Posted by: The Hitting Guru () on Tue Apr 3 18:37:19 2007

> Last year I taught my 9-yr old son rotational hitting(with the help of this site and Mike Epstein). His hitting improved greatly and he had his best season. So far this year, he is having trouble making contact. It looks like he is collapsing his back leg and swinging on too much of an upward arc. He is popping up when he is making contact. He is not a big kid and more of a line drive hitter(previously). He is really struggling on pitches up in the zone. Is there any help anyone can give me, drills, etc?


Coachmook. This problem (backfoot lockout) is often caused by the hitter not picking up the ball soon enough from the release point. As a result, even with great batspeed, there is not enough time for the hitter to execute his swing completely. Thus he has to cram all the steps in one in an attempt to make contact.

1. As a quick fix, I would have the hitter practice the fence drill (take the knob to the ball). This will help him take a shorter route to the ball.

2. Another suggestion would have the hitter back off the plate and or get deeper in the box. Both will allow for extra timing.

3. Have him choke up and or use a lighter bat.

4. As a last resort, have him look for the pitch up and cheat, by starting all his mechanics earlier.