Posted by: Jack Mankin (MrBatspeed@aol.com) on Mon Jan 1 13:30:38 2001

>>>Besides the bag drill, do you think that the tee is still the best thing to use? <<<

Hi Madmax

I like using the tee or slow pitch along with the bag. Hitting a bag does not allow a “follow-through” as does a tee or slow-pitch. The reason the bag is important is because it offers feedback about your swing that you cannot gain with the tee or live pitching. The bag gives you a “freeze frame” of your mechanics at the contact point. --- If the swing is timed correctly, all rotational and torque energies should be expended by or at contact. The body’s muscles are therefore relaxed and at rest. If the heavy bag did not absorb the bat’s energy, the bat’s momentum would pull the body and limbs through the follow-through.

The mechanics used by most hitters develop much of their bat speed well after (20 to 50 degrees of angular bat displacement) passing the contact point. Therefore they are still grunting and shoving on the bat well after making contact with the bag (or ball). -- Since the ball is only in contact with the bat for .002 of a second and the bat moves less than one inch, all energy expended after contact is wasted. Good mechanics should use this energy to develop bat speed BEFORE contact.

By observing the position of the hips, shoulders and limbs at contact (freeze frame), a knowledgeable coach can lead the hitter to more efficient mechanics. Once the hitter has perfected his mechanics on the bag, he can move to the tee or better yet - slow-pitch. It will now require a video of the swing to see if his mechanics on the tee or live pitching are the same as when hitting the bag. In most cases the batter will tend to revert to his old mechanics (muscle memory) when seeing live pitching. He must go back and forth between the bag and live pitching to develop a new muscle memory.

Jack Mankin