Posted by: Jack Mankin (MrBatspeed@aol.com) on Wed Jul 30 23:04:19 2003

I saw where Epstein said barring lead arm is bad but Jack I thought you said it is good. What do you say?

Hi Sid

I have no problem with the lead-arm being straight in the launch position or during the swing. I prefer not to use the term “barred” because it infers a rigid and tense arm and on inside pitches it may be necessary for the lead-elbow to flex in order to generate a tighter hand-path. Therefore, I have no problem with the principle of “barring the arm” only with the connotations surrounding the term.

I will give everyone the benefits I find with having a straighter (“barred” - if you prefer the term) lead-arm. But first, I think it would lead to a good discussion if we heard from those that feel having the lead-arm barred is wrong. So those that think a straight or barred arm is bad, please give the reasons you feel barring the lead-arm has a negative effect on the swing. Or, if you can quote Epstein’s objections to it, I would like to hear them also.

Jack Mankin