Posted by: Jack Mankin (MrBatspeed@aol.com) on Sat Mar 9 23:05:16 2002

>>> Tends to be both but depending on location it may differ. The farther the ball is away from you (low and obviously outside) I find you must use your lead arm a bit more. In those locations your back side isn't in a strong position. On the low ball, if you allow the backside too much influence--you risk rolling over early. This is because the lead arm must take a lower route to the ball and the back arm can come over it (roll) easier.

When the ball is closer, I think that you must use the back side more because the front side sometimes just needs to get out of the way--and because you can't always get the lead arm extended as well to allow the lead shoulder to pull.

I think the more you swing at different locations, the more you understand that at different times, one side or the other is in a more advantaged position and may carry more of the load.

I know some believe that the swing is the same from all locations. I don't. I believe the actions of the lower body are more or less the same--but the upper body (such as more or less tilt) and the actions of the arms and elbows are and must be dynamic. <<<

Hi T Olson

You stated, “The farther the ball is away from you (low and obviously outside) I find you must use your lead arm a bit more. In those locations your back side isn't in a strong position. -- & -- When the ball is closer, I think that you must use the back side more because the front side sometimes just needs to get out of the way--and because you can't always get the lead arm extended as well to allow the lead shoulder to pull.”

I would agree with your statements for a batter using mechanics that stress extending the back-arm (less “L” position) at contact. But I must point out that just the opposite is true for rotation transfer mechanics where less emphasis is placed on back-arm extension.

In order to generate a tighter hand-path for inside pitches, the rotational hitter must lower his back-elbow to the side more quickly. This means that less top-hand-torque can be generated and the batter must rely more on lead-side pull (bottom-hand-torque) to power middle-in pitches. To apply maximum bottom-hand-torque by contact, the back-elbow must remain back and maintain the “L” position. – The lead-arm can remain fairly straight except for pitches where the batter is jammed with the pitch. – Extra flex in the lead-arm does cost power, especially opposite field and up the middle, and most well hit balls must be pulled.

On outside pitches, lead-shoulder rotation is restricted to allow the hands to arc out into a wider path. The back-elbow and hands now sweep out in a wider arc as the elbow lowers toward the batter’s side. This allows top-hand-torque to be applied over a greater portion of the swing. So, on outside pitches, the back-arm is extended well past the “L” position.

Jack Mankin