Posted by: Thomas (twvanya@aol.com) on Mon Mar 13 12:11:35 2000

>How can you teach a young hitter to use his back side before you use your hands. Another words are there any drills for getting the hip working before the hands start to come to the ball (get into the slot). I was never able to hit for consistent power as a player because I was unable to get those hips into that rotational power postion before my hands started to work. Any suggestions.

I just introduced this "new" concept of hitting to my son, age 11, this past weekend. I don't think he quite grasped the reason behind WHY it works. (Heck, I don't know that I fully understand WHY it works!) However, he was able to tell a difference when he swung "correctly" or not. He said it felt as though he wasn't even trying to swing and the bat just came around anyway. His swing was awkward when he didn't start with the hips and shoulders. After 5 years of linear movement toward the ball, he really has to concentrate on getting the hips and shoulders in gear first. I started with him standing with the bat ready and I faked pitches to him. Instead of swinging through the "pitch", he only rotated his hips and shoulders. After countless repetitions of this, we did some full swings at half speed. This helped him get the feel for a proper vs. improper swing. We will continue to practice, practice, practice on getting those hips and shoulders moving until it becomes a natural part of his swing.