Posted by: RQL () on Fri Nov 16 18:41:02 2001

I have trained my six year old on a tire for some time and used over/under training.During some tee work I noticed how hard he hit the ball with a 33/29TPX.I also saw that if he did'nt use his body properly he could'nt swing well at all.However once he got the proper sequence going the bat came around building good speed and the mass really hit the ball hard.The same proved true with me pitching to him.Now I am trying to bring him back down to a more proper size bat 30/24 but he has a tendency to swing slower now and the mass is much less.So I think that the training of the muscles to be fast as well as strong is of a large importance.AS we work on speed with lighter bats I will update my findings,anyone else tried these 2 opp. points.
> ****
> rql;
> We work on underload/overload training with our Setpro equipment and have seen some very positive results. As for the "bat mass" issue, let me give you a real life testimony: My twelve year old was swinging a 30/20 Easton up until a mid season tournament that we went to. I had been in the sporting goods a couple of days before the tournament and found a 31/24 Easton React for $24.95. My kid wasn't too crazy about using it (don't know if it was too heavy or too cheap)but I encouraged him to do so. He had a great tournament with the bat facing all kinds of pitching (hit three homers, one a grand slam). He went on to use that bat for the remainder of the season. He started switch hitting right after that tournament and seemed to be a little more comfortable with a lighter bat when hitting left handed. I don't know the reason for this but he was being successful so I guess if it ain't broke, don't fix it. My assumption was the heavier bat resulted in a little more balanced swing and the fact that he was conscious of the heavier weight.
> By the way, I enjoy reading your posts on here and this is the first time I have ever responded to anything on any of these forums.
> My kid is a catcher and, if I'm not mistaken, I believe you were one as well. If you were, I'd like to pick your brain a little if you wouldn't mind too much
>>>Dad yes I caught I was fortunate to learn from Johnny Bench for a couple of weeks,then Dave Van Gorder for 2 months.Gorder was all american at southern Cal then played with the Reds.In College my head coach had been a philly catching coach.So I got to pick up alot from some great sources so feel free to pick away.