Posted by: Jim D (j-monro@hotmail.com) on Thu Mar 24 09:13:44 2011

> I have not only had difficulty in transitioning kids from the tee to a live ball, I've also had trouble going from a bag to the tee or live ball. I have noticed that many kids, particularly younger ones, have a different swing for a tee, a live ball, and even to warm up on deck.
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> But what I tried recently with my son seems to have been working well. We used the Connector a bunch in the offseason and he would look really good on the bag both with and without it, but go to a tee or live pitch and the old habits came back. As an intermediate step, I had him begin taking "super slow" dry swings. It took a few sessions to get the form down, but we got his "super slow" dry swing to match his swing with the Connector on the bag. We then would go to "50% Speed" where he would swing a little faster but still focused on the form. Over most of the offseason, we didn't hit a live ball at all, just take a few hits on the bag and some slow dry swings.
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> Now that the season has started back up and he is hitting live balls, the swing is immensely improved. Plus, he has the additional benefit of having learned to execute his swing in slow motion which gives him much more awareness of what each of the body parts is supposed to be doing...and he can reinforce those swing mechanics each time he stands on deck or prepares to hit.
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> Don't know how large numbers of dry swings (both slower and faster)might work for some as an aid in transitioning between bag/tee and live hitting, but might work for someone.


Gentlemen,

Consistency & repeatability in transfer mechanics will always be an issue for a hitter. Slumpping MLB hitters are a testiment to this.
Muscle memory is one thing...mental focus is another. Loose mental focus, & the brain fails to tell the body the exact, precise movements to execute.

I'll have a 12 y.o. take 5 swings at 60mph live pitching. He'll crush 4 out of 5 balls and in the next round foul off 4 out of 5. What changed?

If a hitter can see himself in slow & stop motion, he can carry with him the mental image of his swing technique. This might help his mental focus. Cues can be implimented based on what the hitter sees himself doing.

What I see in most 12 y.o. rotational hitters is...
Lead shoulder pulls until 1 or 2 frames before contact. When the lead shoulder stops pulling. the arms disconnect as the hands are pushed toward the ball (power lost). There is also varying degrees of bat drag (back elbow running ahead of the hands) depending on size & strength of the individual.
To sum up...a picture is worth a thousand words...

Jim D