Posted by: george stanley (sinat_george13@yahoo.com) on Mon Jan 7 11:44:05 2008

> > > Hi
> > > In the past 6 months I have worked hard ajusting to the mechanics thought by Jack. I think I know how to apply THT before the swing, but I'm hitting lot of balls hard to center and right field. I want to know if the lack of pulling can be due to late BHT after adjusting the swing plane?
> >
> > hello leonel!!
> > i LOVE to hear you are hitting the ball on the button... that's great!!
> > the problem is WHERE the ball is going?!?! that's a problem a lotta hitters wish they had!!
> > getting sound advice on this site is going to be very difficult.. it's like me asking you how many fingers i am holding up.. unless you can see me, you really can't say.. that's where we ALL are here.. but i will give it a shot..
> > it sounds to me that whatever the glitch, it is something which requires only the slightest adjustment...if you are hitting exclusively to CF & RF, it probably has nothing to do with your swing... i would encourage you not to change that part.. rather, it sounds like a matter of alignment..
> > 1. an open stance will cause you to be just the slightest bit late & go to RF.. perhaps you should close your stance a little.. this would generate greater batspeed, thus getting you there a little quicker, thus driving the ball to LF..
> > if your shorten your base a little, and/or shorten your stride, you will also get there a little quicker, thus striking the ball a little more out in front of the plate..
> > i believe most hitters have a too wide, too open stance which diminishes their ability to generate lower body torque which is far more powerful than the arm & shoulders buggywhippers out there..
> > also if you are implementing any movement with your hands or arms AFTER the pitch is released, this could contribute to your being just a little bit late to the ball.. there are those misguided souls on this site who whould have you believe that the stance has no absolutely no effect on your performance success.. but you & i know different.
> > 2. moving forward in the box will cause a change- all other things being equal, you will hit the ball a little more out in front of the plate, thus going to LF more often.
> > 3. you are not getting on top of pitches.. perhaps holding your hands a little higher at the launch position will result in your generating a little more batspeed, that might result in your getting there a little sooner, thus pulling the ball.
> > i wish you nothing but the best... let me know how it goes!
>
> George,
>
> Yes I am relentless. An open stance will make you late how? An open stance actually brings your hands forward and shortens the distance to the ball, get your protractor out Logic and physics guy. A closed stance forces your hands farther from the ball with more distance to travel.
>
> When you say that most hitters have to wide and to open of a stance, do you mean every hitter in the MLB.
>
> You know and I know differently that every MLB hitter has a different stance.
>
> Getting on top of the ball just means he will hit it into the ground!!!
>
> Graylon

my dear gray,
YOU are asking ME about an open stance makes you late how?!?!?!
i thought you knew everything!!.. why would you need me to tell you?
after all i am the biggest idiot on this site.. i have no information for you!!! you're supposed to be telling ME!!

although an open stance might bring your hands closer to the ball, the tradeoff is because you have your legs in a line pointed at either SS or 2B, you are generating a minimal amount of torque with your lower body..thus your ability to generate any batspeed is diminished..therefore guys using an open stance have a dimiinished batspeed compared to those who utiliize a closed stance. evidenced by the fact the guys in the league with the most open stances have the fewest incidence of HR's... COUNSELL & KENDALL..are the poster children for NOT having an open stance...
THEREFORE, despite what you might think about the open stance being a wonderful thing,
1. the extreme open stance results in fewest HR's because of greatly diminished lower body torque, thus diminshed batspeed.
2, the less extreme the open stance, the greater the batspeed generated
3. therefore the best way to increase batspeed is to elimiinate the open stance.

regarding your ridiculous all encompassing statement about everybody:
there is virtually nothing you can say concerning ANYTHING that will include EVERYBODY...there is no statement you can make which will cover everybody in every situation.. including baseball players.. i have not seen every MLB hitter, but of the ones i have seen, i would state the majority have either a too wide or too open stance, which is diminishing their lower body torque, thus diminishing their batspeed, & making them late to far too many pitches in certain spots that they should be driving.. this is where the room for improvement lies.. in the elimination of too wide & too open stances..

when you are driving balls exclusively to CF & RF, this indicates you are consistently just the slightest bit late to the ball..meaning you are hitting the ball just a little under the button..your adjustment should be with the mindset that you need to be getting there just the slightest bit sooner.. thus striking the ball on the button..you want to move the contact point just a little bit higher on the ball.. NOT AS YOU WOULD HAVE IT TO GO TO THE EXTREME & START HITTING THE BALL ON THE VERY TOP EDGE..there is in fact a middle optimum ground.. (gray, how your mind works boggles my mind... take that course in logic & learn how to think clearly, PLEASE!!!)this can be achieved in several ways..mentioned in my thread above.
if you have any better ideas on how to quit going to CF & RF without changing the guy's swing, i am all eyes...