Posted by: Jack Mankin (mrbatspeed@aol.com) on Fri Apr 23 13:44:53 2004

>>> Jack, Barry has only had one hitting coach.....his father.Keeping his arm bent is not what I am talking about.....the injury to the elbow is. Don't brush it off as unimportant. All slumps are not injury related.....I agree. If the slumps are coach related, then the .300 Ba's and hot streaks should bring the coach accolades. If the point of this site is to bad mouth all pro coaches then maybe it is time that I went someplace else. <<<

Hi Doug

I have nothing but respect for Bobby Bonds. He did a fantastic job of teaching his son the true swing mechanics of the great hitters. His teaching could also help millions of other young hopefuls to reach their dreams. But instead of promoting the batting principles of coaches like Bobby, Major League Baseball has continues to support teaching the kids linear mechanics that has stalled their progress for many decades.

Promoting the batting mechanics Bobby taught Barry is what this site is all about. However, up to the mid 1990’s, almost all professional coaches promoted the teaching of linear extension mechanics. I think it is a form of elitism to claim that these coaches are above being questioned. If Major League Baseball truly wants to help young players, they should publicly admit they were wrong and start promoting the batting principles of coaches like Bobby Bonds.

Jack Mankin