Posted by: Josh () on Wed Feb 14 10:16:48 2007

> The truth is that the debate between linear and rotational hitting doesn't exist in the Big Leagues today. This doesn't mean that it is not discussed but the discussion is usually laughed at.
>
> There is no debate because there is not one way to practice or teach hitting. There are certain fundamentals that are to be mastered, but not one way to master them. The most important fundamentals in hitting are as follows:
>
> 1) SEEING the baseball from the release point all the way in to the hitting zone.
>
> 2) BALANCE throuout the stance, load, swing, and finish.
>
> 3) Controlable RYTHM in the load
>
> 4) The first three fundamentals will help to contribute to the fourth which is SWINGING AT
> GOOD PITCHES TO HIT HARD ONLY
>
> 5) EFFICIENT swing path to and through the baseball
>
> 6) HEAD DOWN and EYES IN the hitting zone during and after contact has been made
>
> ......Now all of the details of the lower half, the feet, the hands, the shoulders, the hips, the knees, the elbows, the bat angle, the forces applied, the timing, the stride, the firmness and the timing of the firmness of the front leg, etc., etc., etc., are areas that are important, but these details should not precede the core fundamentals.
>
> Hitters practice what they know will help them produce. Some try to do off the wall drills while some just hit off the tee. It is up to the individual hitter more so than it is up to the hitting coach to figure out what is the best routine for him. The hitter is the only individual who can feel what is going on with his body when he swings a bat. He is also the only individual who sees the delivery and the pitch through his eyes.
>
> Teaching hitting should not be a debate, it should be a collective effort to help an individual hitter hit. And each individual is a seperate case. If one guy like the term "X" and he produces for the team, than great. If his teammate doesn't like term "X" but likes
> term "Y" and he also produces for the team, than thats great as well. In the end it is the hitter who decides and it is the hitter who deserves the credit for the execution of a good swing, not a hitting style, and certainly not a hitting coach.
>
> Jimmy

Well Jimmy I do agree in some areas

1.Seeing the baseball from the release is very important it give you most time possible to pick up spin and react.
2.Balance is also important it allows you keep a still head and keeps you in control of your swing.
3.Rythm I agree somewhat, some hitter have alot of movement or rythm prestride and some hitters stay very still and have almost no movement at all before the stride I believe thats more of a personal style.
4.Swinging at good pitches is also very important but the hitter has to know his hitting zone a good pitch to one hitter can be a tough pitch to another.
5.Swing path is also very important, you want to swing level to the baseball so if you a little ahead you can pull a hard line drive and if your a little behind you can hit a hard line drive to opposite field
6.Head down I agree with to a point, no hitter sees contact or he might ounce in a blue moon. They did a study to see when the last possible moment that you can make adjustment on a fastball traveling at 85 or 90 mile an hour fast ball and the research concluded that you can make adjust on up untill the last ten feet after that your swing in on auto pilot. I think a hitter should track the ball with his eyes rather then his whole head, alot of hitters keep they head down so much that there chin actually gets in the way of there shoulder rotations so there not able to finish the swing.

I believe hitting is 50/50 50% above the neck 50% below the neck
Below the neck.
Neck down
1. A hitter should learn how to hit with his entire body in the most efficient manner possible.
2. A hitter should learn how to get his hands inside of the baseball and have a quick bat, so he can wait as long as possible to start his swing and not fooled as often.
3. A hitter should be able to swing level to the baseball so he gives himself the best possible chance to make contact on every swing.
Neck up
1. Be able to keep both eyes level and on the pitcher till the last moment when you switch to the release, your eyes can only focus on a area for a couple seconds before they refocus somewhere else, so you have to learn switch your eyes from the pitchers hat or jersey to the release point to pitch up the release as clearly as possible
2. You have to know your zone, what pitches you can handle what pitches you have problems with.
3. What the pitchers strenghts and weaknesses are. What pitches he throws in certain counts.
4. What the situation is where are the runner at what do you need to do at this particular plate appearence to make it a good at bat. Sometimes outs are just as important as are in certain situations if your moveing runner over or depending on who's on deck.
5. Know the umpires zone. What pitches he calls for balls and strikes every umpire has his own zone. A ball one night could be a strike the next night.

I might have left some things out about the mental part but should some most of it up.
And one last thing you talk alot about feel and teaching by feel how do you know what a hitter feels? As a hitting instructor you have to teach by what you see. You have no clue what that hitter feels. Hitter X can say it feels like this hitter Y can say it feels like this and there swings can be idenical.