Posted by: Coach C () on Sun Aug 31 00:40:02 2003

Has anyone ever experimented with the cross-handed grip in drills? Try this with a purely hands hitter (linear) and they might break their wrists from wrist bind, when I do it there is no wrist bind, because the hands are just holding on. My feel in hitting has been that I'm hitting with the back of lead arm hand (ala Jim Edmonds), this drill magnify's that feel and makes extension of the lead arm through the ball much easier. I've also experienced kids who tend to snap open the hips, create a much smoother hip turn. One other key point. I have always believed that a key goal in hitting is to never have the barrel drop below the plane of the lead arm in the swing. A cross-handed grip darn near ensures barrel above lead arm plane. I think it's a great feel for those that can't quiet their hands and have trouble understanding how the arms should work.

I don't believe there is anything easy about being a good hitter and at times it can be even harder to teach it. Having said that, it has never beyond me to use extremes when driving home a point. This is extreme in my view, but one worth trying for those searching for the miraculous. Hank Aaron was said to have done it for many years before becoming a pro. A less extreme method would be to use a split-grip.

Back to the lab!

Respectfully,
Coach C