Posted by: THE HITTING GURU () on Wed Jul 23 13:04:14 2003

Today I was watching the Yankees/Indians game on TV and I noticed something I'd never seen before about Derek Jeter. After he ripped a double down the line in his first at bat the camera showed Derek swinging from a side angle, and it looked to me when he swung that his hands were in contact position during the pitcher's release and all he did was use his hips to rotate his entire upper body, including his arms, to explode onto the ball. Would this be something worth trying to do? Derek is one of the hottest hitters in the league right now, and would trying to use your hips to rotate your body during a swing be the best way to be successful at the

plate.




DEREK HAS A VERY UNIQUE STYLE WHICH ALLOWS HIM TO GO TO ALL FIELDS. HE INSIDE OUTS THE BALL AS HE BRINGS HIS HANDS IN TO FACILITATE A QUICK STROKE. HIS SWING IS SIMILAR TO ROBIN YOUNT WHO USED A CHOKE GRIP IN ORDER TO HELP LOFT THE BALL. THIS IS MORE ATHLETIC ABILITY TAKING PLACE THAN A DELIBERATE ATTEMPT IN MY OPINION. BUT IT MAY WORK. HIS STYLE ALSO HELPS HIM GET CLOSER TO THE PLATE WITHOUT THE FEAR OF BEING TIED UP INSIDE UNLESS HE IS PITCHED UP AND IN.