Posted by: Jack Mankin (MrBatspeed@aol.com) on Fri Dec 30 14:29:24 2005

>>> Coach Jack,
I need some clarification to see if I am on the right page.

1. The purpose of pre-launch torque is to get the bat into a good launch position. It is acomplished mainly by the pullung of the top hadd towards the back shoulder.

2. The end of PLT and the beginning of rotation slightly overlap in timing to remove slack out of the lead arm.

Here is my question: should I feel a slight hesitation in the bat head going from launch to rotation? It is almost as if the energy is transfered from my hips to my lead arm and into the bat head via my hands. Is that hesitation in the bat head as the energy is being transfered what you are referring to when you talk about inertia, or breaking the inertia? I hope this makes sense. Thank you for your time. <<<

Hi Andrew

The purpose of PLT is to have the bat-head accelerating into the launch position. This lowers the inertia (resistance to acceleration) of the bat during initiation. However, if the bat slows (or hesitates), nothing is gained. When the bat slows, its momentum decreases and inertia increases.

Note in this clip of Bonds ( http://www.youthbaseballcoaching.com/mpg/Bonds01.mpeg ), that once the bat-head starts rearward, it is constantly accelerating from PLT through THT (when shoulder rotation is initiated).

Jack Mankin