Posted by: Jack Mankin (Mrbatspeed@aol.com) on Sat May 3 00:02:32 2003

>>> The barrel doesn't move back toward the catcher until the elbow begins to slot. The barrel is circling because of his hitch and doesn't take the move back until elbow starts dropping. I/m not as concerned about the name of the movement as I am as to what is really going on. I see no "bow and arrow" pulling by the thumb and forefinger. I do see the first movement of the barrel back to the catcher as the rear elbow heads for the slot. <<<

Hi Teacherman

I have always maintained that the elbow lowers to the batter’s side as the top-hand pulls back accelerating the bat-head back toward the catcher. I use the analogy of “pulling back on a bowstring” to contrast the “pulling back” motion of the top-hand used by the best hitters to the average hitter driving the top-hand forward at initiation. Both hitters may start with a high back elbow and both will lower the elbow into the slot. But there is a world of difference in the bat speed generated between accelerating the bat-head back toward the catcher as the elbow lowers (pulling back) and driving the knob at the pitcher by extending the top-hand forward as the elbow lowers.

PS: Teacherman, grownup archers do not pull on the bowstring with “the thumb and forefinger” – they pull back with three fingers.

Jack Mankin