Posted by: Brian (support@batspeed.com) on Sat Jul 29 11:22:09 2006

You claim that you studied the swings of 50,000 players, and your only conclusion is that it's not possible to emulate the mechanics used by the best professional hitters, and if you try you will be a "failure." It that were true, why would every professional baseball team spend so much time analyzing swings on video. Why would so many individual players study other players swings to improve their swing. The same applies to the golf swing. Can you imagine if a golf coach told a player not to emulate Woods, Michelson or VJ's core mechanics because they would be a failure.

And to think that if you spent 10 minutes studying each player's biomechanics, it would have taken you about 8300 hours or over four straight years of working time looking at the player's swing. If true, you sure wasted a lot of time to conclude that a player will be a "failure" if they emulate the mechanics used by the best players and coaches in both sports. Even the pro players and coaches would laugh at your conclusion.

One thing that has certainly not changed in your perpetual misunderstanding of Jack's definition of rotational versus linear. You either fail to understand the difference between the terms or you have created your own definition because some of your statements show that you are not comprehending the difference.

And nothing could demonstrate your lack of understanding more clearly that your suggestion that: "Maximum rotational velocity of the hips only occurs when both the right and left legs are both driving on time in opposite directs. this is not a rotational action, but linear, individual leg action." When both legs driving in opposing directions to force the body to rotate about a point, this is pure rotational mechanics, meaning that the body is not moving forward in a linear direction.

Likewise, your belief that a "positive linear move" toward the pitcher is a requirement is utterly wrong. How could you have possibly reviewed 50,000 swings and came to such an erroneous conclusion? Either your data is grossly flawed or you are not studying good professional hitters. Since you claim to have all the data, do we really need to point the numerous hitters that use no forward movement when the swing starts (regardless of whether a timing step is made or not before the swing starts).

What you also fail to understand is that while all of the great hitters have unique stylistic features, they use similar fundamental principals (i.e., "absolute rules") relating to rotational mechanics.

I am of course not speaking for Jack. Since some things have not changed, he may or may not care to readdress these points with you, probably unless he believes that he can assist other players and coaches in responding.

I'm not sure why you made your last statement. Although you require a log in on your website to access your information, as you know, we allow differing opinions relating to batting to be posted here, even when they contradict BatSpeed.com because ultimately it may educate others players and coaches as to the correct mechanics.

Finally, please do not further attempt to use BatSpeed.com to advertise your new company. Such posts may be edited or deleted at our discretion. Thank you for your anticipated cooperation.

Brian


> Well, after taking a hiatus to do more research and start my new company (Motion DNA) I ran into a collegiate fastpitch coach who uses the theories here and has had great success at with his team of girls who many would say are over achievers. And congratulations to him. But i believe he is teaching one thing and his girls are doing a combination, becasue they have to do what their bodies know how to do.
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> Tom and Jack, you still make very good points. Jack, several of the posters have started to be able to point out just the opposite of what you see in the same clips you use to show rotational mechanics. Perception is unique and varies from one viewer to the next. But data doesn't confuse or vary. it is what it is.
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> Also, I must say that teaching an athlete based upon some other athlete's swings characteristics is still severely flawed. I see from some of the post that the topics are still the same and yet, no one here appears to be closer to the answer.
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> Circular hand paths, linear versus rotational, knob at ball, back foot (what does it do?) softball versus baseball, and do what the best do, because if they do it, it must be right.
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> Well, after analyzing the biomechanics of now over 50,000 baseball and fastpitch players, I can tell you all that each of them swings in a way that is unique to them becasue of their own physical limitations. If you are going to teach a kid to swing like Pujols, because he's the hot hitter right now, you are setting that athlete up for failure. The last time I posted here, everyone was talking about teaching to swing like bonds, but if you don't have bonds approach to hitting, what good is his swing. if you don't have his strength and balance (from two years ago) the swing won't work.
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> As I have stated before, there is no such thing as a purely rotational or pure linear hitter. Every motion has a little of both.
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> Here's a clue after analyzing the swings of some of the top hitters at every level, the following is true..
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> 1) Every hitter has a load which is linear and rotational (just like throwing a ball)
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> 2) Every hitter has a positive move (wieght transfer) or beginning move which is linear towards the pitcher. Any rotation during this phase will cause a leak in power and may cause the hitter to have to play catch up with his arms, hips, or shoulder depending upon which body part begins to rotate (release early) Note. Barring of the lead arm early is cause by the body seeking balance and as a results seeks to that balance away from where balance is lost.
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> 3) the completion of linear movement when done correctly triggers a rotational and linear path of the elbow (if done correctly) which brings the hands (which are holding on to the bat).
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> 4) During this release (which rotational AND linear for those of you who missed it), the arms should begin to release or extend at the shoulders and then elbows in order followed by the release of the wrist (which were previously cocked or loaded). This release is both linear and rotational as well. rotation only of the wrists during a swing can be identified by the bat rolling over. This happens when a batter cuts off the linear release of the bat through contact.
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> 5)if all is done correctly, maximum energy is released through the bat and limited power is lost upon contact.
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> Maximum rotational velocity of the hips only occurs when both the right and left legs are both driving on time in opposite directs. this is not a rotational action, but linear, individual leg action. It is this action (linear) that initiates rotation. However, if an athlete has a weak back side, he collapses, a weak front side (flies open), a weak core (shoulders are late and constantly leak open) weak shoulders (late hands) Quick hands (poor timing) and the list goes on.
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> So I think you will all look at video after video of the best hitters for the next 10 years and you will continue to see something different. I will take your best linear hitter and show the rotational components. At the same time, take your best rotational hitter and show you the linear components of his swing. at 30 frames per second, you are missing one or the other, and If you want to rotation...that's all you will see. If you want to see linear, you will pick it out. But the combination is always there in every thing from soccer kicks to hitting, free throw shooting. We have one body and it does everything the same way with adjustments specific to the task and characterized by the athletes physical limitations.
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> I trust this post will stay and we can debate the search for the truth.