Posted by: Dave A (oxagin@hotmail.com) on Thu Nov 27 20:06:21 2003

Ah, sandbagged again (just like on hsbbweb). Oh well, on that one I didn't fall for it; this one I did. :)
> >
> > Now, before anyone reads this w/ a tone other than what I intend... I do not mean to be defensive or confrontational. If we were in person, we'd crack open a cold beverage and discuss this amicably. You would understand that I am really just trying to learn as much as possible.
> >
> > That said, I'd be curious to see a video clip of one of your 11 HRs. I wonder if your HR (or one of your many doubles) swings look just like this one? I'm not saying that a lot of success can't be had w/ a swing that might not be considered "rotational", but that's an entirely different debate. ;) Perhaps the height of this pitch just forced you up onto a straighter axis. But I didn't think the pitch was that high.
> >
> > Andy, obviously you are a successful hitter, as your stats certainly show. But does that make your swing "rotational"? There are plenty of successful linear and hybrid hitters - maybe not as many at the MLB level - but in college and minors, I'd bet there are more.
> >
> > This site is dedicated to the study of the rotational swing, which I understood one of its basic premises to be "after footplant, no further forward movement; instead, rotation around a stationary axis". Or as Jack puts it, "The batter has rotated to the launch position and completed his timing step. All forward movement of the body has halted and he is ready to initiate the swing."
> >
> > Am I the only one who sees continued lateral hip slide after the stride in this swing?
> >
> > http://members.cox.net/msanda/Andy%20vs.%20Soriano.jpg
> >
> > Andy, I'm not trying to in any way diminish your accomplishments. I'm just trying to fill in the gaps in my study of the swing.
> >
> > I agree w/ you that there are other important facets to hitting beyond just mechanics. How often do we see a pro get a good hit off a less-than-perfect swing? I often wonder what it would be like if we could get our hands on some video clips of MLB players having success at the plate w/ their "not-so-prettiest" of swings. ;-)
> >
> > But still, would we teach our players to emulate those swings or the "perfect" ones? I mean, if Bonds managed to hit a HR w/ a "less than optimum rotational" swing that lacked his usual rotational elements, obviously, it was still good enough to get out. But does that mean that, just because it's Bonds, would we post the swing and consider it "rotational"?
> >
> > I guess what I'm getting at is that, when we analyze MLB clips, based on the premise that "we might as well study what the best do", I believe they are almost always of a very good hit (probably a HR). Notwithstanding your abilities, and not saying that you don't have a great rotational swing when you hit HRs or doubles, but... can we say the same for the particular swing clip you posted, in which you were hitting in an indoor cage? As I said earlier, I'd be interested in seeing some game swings.
> >
> > But even if you manage to clobber the ball in games w/ the same swing, that means you have found a way to successfully hit the ball hard. Does it necessarily also mean that your way is purely "rotational"?
> >
> > Respectfully,
> > Sandman
>
>
> Hey Sandman,
>
> I appreciate your comments..I really do. In no way do I take offense when someone critiques my swing. I take it as an opportunity to learn and you make some excellent judgments in regards to the stroke I posted. There is lateral hip slide. My hope in using the leg kick that day was to eliminate the lateral hip slide and to come down more centered. It worked somewhat but the hip slide still occurred. I must also confess though that I don't necessarily like the stroke that you used to compare me with. Soriano does do an excellent job using rotational principles and the swing you chose incorporates them about as well as any swing you could use, but my question to you is what does he sacrifice in the swing. Look at Soriano's vertical head movement, which I believe is worse than horizontal head movement (although neither are good). From the time heel drop occurs to the point of contact, his head raises about 2-4 inches thereby changing his eye level. I think an excellent comparison swing for your purposes would by Louis Gonzalez since both swings use a leg kick. I am not a fan of Soriano's swing although he has some excellent elements in it. The reason he punches out so much is found in the amount of vertical head movement that is blatantly evident in his stroke.
>
> Gonzo on the other hand has no lateral hip slide and no vertical head movement. His leg kick gets him centered and toe touch and heel drop occur in unison, which I like but I don't see many advocating. His launch position is excellent and his path is superb.
>
> With that being said, I agree with most of your judgments, but would like your opinion on this. The majority of hip slide you see occurs before the swing initiates but after heel drop. I've noticed this timing delay in my swing many times and frustrates the heck out of me. I can't seem to find a way to center myself without letting this occur. The hope is to completely eliminate the hip slide, but I want to maintain that sense of "power" as I eluded to earlier. Anyway, thanks for your comments and let me know what else you think about what I've said.
>
> Like I said too, this was a fairly sloppy day of hitting. As a ballplayer, a couple of months off destroys rhythm and timing. As an athlete, we compensate for that anyway we can and sometimes that is at the expense of proper mechanics. Just like when a great big league hitter gets fooled on a pitch but manages to still drive it.
>
> Thanks and have a great Thanksgiving,
>
> Andy

After reviewing tape of my own, I realize I have the same problem of lateral hip slide. I'm also looking for a way to correct it as it bothers the heck out of me also. It really tic's me off to look at clips of Sosa with beautiful mechanics then go to my basement, hit and half to deal with that problem. Anyways I don't think getting rid of lateral hip slide will make you lose and sense of power. Your "sense" of power comes mostly from ure upper body in my opinion which is why we have so many upper body hitters today.

I also have a tendency to land with my front leg kind of stiff. I want to eliminate this too as to get a quicker swing and more torque with less waste of time.

As you can see these two elements of my swing really tic me off and I want to correct them. I have a swingaway, softoss machine, tee, and mini wiffle ball pitching machine in my basement if you guys have any specific drills I can do.