Posted by: The Hitting Guru () on Wed May 19 21:06:28 2004

does a rotational hitter keep the weight back all the way through the swing or does the weight transfer to the center of the hitter as the barrel of the bat moves into the hitting zone? thanks.
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The rotational hitter starts with a backward shift of the weight and then makes a forward shift of the weight to the point of contact. If the hitter is not fooled too much by the pitch, he will generate a power connection. If the hitter does not shift the weight forward (rotate of his back leg) in time, he will jam himself and rob himself of power. A few hitters (Bonds) are able to bring their hands in, rotate in a quick arc and still hit homeruns on occasion though some of their weight has not been fully transfered. Don Mattingly used to apply this method on pitches that were in off the plate (balls not strikes) and loft them down the line.