Posted by: george stanley (saint_george13@yahoo.com) on Thu Dec 13 16:32:51 2007

> Hi Ray,
>
> One misconception about the load in the swing is that it is done with the hands or arms. The load is initiated with the hitters legs.
>
> Any movement with the hands backward that will slightly straighten the lead arm should happen naturally as a result of the lower body load. This hand/arm loading movement should happen without any conscious thought.
>
> This also goes for the slight inward shoulder turn that good hitters experience when loading up. Not only will it happen properly when loading with the legs, it will happen at the right time and in rythm with the rest of the body.
>
> When hitters try to load their hands back they actually cause the natural timing of their body's swing progression to be thrown off.
>
> So, set your hands in an efficient slot, rock back with your lower half to that back leg, let those hands load back on their own, and let it fly.
>
> Jimmy

hi jimmy!
well said!

but i'm more concerned with the timing of when hitters actually load... by load i'm thinking you mean drawing back the hands & arms to the launch position..

the timing is the critical part.. FAR too many hitters think they have all the time in the world to draw back AFTER THE PITCH IS RELEASED... NOT! THIS FATAL ERROR IS THE PRIMARY REASON MOST HITTERS ARE LATE ON FAR TOO MANY PITCHES THEY SHOULD BE DRIVING.. instead the are poppingup, fouling off, or missing completely..

i believe you should not have any drawback whatsoever... rather the lower body step-&-torque should initiate the swing, with the hands staying back as long as possible,, this way the hands will be the beneficiary of the lower body torque, & accelerate even faster through the contact zone.. too many hitters are concerned with initiating bat movement thinking that will get them there faster..
rather DO NOT drop the hands, do a circle hitch with the hands, or draw the arms & hands back once the pitch is underway... these are fatal errors that wil kill you..
if you let your lower body be the first part in motion, you will generate much higher batspeed, & catch up to pitches you previously have been late to..