No doubt we live in a Sports Center-watching , highlight-infested, media-driven baseball world.
We love talent. It's impressive. Miguel Cabrera's bat control, Mike Stanton's strength, Billy Hamilton's speed.
We are obsessed with anyone who breaks records, particularly in speed, i.e. Aroldis Chapman, Usain Bolt, Rickey Henderson. And who am I to scoff at them!
All of those athletes are phenomenal, impressive, exciting, blah blah blah.
Rarely do we give these athletes the credit they deserve for their skill, or their preparation of that skill. Talent does an athlete no good if he doesn't have the discipline to work on his skill.
Baseball is a SKILL game. The big leagues are full of talented players, but the most talented players are those who work on their barrel manipulation, bunting, catch play, hand-eye coordination, ability to change direction quickly and ability to hit a breaking ball.
The minor leagues are full of uber-talented players who look, throw, run, swing and spit like Hall of Famers. And a high percentage of them will end up being released without even a cup-of-coffee.
Having an approach at the plate is a skill. It requires self-trust, confidence and calculated thought. Hitters that practice their swings over and over again may possess a skilled swing, but are missing the bridge between average and great.
Practicing approach, confidence and mental toughness can all start in tee work, front toss and BP.
Hitters that practice choosing confidence and aggressiveness, despite recent or accrued failures, have sharpened their most important skill.
Monday, August 18, 2014
Sunday, July 20, 2014
Being On Time, Part 5: Visualization and Sound.
Today I want to talk about how hitters can use visualization and sound to improve their timing.
In the on deck circle, hitters use the movement of a pitcher's body and the tempo of his delivery to time the speed of the pitch. What is the gap between his fastball and breaking ball?
Some hitters use music or sound as a key to honing in on the timing and quickness of a pitch. How?
Imagine the sound of a fastball, hissing towards the plate. Ssss-sst. That was 85. Ss-sst. That was 90. There is a rhythm to a fastball, something almost musical. A hitter can visualize a pitch and a location while simultaneously imagining the sound it makes.
A breaking ball makes a different sound, depending upon the pitch and the speed. Hitters can hear the sounds and file those in their memories of what to look and listen for out of the hand when getting aggressive to fastballs or off-speed pitches. Hitters that are advanced are always ready to hit the pitch that they are looking for at that moment, but can take the pitch when they hear or see a different pitch OR if they recognize that the tunnel the pitch has come from is different than that required of their hitting zone.
Sound complex? It is. Just like every other aspect of hitting, these idiosyncrasies become intuitive when they are practiced over and over again.
Visualization is not nearly as helpful when it is not lifelike. If you were trying to imagine what a lemon tastes like, you would not visualize a watermelon. You also would not visualize a lemon the size of a basketball because your mind knows that is a fantasy.
Using the mind to visualize pitches is no different. Practicing this skill means creating a still and quiet environment for the mind. This must be practiced in the cage, with front toss, and tee work. To increase difficulty and make more game-like, increase distractions i.e. music, noises, radio, TV, teammates talking, etc.
In the on deck circle, hitters use the movement of a pitcher's body and the tempo of his delivery to time the speed of the pitch. What is the gap between his fastball and breaking ball?
Some hitters use music or sound as a key to honing in on the timing and quickness of a pitch. How?
Imagine the sound of a fastball, hissing towards the plate. Ssss-sst. That was 85. Ss-sst. That was 90. There is a rhythm to a fastball, something almost musical. A hitter can visualize a pitch and a location while simultaneously imagining the sound it makes.
A breaking ball makes a different sound, depending upon the pitch and the speed. Hitters can hear the sounds and file those in their memories of what to look and listen for out of the hand when getting aggressive to fastballs or off-speed pitches. Hitters that are advanced are always ready to hit the pitch that they are looking for at that moment, but can take the pitch when they hear or see a different pitch OR if they recognize that the tunnel the pitch has come from is different than that required of their hitting zone.
Sound complex? It is. Just like every other aspect of hitting, these idiosyncrasies become intuitive when they are practiced over and over again.
Visualization is not nearly as helpful when it is not lifelike. If you were trying to imagine what a lemon tastes like, you would not visualize a watermelon. You also would not visualize a lemon the size of a basketball because your mind knows that is a fantasy.
Using the mind to visualize pitches is no different. Practicing this skill means creating a still and quiet environment for the mind. This must be practiced in the cage, with front toss, and tee work. To increase difficulty and make more game-like, increase distractions i.e. music, noises, radio, TV, teammates talking, etc.
Being On Time, Part 4: Creating a "Flat" Swing
Our next series in being on time is a dissertation on creating a "flat" swing.
First, it is imperative that we get on the same page. A flat swing is about the BARREL PATH to the ball, not about the angle of the swing. The best swings that produce an elite contact percentage and power have a slight upper-cut to the arc and trajectory of the barrel path. Slight. As in 6-10 degrees lift.
Swings that look like THIS one create high contact ratios with low power. This dude is enormous. Lots of strength, good bat speed, and the worlds most handsy swing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_JsPOQ-DGk
Don't hit like that.
Can't tell what he's doing? Too fast to see with the naked eye? Go to 1:10 of the video feed, and keep clicking on that swing.
The knob of the bat should not point towards the pitcher BECAUSE we used our hands to do so. The rear elbow slots first, then the hands take over the direction of the swing.
When the rear elbow slots first, the barrel immediately flattens out, parallel to the ground. This is what we want to achieve. The paralleled nature of the bat and ground IS WHAT CREATING A FLAT SWING IS ALL ABOUT.
From there, our hands will create a tilt or lift angle on the ball. A hitter may also tilt his chest and legs in an effort to lift; this,we wish to avoid, as it creates massive holes in the swing with elevated and elevated inside pitches.
Hitters that are "low ball hitters" often have very handsy swings and cannot hit elevated pitches that have higher velocities. The reason for this is that a handsy swing pushes the hands forward, but the bat stays high above the hitting zone until the hands release the barrel out in front, always lower in the hitting zone.
Hitters who hit for a high average AND for power....what we all seek to achieve...slot the rear elbow early, creating a flat barrel and maximizing contact points. These hitters can hit pitches that are high, low, inside or outside...all with power. When their approaches are good, their results are elite.
Watch this video from the HR derby.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SMfhvXqxIPU
Yoenis Cespedes has approximately a 25 degree lift. This explains why he is a perfect candidate, in combination with his bat speed and strength at contact, to lift dozens of balls out of any yard, even Target Field. HOWEVER, this is batting practice. Sort of. This is HR Derby BP.
A typical BP is 38-43 mph and his BP from Mike Gallego was approximately 33-35 mph: big ol' beachballs coming in there with their own downward plane. He can easily get away with such exaggerated lift in BP.
When Yoenis takes that swing into a big league game, he has to commit sooner, is exposed by elevated pitches, and ends up with a slash line for his career that looks like this : .261/.318/.464, for an OPS of .782. Above average offensive production for a big league outfielder, but certainly not the .264/.382/.530= .913 OPS Jose Bautista has put up since arriving in Toronto, or the .270/.361/.538 numbers that Giancarlo Stanton has. All 3 are freakishly strong, despite different body types. All 3 have very strong and consistent approaches at the plate (watch them hit for a couple of games). This is where swing plane, i.e. creating a flat swing, is a difference maker!
Lastly, it is important to understand that their are outliers. We should not mimic them.
Derek Jeter... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKC7YdztXBg
... was extremely handsy. He has a .311/.379/.443=.822 stat line. Realistically, he could have had significantly more power had he had a flatter swing. His average may have been 10-15 points lower, but his OPS (which has a significantly greater statistical correlation to runs created) would have been markedly higher.
Miguel Cabrera.... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1fFJVFPXmV8
... is a magician at altering his swing. Sometimes he gets slotted early, sometimes his approach is to punch one through the right side to get a free RBI with a shift on. He's smart. If you attempt to take one of his backside HR swings and mimic it as a hitter, you'll be trying to mimic what a 6'4 240 lb. athlete does. He is freakishly strong. Are you? If you have his strength and can alter your swing from pitch to pitch, you are likely a first-rounder next year- congrats!
Lastly, Mike Trout... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lX_dm39fkfw
... is a notoriously terrific low-ball hitter. However, he gets slotted very early. Watch again. What he does differently is he dives- a posture tilt to reach low and outside pitches. To beat Trout, you must come in and you must elevate. Big league pitchers try to do this to him. Problematically for them, the big league strike zone is 17 inches wide and about 18 inches tall. So anything elevated that most hitters swing at, is often called a ball...and Trouty just takes those pitches. His approach is FIRST CLASS. He knows his swing and knows what pitches he can and can't hit. This is, perhaps, the most important skill a hitter can have.
First, it is imperative that we get on the same page. A flat swing is about the BARREL PATH to the ball, not about the angle of the swing. The best swings that produce an elite contact percentage and power have a slight upper-cut to the arc and trajectory of the barrel path. Slight. As in 6-10 degrees lift.
Swings that look like THIS one create high contact ratios with low power. This dude is enormous. Lots of strength, good bat speed, and the worlds most handsy swing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_JsPOQ-DGk
Don't hit like that.
Can't tell what he's doing? Too fast to see with the naked eye? Go to 1:10 of the video feed, and keep clicking on that swing.
The knob of the bat should not point towards the pitcher BECAUSE we used our hands to do so. The rear elbow slots first, then the hands take over the direction of the swing.
When the rear elbow slots first, the barrel immediately flattens out, parallel to the ground. This is what we want to achieve. The paralleled nature of the bat and ground IS WHAT CREATING A FLAT SWING IS ALL ABOUT.
From there, our hands will create a tilt or lift angle on the ball. A hitter may also tilt his chest and legs in an effort to lift; this,we wish to avoid, as it creates massive holes in the swing with elevated and elevated inside pitches.
Hitters that are "low ball hitters" often have very handsy swings and cannot hit elevated pitches that have higher velocities. The reason for this is that a handsy swing pushes the hands forward, but the bat stays high above the hitting zone until the hands release the barrel out in front, always lower in the hitting zone.
Hitters who hit for a high average AND for power....what we all seek to achieve...slot the rear elbow early, creating a flat barrel and maximizing contact points. These hitters can hit pitches that are high, low, inside or outside...all with power. When their approaches are good, their results are elite.
Watch this video from the HR derby.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SMfhvXqxIPU
Yoenis Cespedes has approximately a 25 degree lift. This explains why he is a perfect candidate, in combination with his bat speed and strength at contact, to lift dozens of balls out of any yard, even Target Field. HOWEVER, this is batting practice. Sort of. This is HR Derby BP.
A typical BP is 38-43 mph and his BP from Mike Gallego was approximately 33-35 mph: big ol' beachballs coming in there with their own downward plane. He can easily get away with such exaggerated lift in BP.
When Yoenis takes that swing into a big league game, he has to commit sooner, is exposed by elevated pitches, and ends up with a slash line for his career that looks like this : .261/.318/.464, for an OPS of .782. Above average offensive production for a big league outfielder, but certainly not the .264/.382/.530= .913 OPS Jose Bautista has put up since arriving in Toronto, or the .270/.361/.538 numbers that Giancarlo Stanton has. All 3 are freakishly strong, despite different body types. All 3 have very strong and consistent approaches at the plate (watch them hit for a couple of games). This is where swing plane, i.e. creating a flat swing, is a difference maker!
Lastly, it is important to understand that their are outliers. We should not mimic them.
Derek Jeter... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKC7YdztXBg
... was extremely handsy. He has a .311/.379/.443=.822 stat line. Realistically, he could have had significantly more power had he had a flatter swing. His average may have been 10-15 points lower, but his OPS (which has a significantly greater statistical correlation to runs created) would have been markedly higher.
Miguel Cabrera.... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1fFJVFPXmV8
... is a magician at altering his swing. Sometimes he gets slotted early, sometimes his approach is to punch one through the right side to get a free RBI with a shift on. He's smart. If you attempt to take one of his backside HR swings and mimic it as a hitter, you'll be trying to mimic what a 6'4 240 lb. athlete does. He is freakishly strong. Are you? If you have his strength and can alter your swing from pitch to pitch, you are likely a first-rounder next year- congrats!
Lastly, Mike Trout... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lX_dm39fkfw
... is a notoriously terrific low-ball hitter. However, he gets slotted very early. Watch again. What he does differently is he dives- a posture tilt to reach low and outside pitches. To beat Trout, you must come in and you must elevate. Big league pitchers try to do this to him. Problematically for them, the big league strike zone is 17 inches wide and about 18 inches tall. So anything elevated that most hitters swing at, is often called a ball...and Trouty just takes those pitches. His approach is FIRST CLASS. He knows his swing and knows what pitches he can and can't hit. This is, perhaps, the most important skill a hitter can have.
Saturday, July 5, 2014
Being On Time, Part 3: Balance and Using the Legs
Recently, we have been exploring the fundamentals of a swing that is consistently on-time. This blog is dedicated to the use of the legs in creating consistent timing and barrel contact.
The best lower body mechanics in a swing allow the hitter to be both aggressive and "on time." Many professional hitters gain aggressiveness with a leg kick. Often the leg kick is mis-taught or misused at the amateur level; hitters often land with their weight disproportionately on their front foot, creating a break in the swing's synchronization and causing hands to drift forward away from separation. This immediately impacts both maximum bat speed and direction of the swing.
The avoid becoming a 'front foot' hitter, many amateur coaches react to this lack of balance by preaching "STAY BACK" and by cajoling their hitters to become inefficient lower-body rotators with very linear hand paths who lack explosiveness and have lessened their bat speed potential.
Watch these elite hitters: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrpyBrbu8co
Notice mainly two things:
1.) Their center of gravity at heel strike: low.
2.) Their head, centered directly between their legs.
Focus on the same items, while watching Mike Trout:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lX_dm39fkfw
Now Barry Bonds:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VUTW4FsMeNQ
Now, recalling what we have preached about gaining separation between the load and the lower body, think about those swings you just saw.
Now, recall the concept of elbow slotting to flatten the barrel out, allowing for 1.) Enhanced contact opportunities with the plane of the ball 2.) Early bat speed 3.) Late commitment.
Watch the videos again, focusing on separation and slotting.
Now, MOST HITTING COACHES spend 75% of their time coaching the upper body, when nearly all breaks in the swing's synchronization began in the lower half.
Focus on these mechanical breakdowns:
1.) If a hitter's head comes front of center, separation will be lost.
2.) If a hitter gets his heel down late, the ball will beat him to the ideal point of contact. He is beat.
So, the conundrum is what to do when the foot gets down too early? The answer: SINK. When a hitter gets his foot down too early and the ball is elevated, it is easy enough to retain separation or "keep the hands back." However, when the ball is away or down, often the hitter will roll over the top or swing and miss. SINKING the hips, lowering the center of gravity beyond normal allows the hands and load to remain separated longer. Often this is long enough to barrel the ball up, despite a break in the kinetic chain.
The best lower body mechanics in a swing allow the hitter to be both aggressive and "on time." Many professional hitters gain aggressiveness with a leg kick. Often the leg kick is mis-taught or misused at the amateur level; hitters often land with their weight disproportionately on their front foot, creating a break in the swing's synchronization and causing hands to drift forward away from separation. This immediately impacts both maximum bat speed and direction of the swing.
The avoid becoming a 'front foot' hitter, many amateur coaches react to this lack of balance by preaching "STAY BACK" and by cajoling their hitters to become inefficient lower-body rotators with very linear hand paths who lack explosiveness and have lessened their bat speed potential.
Watch these elite hitters: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrpyBrbu8co
Notice mainly two things:
1.) Their center of gravity at heel strike: low.
2.) Their head, centered directly between their legs.
Focus on the same items, while watching Mike Trout:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lX_dm39fkfw
Now Barry Bonds:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VUTW4FsMeNQ
Now, recalling what we have preached about gaining separation between the load and the lower body, think about those swings you just saw.
Now, recall the concept of elbow slotting to flatten the barrel out, allowing for 1.) Enhanced contact opportunities with the plane of the ball 2.) Early bat speed 3.) Late commitment.
Watch the videos again, focusing on separation and slotting.
Now, MOST HITTING COACHES spend 75% of their time coaching the upper body, when nearly all breaks in the swing's synchronization began in the lower half.
Focus on these mechanical breakdowns:
1.) If a hitter's head comes front of center, separation will be lost.
2.) If a hitter gets his heel down late, the ball will beat him to the ideal point of contact. He is beat.
So, the conundrum is what to do when the foot gets down too early? The answer: SINK. When a hitter gets his foot down too early and the ball is elevated, it is easy enough to retain separation or "keep the hands back." However, when the ball is away or down, often the hitter will roll over the top or swing and miss. SINKING the hips, lowering the center of gravity beyond normal allows the hands and load to remain separated longer. Often this is long enough to barrel the ball up, despite a break in the kinetic chain.
Saturday, June 21, 2014
Being On Time, Part Two: Holding the Bat Properly
Many hitters struggle to make consistent, hard contact. Often, the issue can be as simple as a poor grip. A proper grip should have the knocking knuckles of each hand lined up with the fat knuckles of the other hand.
Try it. Seeing the grip will help gain awareness of what your hitters are doing.
Now, the further towards the pitcher that your top hand rotates, the more difficult it will be to get the bat flat into the hitting zone early, thus creating late bat speed and earlier commitment to pitches. This grip also causes the contact point at which bat speed is sufficient enough to consistently hit balls hard, to be further out in front than that of a flatter swing.
This fault in grip causes hitters to be "good low ball hitters." Nothing wrong with being a good low ball hitter. But can you hit a fastball elevated within the strike zone? Probably not hard, or probably not fair.
This grip also causes hitters to be primarily pull hitters. Try it. Over-rotate your top hand, now take your bat to contact, and let go of the bat with your fingers, trying to hold the bat between your palms. See how it rolled? Now try the proper grip, big knuckles lined up with knocking knuckles. Go to contact. Release your fingers. See how the bat stays firm?
The PROPER GRIP allows for a swing to maintain a "palm-up, palm-down" grip through the hitters zone for the LONGEST POSSIBLE AMOUNT OF TIME. This maximizes the hitter's distance through the hitting zone, and maximizes opportunities to create backspin by staying through the ball immediately after contact. READ THIS PARAGRAPH AGAIN!
If your hitter has a high back elbow, check their grip. There is nothing wrong with a high rear elbow (1) as long as that elbow can be easily slotted near the abdomen early in the swing, allowing the barrel to get flat and (2) as long as the hitter has the proper grip.
The common mis-teach of "hands inside the ball" creates a very linear punchy swing is often a devastating mis-analysis and mis-correction for a hitter that simply has a poor grip.
Conversely, an under-rotated top hand, where ALL knocking knuckles are aligned, completely drops the rear elbow into a weak "chicken-wing" position near the abdomen. "But, isn't that where you wanted us to be," you say? Not so fast, my friends! Beginning in this position creates an incredibly compact swing: good. It also nearly eliminates any opportunity for SEPARATION between the upper half and lower half of the body during the commitment phase of the swing (the portion of the swing that generates bat speed): this is bad.
As with most things in life, moderation is key!
And, as always, these are guidelines for creating an optimized, efficient and violent swing. However, you can go to YouTube right now and find a dozen big leaguers who have huge hand wraps, extremely high elbows and love the ball down. You can find another dozen with extremely short swings where the hands cast forward "inside the ball" for what seems like forever, prior to the barrel entering the hitting zone.
These are elite athletes with freakish strength (even the skinny ones). If you think David Eckstein hit no better than your next door neighbor, or that Martin Prado is weak and small...you need to trot over to your neighborhood MLB stadium for pre-game BP and watch from the first row. Then call and tell me how weak and small they are.
And we have not begun to speak of their years of experience in hitting approach, mental toughness and hitting approach, and hitting approach...and hitting approach. You get the point.
Moral of the story, simplify. If your mechanics look sexy, they are probably impeding, at best, and disabling, at worst.
Try it. Seeing the grip will help gain awareness of what your hitters are doing.
Now, the further towards the pitcher that your top hand rotates, the more difficult it will be to get the bat flat into the hitting zone early, thus creating late bat speed and earlier commitment to pitches. This grip also causes the contact point at which bat speed is sufficient enough to consistently hit balls hard, to be further out in front than that of a flatter swing.
This fault in grip causes hitters to be "good low ball hitters." Nothing wrong with being a good low ball hitter. But can you hit a fastball elevated within the strike zone? Probably not hard, or probably not fair.
This grip also causes hitters to be primarily pull hitters. Try it. Over-rotate your top hand, now take your bat to contact, and let go of the bat with your fingers, trying to hold the bat between your palms. See how it rolled? Now try the proper grip, big knuckles lined up with knocking knuckles. Go to contact. Release your fingers. See how the bat stays firm?
The PROPER GRIP allows for a swing to maintain a "palm-up, palm-down" grip through the hitters zone for the LONGEST POSSIBLE AMOUNT OF TIME. This maximizes the hitter's distance through the hitting zone, and maximizes opportunities to create backspin by staying through the ball immediately after contact. READ THIS PARAGRAPH AGAIN!
If your hitter has a high back elbow, check their grip. There is nothing wrong with a high rear elbow (1) as long as that elbow can be easily slotted near the abdomen early in the swing, allowing the barrel to get flat and (2) as long as the hitter has the proper grip.
The common mis-teach of "hands inside the ball" creates a very linear punchy swing is often a devastating mis-analysis and mis-correction for a hitter that simply has a poor grip.
Conversely, an under-rotated top hand, where ALL knocking knuckles are aligned, completely drops the rear elbow into a weak "chicken-wing" position near the abdomen. "But, isn't that where you wanted us to be," you say? Not so fast, my friends! Beginning in this position creates an incredibly compact swing: good. It also nearly eliminates any opportunity for SEPARATION between the upper half and lower half of the body during the commitment phase of the swing (the portion of the swing that generates bat speed): this is bad.
As with most things in life, moderation is key!
And, as always, these are guidelines for creating an optimized, efficient and violent swing. However, you can go to YouTube right now and find a dozen big leaguers who have huge hand wraps, extremely high elbows and love the ball down. You can find another dozen with extremely short swings where the hands cast forward "inside the ball" for what seems like forever, prior to the barrel entering the hitting zone.
These are elite athletes with freakish strength (even the skinny ones). If you think David Eckstein hit no better than your next door neighbor, or that Martin Prado is weak and small...you need to trot over to your neighborhood MLB stadium for pre-game BP and watch from the first row. Then call and tell me how weak and small they are.
And we have not begun to speak of their years of experience in hitting approach, mental toughness and hitting approach, and hitting approach...and hitting approach. You get the point.
Moral of the story, simplify. If your mechanics look sexy, they are probably impeding, at best, and disabling, at worst.
Saturday, May 24, 2014
Being On Time, Part One: Stop Evaluating a Pitch Out of the Hand
Anyone around the game long enough will tell you that hitting is the art of being on time and pitching is the art of jacking that timing up. Pitchers clearly want to force weak contact...or no contact at all.
As a hitter, your job is to put your body, and your mind, into a position to attack the baseball aggressively out in front of the hitting zone. Why out front? Well, that is where your bat has achieved its maximum bat speed, an ideal place for contact.
The next few blogs will explore different hitting and coaching concepts that can assist and detract from a hitter being on time.
Today: Stop Evaluating a Pitch Out of the Hand
Imagine you've just dug into the box, twisting your cleats through the hard clay and dirt. 3-1 count, runners at second and third. Your mind is fast, your heartbeat slow. You're ready.
You point your barrel towards the pitcher as if to say, "Bring it."
He lifts his leg, arches his back. Here comes the pitch. Fastball.
You swing the bat, fast, true and the barrel heads right for the ball. Center cut.
Foul ball. You hit it down the opposite field line, the ball disappearing into darkness.
What happened? How were you late?
Watching tournaments, games I've coached and even big league games on TV, too many times are hitters LATE on fastballs in fastball counts.
There are so many possible reasons for why our barrel could be lagging by mere centimeters, keeping us from destroying the baseball, accelerating through a gap and meeting our teammates, dancing around home plate in walk-off jubilation.
Many hitters try to evaluate pitches out of the hand. This is something that must happen and something that will happen, certainly, if our vision is any better than that of Mr. Magoo.
Still, hitters need to be committed to the pitch they believe is coming. This isn't guess hitting. This is hitting. What pitch is he most likely to throw? What are my risks if I am wrong? What are my rewards if I am right?
Make a decision and get body and mind ready to attack that pitch where you can drive it.
Waiting to see a pitch out of the hand is foolish. Even the best hitters in the world cannot recognize spin until 10-12 feet out of a pitcher's hand. At this point, a 90 mph fastball will be on top of you in less than three tenths of a second. That's the amount of time it takes for you to blink. To then take the barrel to the baseball with an aggressive swing is nearly impossible. We end up with a lot of near-misses, or in reality, near-hits. Weak contact. Foul balls. Strike two. Ahhh, just missed. Yes. Yes, you did just miss. And that is all you are going to get in this at bat.
Baseball is hard, folks. Hitting a baseball is really tough.
Pre-determine what the pitch is going to be...not always where it is going to be (we'll talk more about that later.)
Understand the amount of time it takes for that pitch to get to the plate then get your body ready to attack. A proper take should look like a full load and stride with a short, aggressive movement to the plate with the back leg, hip and possibly rear elbow and hands, depending on how long you waited before shutting down the swing.
Think of this concept as a "yes, yes, YES," on a swing, and a "yes, yes, NO," on a take. Pre-determining a swing is only dangerous if you will swing at anything. When you learn to practice this mental technique in front toss and BP, game time discipline will increase rapidly.
Hitters that evaluate pitches in mid air can hit a breaking ball backside but get roasted inside. So many hitters wait to evaluate, and teach themselves a linear, handsy swing to stay "inside" the baseball. This swing fundamentally supports the middle-backside singles hitter.
Look at that kid's stats: He's batting .400, but his ISO power is .050 ? He has 4 2Bs in 30 games ? PITCH HIM INSIDE! He's waiting to evaluate pitches, and he is a linear, handsy hitter who stays on all of your offspeed pitches and hits middle-inside fastballs to center field.
Let's progress in how we teach hitting.
Future blogs will address these concepts, and how they aid or impair a hitter's timing:
1.) Holding the bat properly.
2.) Balance, stance and using the legs.
3.) Creating a "flat" swing.
4.) Timing pitches through visualization and sound.
5.) Fear.
Please send me a note and let me hear what you're thinking.
As a hitter, your job is to put your body, and your mind, into a position to attack the baseball aggressively out in front of the hitting zone. Why out front? Well, that is where your bat has achieved its maximum bat speed, an ideal place for contact.
The next few blogs will explore different hitting and coaching concepts that can assist and detract from a hitter being on time.
Today: Stop Evaluating a Pitch Out of the Hand
Imagine you've just dug into the box, twisting your cleats through the hard clay and dirt. 3-1 count, runners at second and third. Your mind is fast, your heartbeat slow. You're ready.
You point your barrel towards the pitcher as if to say, "Bring it."
He lifts his leg, arches his back. Here comes the pitch. Fastball.
You swing the bat, fast, true and the barrel heads right for the ball. Center cut.
Foul ball. You hit it down the opposite field line, the ball disappearing into darkness.
What happened? How were you late?
Watching tournaments, games I've coached and even big league games on TV, too many times are hitters LATE on fastballs in fastball counts.
There are so many possible reasons for why our barrel could be lagging by mere centimeters, keeping us from destroying the baseball, accelerating through a gap and meeting our teammates, dancing around home plate in walk-off jubilation.
Many hitters try to evaluate pitches out of the hand. This is something that must happen and something that will happen, certainly, if our vision is any better than that of Mr. Magoo.
Still, hitters need to be committed to the pitch they believe is coming. This isn't guess hitting. This is hitting. What pitch is he most likely to throw? What are my risks if I am wrong? What are my rewards if I am right?
Make a decision and get body and mind ready to attack that pitch where you can drive it.
Waiting to see a pitch out of the hand is foolish. Even the best hitters in the world cannot recognize spin until 10-12 feet out of a pitcher's hand. At this point, a 90 mph fastball will be on top of you in less than three tenths of a second. That's the amount of time it takes for you to blink. To then take the barrel to the baseball with an aggressive swing is nearly impossible. We end up with a lot of near-misses, or in reality, near-hits. Weak contact. Foul balls. Strike two. Ahhh, just missed. Yes. Yes, you did just miss. And that is all you are going to get in this at bat.
Baseball is hard, folks. Hitting a baseball is really tough.
Pre-determine what the pitch is going to be...not always where it is going to be (we'll talk more about that later.)
Understand the amount of time it takes for that pitch to get to the plate then get your body ready to attack. A proper take should look like a full load and stride with a short, aggressive movement to the plate with the back leg, hip and possibly rear elbow and hands, depending on how long you waited before shutting down the swing.
Think of this concept as a "yes, yes, YES," on a swing, and a "yes, yes, NO," on a take. Pre-determining a swing is only dangerous if you will swing at anything. When you learn to practice this mental technique in front toss and BP, game time discipline will increase rapidly.
Hitters that evaluate pitches in mid air can hit a breaking ball backside but get roasted inside. So many hitters wait to evaluate, and teach themselves a linear, handsy swing to stay "inside" the baseball. This swing fundamentally supports the middle-backside singles hitter.
Look at that kid's stats: He's batting .400, but his ISO power is .050 ? He has 4 2Bs in 30 games ? PITCH HIM INSIDE! He's waiting to evaluate pitches, and he is a linear, handsy hitter who stays on all of your offspeed pitches and hits middle-inside fastballs to center field.
Let's progress in how we teach hitting.
Future blogs will address these concepts, and how they aid or impair a hitter's timing:
1.) Holding the bat properly.
2.) Balance, stance and using the legs.
3.) Creating a "flat" swing.
4.) Timing pitches through visualization and sound.
5.) Fear.
Please send me a note and let me hear what you're thinking.
Monday, May 12, 2014
The Tools of a Hitting Coach
Remember the first Batman movie with Michael Keeton and Jack Nicholson? During one scene, Nicholson’s character “the Joker” quips, “Where does he get those wonderful toys?”
Well I suppose if you want to be a super-hero hitting coach
you have to have some toys, right? Here are some of ours:
The Personal Pitcher
Machine. Cost: $150
Pitches golf wiffleballs. We purchased multi-colored balls
and white balls and use this toy for vision training more than hitting. The strike-throwing consistency outdoors is average with the elements making some pitches dive and
slide out of the zone very late. However, if there is little wind, this machine
is effective for hitting FBs, and it also throws a pretty good left or
right-handed slider.
Eli’s Springback Hitting
Tees. Cost: $110.
Tees are an imperative part of individual training. The ball
is stationary, competition is low, and hitters can work on mechanics with
immediate feedback. The Eli tees have a metal coil or spring between the base
and the tee head that allows a transfer of energy that keeps your tees from
getting quickly destroyed by improper swings or reckless use. Best tee we’ve
ever had. Period.
CamWood Trainer. Cost
$80.
This is a modified wooden bat, a training tool, that has a
large wooden knot between the handle and the barrel, slightly closer to the
handle. You can choose which size bat you want: we purchased the 33”, 45 oz.
bat. Yes, 45 oz. However, the weight distribution makes it feel like a 30 oz.
bat when swung properly. The physics of the bat encourage a shorter (not
necessarily more linear or ‘handsy’!) swing path. When the swing path is tight, and the hitter slots the back elbow tight to the body, the feeling is that the bat is lighter than it
actually weighs. When the knot of the bat takes a longer route to contact, the weight lags
outward, pulling against the force of the swing, creating a feeling that the
bat is very heavy.
To simplify, when hitters create EARLY bat speed by slotting
their back elbow and getting the bat head flat, the bat feels normal. When
length is added to the swing, the bat feels extremely heavy.
Coach’s Eye App. Cost:
$4.99 (iPad Air was $600).
I’ve always been a huge fan of the swing mechanics and
analytics system Right View Pro. We installed the system while I coached at Ole
Miss, and the feedback that program gives to players is infinite and indispensable. Right View
Pro costs upwards of $15,000. On a wonderful but perceptively smaller D2
budget, I decided to purchase an iPad (for personal and professional use). A
close coaching friend told me of an App he uses called Coach’s Eye. More or
less, it is Right View Pro except it's cheaper and just as accessible with it’s portability! Coach’s Eye allows
you to easily scroll forwards and backwards through swings with high quality
resolution at over 150 frames per second.
There are tools for drawing and quickly erasing on the screen, like a
coach analyzing football film, and you can e-mail the videos to your players
from the App. Also, I found that many hitters would rather see their swing in
an informal setting, not sitting in my office looking at a computer. Now, I can
give them visual feedback AT the cage, or in the locker room, or on the road,
with little effort.
Casio Exilim EXFH100
Camera. Cost: $400
Last year, I purchased the Casio Exilim camera to record
swings in HD quality at over 250 frames per second. The shutter speed is
incredible, and the ease of use is terrific. You have to figure out how to use
it on your own, because it is a Japanese product sold only in Japan, and all of
the instructions are in characters that might as well be wing-dings to this uncultured eye.
Despite purchasing the Coach’s Eye App and iPad, we will
most definitely still use the Exilim on the road because the zoom feature and
clarity are superior, and it is easily mounted on a tripod, all of which are
necessary for consistent in-game use. Again, we don’t have $15,000 to buy Right
View Pro and the six cameras the get mounted in your stadium when you purchase
that program. Still, we have made purchases that have empowered us to give our
players daily feedback on what they are doing well and can still improve upon.