Posted by: BHL (Knight1285@aol.com) on Sun Oct 24 23:35:07 2004

Hi All,
> > > > >
> > > > > After analyzing the proclivities of "average hitters" in frame-by-frame notion, I noticed that most of the great hitters have a predisposition towards pull hitting.
> > > > >
> > > > > Damon, though not a execptinal hitter, pulled an outside pitch for a grand slam, and finished the Red Sox's improbable comebacks.
> > > > >
> > > > > We can learn something from his approach by attempting to be "pull field orientees."
> > > > >
> > > > > Sincerely,
> > > > > BHL
> > > > > Knight1285@aol.com
> > > >
> > > > I guess we should ignore the base hits to left.
> > > One grand slam doesn't mean much. What about David Ortiz's home runs over the green monster?
> >
> > Hi Dougdinger,
> >
> > What about Bellhorn's two home runs off the Pesky Pole?
> >
> > BHL
>
> What about the near homerun he had to deadcenter? I still don't think you have to pull everything and try to jack one every pitch up at bat. There's lots of green between the two foul poles, and like Williams' shows in his Science of Hitting, the angle of the bat on inside and outside pitches decreases the chance of hitting the sweet spot by 1/3. And like Tim McCarver said "produce but don't direct". It's very very difficult to direct your hits. I hear more than any other cue by Major League hitters is that they try to hit the ball back up the middle.

Hi Dougdiner,

You offered the following observation: "What about the near homerun he [Bellhorn] had to deadcenter?"

The ball he hit to deadcenter was not a home run. And, if I read "The Science of Hitting Correctly," it teaches individuals to strive for perfection. I believe that he that ball to the pull field, it would have cleared the fence, which, when put in altruistic terms, means more runs for the team.

As for the bat angle being cut by a third, that is compensated for by the batter creating great batspeed.

If the batter is slightly to moderately late, he will hit the ball to the the straightaway field, or even the opposite field; yet this is not, as Steve Ferroli articulates in his "Hit Your Potential," the batter's "intention."

Overall, your reasoning is very sound; however, I believe that pulling the ball will give the batter better results.

Cheers,
BHL!