tee until he gets to his normal swing speed.
There are some more advanced drills, but I'd start with establishing the stride & contact point first.
I like this. And also incorporating video once he starts speeding up. Then you can slow down the video and show him whether he's doing it correctly. A lot of times kids will think they are doing what you are teaching, and full speed you may think they are, but then the slo-mo video tells a different story. Coaches' Eye is a great app for this. But really, the standard video or slo-mo video function on the iPhone is good enough. |
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Punishers
688 Posts |
Posted - 05/20/2016 : 09:53:15
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quote:
Originally posted by sebaseball
quote:
Don't get your panties in a wad. Not too many trainers are going to expose their training methods unless they are already public domain. The master doesn't teach the students everything.
Looks like you have enough baseball intelligence to either figure it out or get close to it. Besides if I told you everything, what will you learn?
Someone told you!
Yea, El Tigre put me squarely in my place. Surprising response though because all of the actual Dominican players that I've had the opportunity to get to know on a personal and professional level were very helpful and willing to share anything they had. They're some of the best people (as a whole) that I've had the pleasure of knowing.
I just operate from the viewpoint that if you clench your fist around your knowledge, nothing will escape your grasp, but nothing new will be added either as there is no way in. Having an open hand of friendship allows information to flow both ways and can lead to accelerated learning & understanding instead of having to figure everything out on your own. Different folks have different viewpoints though.
I agree with you on Dominicans were always willing to help. I was taught this technique in high school in TX. Before my DR time. The key word here is taught, not told. Nothing wrong with sharing. I prefer actual the application approach rather than just telling someone.
If I feed you fish, you only eat for now. If I teach you to fish, you eat for life.
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Punishers
688 Posts |
Posted - 05/20/2016 : 10:01:34
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quote:
Originally posted by bama21
Who agrees with the "swinging down" on the ball approach, theory is to create backspin? A lot of coaches teach this method, although I believe it is flawed and don't prescribe to it.
The idea around creating backspin is to hit the lower half of the ball to create a clockwise spin casting out effect. A bit too advanced from my opinion. Just focus on hitting the center of the ball, barrel below the hands, and keep from finishing with the bat below the waist. I have never been a fan of backspin technique. Makes for a lot of pop-ups. Besides, you do not want to swing down anyway. |
Edited by - Punishers on 05/20/2016 10:32:11 |
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bama21
278 Posts |
Posted - 05/20/2016 : 12:29:40
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| Like I said, I don't like that approach either. The parents on this forum better start paying attention to what their sons are being taught because I guarantee some of the academies are teaching this. |
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Lets talk hitting
