Posted by: elmarto (elmarto@comcast.net) on Thu Nov 8 06:48:34 2007

I want to bring up a topic that I don’t see discussed very often on this board and that is the importance of letting the ball travel. I know that this site’s primary focus is that of hitting mechanics but I think the approach of letting the ball travel has as much to do with generating good bat speed as does proper mechanics. Let me explain:
I get the chance to watch players at the high school and middle school levels all the time because my sons play at those levels. I’d say that upwards of 90% of the hitters that I see have a tendency to “drift” into the swing. When I say drift, I mean that they get started too early, usually with their hands (probably to overcome inertia), and this robs them of a lot of bat speed. Rather than being patient and letting the ball come to them (letting the ball travel) and then EXPLODING, they have a tendency to start too early and swing to “meet” the ball. Here’s an example:
Let’s call the ready position Position A and the point of contact Position B. Let’s assume that the barrel of the bat travels 4 feet (I have no idea if 4 feet is practical but let’s use it for the sake of argument) between Position A and Position B.

Player #1 “drifts” into the swing by moving his hands at about the time the pitch is released and the head of the bat travels the 4 foot distance between Points A and B.

Player #2 let’s the ball travel, upper body is still, he sizes up the pitch, and then EXPLODES when the ball is say, 15 or 20 feet away.

Who has the greater bat speed? Obviously player #2 because the head of his bat covers the same distance but in a shorter amount of time. I know that this is elementary to many of you who are regulars to this board, and I also understand that proper hitting mechanics don’t allow your hands to drift, but I think the concept of letting the ball travel gets lost. I hear coaches talk about staying back, not overstriding, etc… This is all good advice but what about compacting the swing into a shorter amount of time? i.e. letting the ball come to you and then EXPLODING on the ball when it enters your range. It pains me to say this because I’m a Yankee fan, but Manny Ramirez is the best example I can think of. You can really see that his upper body is extremely calm as the pitch is being delivered and then he unleashes on the ball at the last possible moment. A conscious effort to explain this concept of letting the ball travel to younger players could benefit them greatly. And yes, I know that if they try this they must have proper mechanics in order to catch up with the ball. In no way am I saying that letting the ball travel is more important than proper mechanics, I’m just saying that it is the proper approach and both go hand in hand.