Posted by: Major Dan (markj89@charter.net) on Mon Jan 14 05:20:23 2002

jack.....if i'm not mistaken, i think that in the past you have stated that most major leaguers do not achieve full extension of the bottom arm at contact....i'm under the impression that you feel that at contact the bottom arm is in the "L" position.....
> > >
> > > however, out of the 90 or so video clips that i have, of the ones that i can clearly see the bottom arm when i freeze at the contact frame, i find roughly 1/3 have their bottom arm in an "L" position, about 1/3 are somewhere in between the "L" position & full extension, and about 1/3 are at FULL extension......
> > >
> > > would you mind clarifying your position?
> > >
> > > respectfully, grc.....
> >
> > GRC -
> > how do these arm positions correlate to pitch location - inside/middle/outside?
> > Unfortunately hitters have different styles which also muddies the waters some.
> > Ideally you'd compare the same hitter with different locations over a number of swings...
>
> major dan....point well taken.... with many of the clips it's impossible to tell but with the ones i can determine the pitch location (os vs. is, for example)i have observed the following GENERAL pattern: is pitches GENERALLY closer to the "L" position (but not always)....os pitches almost ALWAYS full extension......respectfully, grc....

RQL, 'rear arm' is intended to mean the top hand arm or arm furthest from the pitcher.
GRC, Those findings are consistent with what Jack suggests for mechanics on inside vs. outside pitches.
consider that once the top hand elbow starts to straighten, there is no turning back - the bat is being cast out of the shoulder turn and will shortly reach the 'end of the rope'. Once the arms are extended there is nothing left to swing with and the bat will to into followthrough mode. So if the ball is not hit by full extension, the result is pretty weak, usually a hooked grounder, etc.