Metaphorically, we should never put our hitters in a box.
They are unique, have different skills, confidence levels, work ethics and
talents.
Physically, hitters should not hit in a box. What I mean is,
they should be allowed to “disconnect.”
Imagine your four-hole
hitter on time for that cookie fastball that ended up a little lower and a
little further outside than he was anticipating. He swings, rolls over the top
of the baseball, “staying tall” as hitting coaches so often preach. 6…4…3. Double
play.
Your leadoff steps
into the box with the bases juiced, two outs and a 1-2 count. He’s in a
lefty-lefty matchup with your rival’s ace. A slider comes spinning his way then
darts down and away from his projected swing path.
He can’t keep his
hands back; they float forward as he loses his center of gravity and, from his
front foot, weekly waves at the pitch. P-5. Inning over.
Hitters should seek to make connection with pitches with
good posture. Strong posture, or what many coaches call “staying tall”, can
allow for hitters to utilize their best swing…but only if they have a low
center of gravity. This means that they have flexion, not necessarily in their
knees, but in their quads. This is why “staying tall” is a mis-teach. The term “tall”
puts a hitter’s focus on the height of his stance rather than his lower body strength
and center of gravity.
Imagine Kobe Bryant dribbling, analyzing a defender. If the
defender has a taller center of gravity, Kobe will penetrate and dunk on
someone. If the defender has an athletic stance, a low center of gravity and
balance in their lower half, he likely will pull up for a jump shot (God knows
he isn’t passing the rock).
A defender- with strength in his legs- has explosive control
of his body. Note that this doesn’t mean an overly-wide base. We aren’t talking
about the typical defensive stance in basketball, slapping the ground with
energy like you’re playing pressure defense. If you’re going to guard one of
the most dangerous scoring guards in the game, you must be able to move quickly
in any direction. This requires recruiting the power in your glutes, quads,
hammys and calves in unison.
So does hitting.
NOW, if we have a hitter who has a low center of gravity, we
can teach them to retain greater separation between their load (whether
scapular or with their hands) and their stride. Retaining such separation is what creates the most explosive bat speed
and highest exit velocities for each hitter.
NEXT, we must understand that WHEN FOOLED (whether we are
early on a fastball or out in front of an off speed pitch) it is MORE VALUABLE
to retain separation and DISCONNECT from a typically tall posture, allowing the
chest to move forward of center, than it is to stay in my posture and finish a
swing.
A hitter who is early and retains separation with a low
center of gravity can murder the baseball regardless of posture.
We’ve all seen MLB hitters hit home runs, doubles and
heat-seeking missiles, despite their balance being primarily on their front
foot. This is achieved through a sinking of the hips when fooled. To do this, a
hitter must have a lower center of gravity…and DISCONNECT from a normal
posture, utilizing their separation. This allows the hitter to stay through the
baseball with top hand extension, and drive in the big runs…even when fooled.
