Posted by: Coach C () on Tue Feb 10 10:08:40 2004

All with power too I might add. Nick, I've mentioned this to Jack before and at the time he could not say for sure that bat cock equated to power, certainly some have more than others, but as you eluded to, there are many more that do not have it....Garret Anderson comes to mind. I think Jack has termed this move THT. I have always said....many times, it's a non-teach and many people appear to be getting bogged down with it (creating unnecessary wrist bind). Now let me be clear, the wrists and hands play a key role in getting into the swing plane correctly or better said, "play a key role in not screwing it up".

If you look at any of those great clips you posted (good job), each hitter gets the bat on plane with the shoulders very early into rotation (it's outstanding). The fact that they get on plane and how they do it is the key. Their shoulders/bat/lead arm are all working as a unit. I feel batspeed is the wrong motivation in trying to achieving these key movements at first. To an untrained hitter getting on plane and hitting with batspeed don't equate (Trust me!). After one learns the feel of getting on plane, he will sense that feeling batspeed is really not what he/she imagined all along. It just happens and the bat is doing much more of the work. Untrained hitters have no understanding of this, so they search for batspeed (continuing down the path of v-shaping the swing plane or bisecting it) and continue to miss the key issue.......getting on plane. For clarity, there is far more batspeed once we get on plane. I've seen the demonstrations portrayed on this sight to get on plane and create batspeed, but none of that made any sense to me and I worked it hard.....they're was something missing. After the Bonds CD you sent me and something Mark Pryor said about pitching, it opened my eyes to what the shoulders ought to be doing. I will tell you, as I've said many times, "the legs support the action" and looking for answers down there will drive a person batty and only frustrate them. The key is in learning how to deliver the blow from the shoulders (CORRECTLY!). In all of the swings you displayed the legs are responding to what the shoulders are planning to do and what they will do. If the shoulders plan on going to the ball, then the legs will to, if the shoulders plan to turn the legs will to, if the shoulders have no plan to be used the legs stay there. Try it just stand there and don't move your shoulders what do the legs do? (Trying to be funny, but it's true). Come see me Nick...time for an update!!

Great clips!!!!

Coach C