Posted by: Curt () on Mon Feb 7 18:57:28 2000

mr mankin;
> i know its difficult to diagnose without seeing the swing but are there any common reasons for a right handed hitter to pop up over 1st base dugout?
> any response will be welcome
> bob


Bob,

I'm sure Jack will have some good insight as to what may be causing this problem, but I will give you my two cents worth as well.

I've worked with kids who have a tendency to drop their bat head (back towards the catcher) when they take their stride. Some will do it to more of an extreme than others. This leaves them in a very weak position to hit from (launch position). Their wrists are in an "uncocked" position and they will drag their bat through the hitting zone. This really slows down the bat and causes the player to ,many times, hit weakly to the right side. It also makes it much more difficult to keep the bat head above the hands during the swing (resulting in an uppercut). Slow bat speed and an uppercut will produce foul bouls that you describe.

When their front foot hits the ground, the proper launch position requires their bat to be at about a 45 degree angle or higher and pointed somewhat towards the pitcher(bat in a more cocked position).
The opposite of what I have described above is not good either. If the bat is pointed towards the pitcher too much(wrapping the bat), it will also cause the hitter to swing late.

This is sometimes a difficult problem to correct, but it can be done with the proper instruction and a good work ethic on the hitters part.

Maybe this will help,
Curt