Swing Issue, Any help greatly appreciated.

[HammeRDrop]

Hey there,

I have this issue with my swing, which is kinda hard to describe. I dont have a vid, i wish I did. I would like to start by saying that I'm not new to baseball, and I have been playing for years. Well, the other day i was hitting at practice and Coach noticed that I "close my front shoulder". I guess it almost looks like I'm torquing way too much. Any tips on how to prevent this...?

I have alot of success with the bat but sometimes have a tendency to pop up to right weakly (right handed hitter).

VIDEO NOW INCLUDED: http://youtube.com/watch?v=JLz1AEGRAxE (im in grey with blue hat)

[PhilliesPhan22]

as opposed to "flying open?" Hard to offer advice without seeing.

[LAball]

The Humerous and chest should be closed shouldnt it? If your having success stay with it.

I cant stand my son's coach. My son has been at the plate about 8 times. Walked 2 times, base hits 5 times and stuck out once. The one time he did strike you, the coach was telling him to do this and do that,, WHILE Being at bat. I felt like telling the coach, hey he's hitting. Let him alone.

sorry I had to use your thread to vent.....:grouchy

[HammeRDrop]

No prob LA

Maybe I can explain myself better. Imagine a normal loading of the hands, it should be usually straight back. But mine goes back and behind. Oh god I wish I had some clips. I will get some soon.

[callyjr]

instead of pulling your hands straight back and turning your back to the pitcher try just dipping your front shoulder down and in a little as your striding to your open position. That should create you plenty of upper/lower body seperation in order to get some good torque started.

cally

[HammeRDrop]

Ill try that for sure ^

But are you saying my hand should never go behind?

[Drill]

be careful with taking your hand back so far, will cause slow bat speed and you could be straightening your front arm out and giving yourself a arm bar. This will cause you to hit weak hit when swinging at out side pitches and pull the ball down the line on inside pitches, which ever side you are batting from.

Get the coach to video you.


Or do some tee work in slow motion and watch your lead arm and see what it does. If it straightens out taking your hands back beware! Try not to take your hands back behind your shoulders, makes for a longer swing. Use your big muscles to get your body moving, not your arms.


drill

[lions_baseball]

umm im brand new to this site and i wanted to know how to post stuff like make my own thread if thats what its called

[lions_baseball]

srry if im just using this post or thread watevre u want to call it to ask for help but i was actually intrested in what u were talking about when i realized that maybe u can help me too

[FiveFrameSwing]

instead of pulling your hands straight back and turning your back to the pitcher try just dipping your front shoulder down and in a little as your striding to your open position. That should create you plenty of upper/lower body seperation in order to get some good torque started.

cally

Another focus point to accomplish this is to bring the elbow of the lead arm down towards the belly button ... which is how I get some of my students to accomplish the same goal.

[Mark H]

Hey there,

I have this issue with my swing, which is kinda hard to describe. I dont have a vid, i wish I did. I would like to start by saying that I'm not new to baseball, and I have been playing for years. Well, the other day i was hitting at practice and Coach noticed that I "close my front shoulder". I guess it almost looks like I'm torquing way too much. Any tips on how to prevent this...?

I have alot of success with the bat but sometimes have a tendency to pop up to right weakly (right handed hitter).

Everyone pops up weakly sometime. You may have a problem or you may not. Without video or at least pictures we are employing the WAG method for offering you advice (and some of the advice in this thread I consider problematic) but I might as well be guilty too. One thing to avoid is called counter rotation by some on here. Looking at elite hitters it appears their upper body is turned back toward the catcher significantly. On closer inspection you may notice the chest is turned back very little if at all toward the catcher but rather it is the shoulders. Some refer to this as loading the scaps/scapular complex/shoulders if that helps to follow the point. This may or may not be what your coach is talking about and he may or may not be right about whatever he thinks he sees. Here's visual help for you. Study all this and track down all the links. http://imageevent.com/siggy/hitting/...lcp2i01.lion_s

[HammeRDrop]

Well I finally got a vid my friend made. I'm the guy in the grey. Thanks for the input guys.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=JLz1AEGRAxE

[StraightGrain11]

Yeup. Your video confirmed my suspicions about your "pop-up" problem - you're just out in front of the ball. When you get "out in front," your bathead drops; bathead drops = ball pops up. YES, you can be "out in front" of a pitch and NOT PULL IT.(First Pic)

Another thing, your first swing was your best swing. Don't force your "body tilt" to hit balls further - it doesn't work that way. There's nothing wrong with body tilt. But take a look at the last two stills. The first one is your 1st swing, and the last one is your 5th swing. That's what your body progressed to as you tried to hit the ball farther and farther each time.
Best solution for this: KEEP YOUR HEAD STILL. Watch your video again and watch how little your head moves in the first two swings and how much it moves in swings 3-5.

================================================== =====================================

I will describe to you what I am seeing frame by frame - this is a very good piece of hitting - as well as a very good swing.
1) Loading begins (GOOD load). Weight/head is over back leg (RED line).

2) Stride begins. Hands load (BLUE line - separates from RED line. DO NOT try and make this happen - you won't be able to feel it - it JUST HAPPENS). Weight/head remain back [over back leg]. Head remains STILL (GOOD). Front-side is CLOSED (GOOD).

3) Stride foot is down (SHORT stride - GOOD). Weight begins to transfer to stride foot. Front side still closed (GOOD). Hands are STILL BACK (GOOD. BLUE line is in EXACTLY the same spot as previous frame - you can use the TREE in the background for reference). Ok, I would like to discuss something here with you. This is where the phrase "the hands go back" becomes VERY MISLEADING - as you can see for yourself that it is THE BODY THAT MOVES forward and NOT "the hands moving back" (the hands remain in the SAME SPOT - "quiet hands" - you SHOULD feel this) that creates "separation". AGAIN, DO NOT try and make this happen, you will NOT be able to feel this (body moving away from hands) - it JUST HAPPENS.

4) Head remains STILL (GOOD). Hands have slotted and begun DIRECT path to ball (GOOD). Bat has flattened into swing plane (GOOD). Front-side begins to open SLIGHTLY (GOOD).
CONTINUE TO NEXT POST

[HammeRDrop]

Hmm, so does this mean body tilt doesnt help the ball to go further? I kinda thought this. I love how you did that by the way, it really helps. Sorry about all of the questions, I just wanna get better.

[StraightGrain11]

Hmm, so does this mean body tilt doesnt help the ball to go further? I kinda thought this. I love how you did that by the way, it really helps. Sorry about all of the questions, I just wanna get better.

Keep asking, that's the best way to gain the knowledge to start getting better.

No, body tilt has nothing to do with distance. so how do you tell good body tilt from bad body tilt? BALANCE - in simpler terms, the head in relation to the feet. Here's a pic of Griffey. Tilt similar to yours right? Wrong. Look at his head. Look how it's almost perpendicular to the ground and also notice its position relative to the feet. His is almost centered between his feet. Your's is almost completely over your back foot.

Here's Bobby Abreu and A-Rod - tell me how much tilt you see. Similar to your first swing, yes?

================================================== ==========================================

(continued from above)
5) Body weight is EVENLY distributed between both feet (GOOD). Head has remained very still (GOOD). Front-side STOPS opening, HANDS take-over/control/dominate swing (GOOD).

6) Still very little head movement (GOOD). Hands are taking bathead DIRECTLY to ball (GOOD). Ball has been ALLOWED TO "get very deep" (VERY GOOD).

7) BALANCE is maintained all the way through follow-thru. (I LOVE this last picture - it tells the entire story of this swing, beautiful)


Do you see what I see? Do you understand why this is a VERY GOOD "piece of hitting" - as well as a very good swing?

Do me a quick favor and check what I originally wrote in this post, above (before you read any further).
Remember that? Check this swing - how much body tilt do you have? Weird how everything somehow ties together, huh?

I want you to go back and watch this swing (I could watch it all day, it's very good). I want you to try and remember EVERYTHING you were FEELING, THINKING and SEEING during it. I want you to watch how FLUID and "nice and easy" it is - and then I want you to watch how the ball "jumps" off your bat when you hit it. Maybe swinging "as hard as you can" isn't as necessary as everyone makes it sound...

I will say this, though, you have a very quick bat to the inside pitch. You have good hands - so learn to USE THEM. The key to hitting an inside pitch is NOT getting your "hips open"!!! The KEY is getting your HANDS "through the zone" so they can DELIVER the BATHEAD to the BALL.

I have included two more photos (as you can see). They are of Miguel Cabrera, and are at the SAME POINT in two different swings. The 1st photo (NEXT to your last one) is of a ball hit to RF (OPP). The 2nd photo (UNDER your last one) is of a ball hit to LF (PULL). Notice what changes: it is the position of the HANDS - NOT the HIPS - that make the adjustment to hit the ball. DON'T compare YOUR stride [length] to HIS - your stride is right where it needs to be for YOU in this swing. EACH PERSON IS DIFFERENT.
CONTINUE TO NEXT POST