Posted by: Pro_Hitter (andygreen29@hotmail.com) on Wed Nov 26 05:54:30 2003

What do people think of his front foot position? It looks at least, if not more open than what Epstein demonstrates on his “torque” drill. I see some major leaguers at 45 degrees or so, but not more than that. He looks more than that. Would like to see him more vertical as he comes forward. Seems to have his body (and weight) angled just a little bit back as he comes forward. Definitely a line drive type of hitter. Very flat (level) bat path through the ball. Not much shoulder tilt. Without the leg kick, a more centered starting position and a little upswing I see some resemblance to Nomar.
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> Nick
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Hey Guys,

I guess the time has come for me to claim what is rightfully mine. I just wanted to give you time to comment on my swing before I claimed it. Anyway, that swing set the career record for hits at the University of Kentucky while hitting .370/11hrs my last year there and it hit a little better than .300 for 3 straight years in the minor leagues and led it's league in doubles in the last two seasons. With that being said, I must also confess that the leg kick is only a practice device...I don't incorporate it into my swing in the regular season. What you witnessed was my first day of live BP since the season ended at the end of August; however, I must also confess that the lack of back shoulder tilt is pretty typical of my swing. As far as this swing goes, the pitch was slightly above the belt which for me equates to less back shoulder tilt. I have never seen my front knee snap back so violently and my back foot doesn't usually come that far off the ground. I think all were a product of overrotating and attempting to catch up for what I lacked in timing. A comment was made about the angle of my lead foot...it is almost always at a 45 and I think it was there on this swing as well. As far as the forward head movement after heel drop, I am still meddling with that. Take a look at Sosa's swing and tell me if you don't see a similar movement (not equating swing to Sosa's so don't get huffy!). When his front heel drop occurs, he presses himself into the ground a little bit more, similar to me, which I believe allows for greater torque but has the potential to cause some other problems. I would hardly call this lunging at the ball; however, it is something I would like to take out of the swing altogether but don't want to remove it at the expense of losing the "feeling" of power. That feeling is so important to a hitter. I could perfectly groove a swing but not feel strong, explosive and powerful and that would make me a horrific hitter. I know this site is about swing mechanics but that only makes up about 1/3 of the swing - a good approach and CONFIDENCE at the dish make up the rest.

With all that said, I am open to comments and suggestions and as soon as I feel normal again hitting (regular hitting regimen starts after Thanksgiving) I will enable you to take a look at the swing again.

I think a common denominator throughout all the advice given on my swing is to increase the degree of back shoulder tilt. Doing so feels great on thigh high and below pitches but makes me feel awful above that. Not that that is a huge deal because I rarely swing at a pitch above the thigh anyway.

The bat path you see is indicative of what I do throughout the season. I never seem to lose that (not saying it's perfect but it just comes naturally). The lower half I have to fight like crazy to get back to where I want it and will begin the quest to do so soon.

Thanks guys,

andy