Posted by: Coach C () on Tue Aug 5 12:30:59 2003

So I posted last month about
> my hitting troubles. Basically, I swing down on
> the ball (or at best, level); I lunge rather than
> rotate (although I clear my hips pretty good, so
> I hit good infield practice, a lot of hard ground
> balls); I probably stride too much. Jack said I
> had a "back-side swing with little or no help
> coming from the lead-side" (and if he could
> explain that sentence a little more...).
>
> I planned to post another clip from a tape from
> this weekend, showing my swing when I have
> all those things in mind while at the plate-
> straighten the front leg, lower the back
> shoulder, swing up at the ball, etc. (I hit into a
> 6-4 FC). When I looked at it last night, I looked
> (to me) the same as I did in the animated gif I
> linked to last month- making contact with an
> outside pitch with a flat swing and my butt
> sticking out and my front knee bent.
>
> I suppose two weeks is a bit soon to start
> seeing results from trying to radically change
> one's hitting approach so much. Still, it's
> frustrating to KNOW what you should be doing
> up there, and then feel like all that flies out the
> window as soon as you see that ball coming
> at you.
>
> Can anyone suggest some training tips? I
> read somewhere someone suggested putting
> a ball under your trailing armpit to keep that
> elbow down (and then read a response
> disagreeing). I know one silly way to fool
> yourself with something like that isn't a
> long-term solution to anything, but maybe
> something like that, if repeated often enough,
> can help me train my muscles enough to
> 'remember' what to do when it counts. I've
> been hitting off a tee and hitting from the
> cages, and I think I'm doing it correctly there-
> not every time, certainly, but at least in the
> cages I can think about what I'm doing and
> conciously change my stroke for the next pitch
> if I don't swing the way I know I should. I feel
> like I lose that in the actual game. Is it just
> psychological, or am I just at that awkward
> point right before I put what I've learned to
> use?
>
> Matt


Matt,

This is my opinion. The swing I see is dominated by the left-side pull. This is what causes the back-side to drag and create the top-hand roll-over to take place. This is always is the reason that the body has trouble maintaining balance. Let me say this about the shoulders. There is absolutely no tension in the shoulders in a good rotational swing. Your front-side pull is happening in the lead shoulder, which creates tension in the lead arm and into... ultimately the hands. I've made this point many times...that although the lead side contributes to rotation, the feeling should not be trying to turn it.....this leads to pulling it 99 out of 100 cases. A better swing thought for me is to turn the back shoulder through the ball. Again......Do not pull with the front side!!!!! In many sports rotation principles are used, but not one I can think of where the lead side brings the back-side through.
As you begin to understand the feelings that are associated with rotational energy, you then will understand the contribution the front side can bring, but I must say it's something you are not at all used to. In hitting we must store the back-side energy until the moment the swing starts, in your case the energy is being depleted, when you stride to swing. You are losing your center. The stride is a balance move only and many have chose not have one. The back-side clears out the front Matt! Until you address that issue you are going to drive yourself nuts....don't go through that! If you need more advice let me know.

Coach C