Posted by: Jack Mankin (mrbatspeed@aol.com) on Thu May 13 12:32:48 2004

>>> Jack, in viewing many frame by frame swings of great hitters it appears that during initiation, the bathead arcs back roughly toward the 3rd base dugout then continues around toward the catcher finishing perpindicular to the flight of the pitch at contact. However, in more average hitters the bathead only arcs back to the catcher, in a smaller arc radius not generating as much power. My point is, while more powerful hitters have the bat in line with the rear shoulder at initiation, less powerful, more linear hitters start their initiation with the bat in line with the middle of their head. Is my analysis correct? Do you see this as well in your analysis? Is a wider arc more powerful or does it make the swing slower in the end? <<<

Hi Matt

Good observation – batters with linear mechanics accelerate the knob foreword during initiation. This, of course, drags the bat-head forward and generates a smaller arc radius of the bat-head behind the batter. Mechanics that keep the knob back while applying torque generate wider radius and a higher rate of angular displacement.

Matt, at last, more and more players (and coaches) with an open mind are really starting to analyze transfer mechanics instead of concentrating only on the lower body.

Jack Mankin