Posted by: The Hitting Guru () on Sat Jan 28 15:24:26 2006

> Many of the things you say are right on and I couldn't belive my eyes when I saw Carlos Lee from the side in slow-mo. He does the top hand back to the catcher better than anyone I've seen so far.
>
> Anyway, how could Albert Belle get away with rolling his top hand? Every photo I've seen of him making contact, the wrist is starting to roll. I know he was strong, but how could he get away with this? And, why do most other great hitters not do it, yet Albert could and hit with as much power as any of them.


Albert does a couple of things very well. First of all he takes his hands straight back to the launch position. This puts him in a very stong hitting position. The key is for him to take his hands back with enough time to be ready for the incoming pitch. Because of his strength and timing he is able to succeed while others might fail. Another player who uses such principles to a degree is John Olerud. They do not have much wasted motion. The wrist roll is not as much a detriment if everything else is done successfully. The key in that type of hitting is connecting with the bottom half of the ball.