Posted by: Mike Stringer () on Fri Feb 11 14:58:21 2005

Let me first say that I am convinced of the mechanics preached on this site, and I believe that if only half of the lessons advocated here were taught to every Little Leaguer in the US, we'd be improved 3-fold.

However, I want to present a different look on this issue. Frequently, I see players like Barry Bonds, A-Rod, Pujols, and Sosa pointed out as successful hitters who have incorporated these mechanics. That is great, and in my opinion, one of the best ways to form your swing ("copying" the core mechanics of great hitters). But this is my point: What is to say about those great hitters who DON'T use these mechanics, and the poor to average hitters who do?

For example, Adrian Beltre, to me, did not appear to use these mechanics last season. His swing looked horrible, but he had an MVP-type season. Mike Cameron has very, very good mechanics, but his hitting is average.

If in fact producing bat speed is by far the most important factor in a great hitter, why don't these hitters produce according to their mechanics?