Posted by: Mark H. () on Thu Oct 4 15:33:06 2001

I hadn't heard or read about the "archer" thing. But I can only assume it means bringing the top hand and arm backwards. Like an archer, this acts to "prime the swing". I myself don't teach my students to pull back much farther than about 6" from the shoulder, as it straightens the arms too much, thereby slowing down the swing. By pulling back 6", it allows the elbows to stay bent and tucked close to the body, allowing for faster turn, which builds more torque. Try to remember that when an archer brings his arms back, his elbow usually points backwards. This is not good. Keep your elbows tucked in so they're close to your sides. When you think "be an archer" remember with the hands only.
>
> Ruben

Ruben,

The archer reference is to Jack's top hand torque as I understand it. Here is an excerpt from Jack's Truisms and Fallacies section under "Quick Hands". You can refer to there for the complete quote.

"When referring "Quick Hands", I am mainly concerned with the perceived role of the top hand in the development of bat speed. Hitters are taught to accelerate the bat by driving and extending the top hand back in the direction of the pitcher. But, far from driving the top hand forward, great hitters like Williams and Sosa initiate the swing by pulling with the top hand back toward the catcher. This would be very simular to an archer pulling on a bowstring. The force of the rotating body against the lead arm will quickly accelerate both hands in an arc toward the pitcher. Thus, to maximize the torque that is applied to the bat, the direction of the force of the top hand should not be initiated in the same direction as the bottom hand."

Once again, these are Jack's words not mine. If I had not read Tom Guerry extensively AND read all of Jack's reference material on here before I started reading the discussions, much of the references in the discussions would have made no sense.

Mark H.