Posted by: Chuck (jcsherwood8458@sbcglobal.net) on Sat Jul 24 09:15:52 2010

> Hi,
>
> First off I'd like to say thank you for all the work you do with this site; far too many coaches and players are still teaching/using linear mechanics. It's encouraging when I see someone teaching rotational mechanics.
>
> I'm currently a college baseball player and I have a couple of problems with my swing that I would like to discuss. The first flaw that I've had is opening my hips too early. My coach tells me all the time, "You're hips are way ahead of your hands..." I'm a relatively small player, 170 lbs, however I've always been able to hit for power (2nd on the team in home-runs this spring.) I'm still able to hit for power to the pull field, however I often struggle to drive the ball the other way. As a righty, this has become a big problem as I have moved up levels of baseball. Pitchers can more consistently locate the low and away pitch. The stretch caused by my hips has also caused pulled muscles in the sides of my lower back. So does anyone know anything I can do to get my hips in unison with my shoulders/hands?
>
> I've had several problems with my front foot during my swing as well. I roll my front foot during my swing every single time. I've tried swinging off of a tee and keeping my front foot flat through the swing, but I feel like I lose power. I have a little bit of a longer stride: 8-12 inches. I was wondering what the role of the front foot is for a longer stride? What angle is the foot supposed to land at? Does it matter if the foot rolls during the swing? I have also been told that I occasionally start my swing before my front foot is down. All of these problems with opening up to early seem to be intertwined; I think that I pull with the front hip too much rather than pushing or sliding with the back hip.
>
> Lastly, I lose my balance and fall towards first base at the end of a lot of swings (think Jacoby Ellsbury as a right-hander.) I think this is due to the fact that my front foot rolls. When I've swung with a balanced front foot, I finish balanced as well. Some coaches have told me that I'm going to first anyway so they don't care. Others have told me that I need to stay balanced all the way through the end of the swing. Any opinions/suggestions?
>
> If anyone has any advice or comments, I would greatly appreciate it.
>
> Thanks,
> Anthony

Hi Anthony,

I suggest that you look at video of your swing. If your hips are opening alot during your stride, before you have launched your swing (shoulders and hands), you are essentially leaking alot of power. As a result, you may also be straightening the front leg too early (before contact), basically blocking out the front side and causing you to swing by forcing the back side around a blocked out front side. This would explain the problems with balance and the difficulty with outside pitches. Stride to the ball of the front foot with a well-flexed front knee (Posada and Bernie Williams come to mind as great examples of this - although there are others too numerous to mention)and then launch the swing with the hips and shoulder at the same time. Practice driving the outside pitch to right center by rotating. You must also have the other components of the rotational swing as well. Be sure to hide the hands before launch. Hope this helps.

Chuck