The boy's swing - please analyze

[utseay]

First three swings of the season. Please critique.

And I know, he's young, let him have fun. Please, no arguments, just wanting some things to mention / work on while we spend father - son time at the field. His stance starts with an arm bar, but now that I see his swing, he's bringing his hands close to his shoulder, so maybe not a big deal? The only things I saw is that he's slightly stepping out, not following all the way thru and letting go prior to finishing the swing. Anything else?

3-11-12:

http://youtu.be/18JhEEb0Wnk

3 swings, slow motion then regular speed for each swing.

Added 4-3-12:

http://youtu.be/fWbVcE3HlPk

[pthawaii]

So I'm no expert, so take this with a grain of salt. If young, he's doing great. I like how he stands in the box and seems to at least turn his hips which a lot of young kids don't do. Sure, there are things that aren't quite right about his swing, I'll let others speak to those specifics (they are more qualified than I). Probably the first thing I'd address is his tendency to throw his bat.

Good luck to you and your son!

[LAball]

Just keep swinging. but lay off the high ones :sun:

[utseay]

So I'm no expert, so take this with a grain of salt. If young, he's doing great. I like how he stands in the box and seems to at least turn his hips which a lot of young kids don't do. Sure, there are things that aren't quite right about his swing, I'll let others speak to those specifics (they are more qualified than I). Probably the first thing I'd address is his tendency to throw his bat.

Good luck to you and your son!

He's 5, actually in T-Ball, but our T-Ball league gets 3 pitches then 1 chance off the tee. I'll definitely work with him on finishing his swing / holding onto the bat.

Thanks!

[luckysully]

He's 5, actually in T-Ball, but our T-Ball league gets 3 pitches then 1 chance off the tee. I'll definitely work with him on finishing his swing / holding onto the bat.

When the coach pitches at this age, it seems to help when they are on one knee. This flattens the arc of the pitch and brings the adult to the height of the player.

[Chris O'Leary]

When the coach pitches at this age, it seems to help when they are on one knee. This flattens the arc of the pitch and brings the adult to the height of the player.

This is important, and will keep him from developing a gigantic uppercut.

It may also improve his selectivity.

[tg643]

Let's start with the legs. Record a MLB swing on SportCenter and watch it in slow motion. Or record a local high school stud. Watch the difference between their front leg and how your son's is bent.

I believe coach pitch teaches bad hitting mechanics. The pitch comes in from to high of an angle promoting hacking at the ball like swinging a tomahawk. If your league insists on coach pitch over machine pitch, get on a knee. It brings the angle down to something more reasonable for a small kid.

[Chris O'Leary]

Let's start with the legs. Record a MLB swing on SportCenter and watch it in slow motion. Or record a local high school stud. Watch the difference between their front leg and how your son's is bent.

I believe coach pitch teaches bad hitting mechanics. The pitch comes in from to high of an angle promoting hacking at the ball like swinging a tomahawk. If your league insists on coach pitch over machine pitch, get on a knee. It brings the angle down to something more reasonable for a small kid.

While he's got some flaws, I wouldn't even have him focus on mechanics right now because he isn't hitting realistic pitches.

That may be leading him to do some funky things.

[tg643]

While he's got some flaws, I wouldn't even have him focus on mechanics right now because he isn't hitting realistic pitches.

That may be leading him to do some funky things.

The bent front knee is a legitimate concern. The kid could spend a season reinforcing bad habits. I would get him in front of the correct angle to see how he swings. With the pitches he's seeing I would tell him to be patient, let the ball get closer and swing properly. What the kid is doing wrong is very typical of coach pitch. It's why we did machine pitch.

[mellowthunder]

I agree with what others have said - kid is 5 let him have some fun. It should not seem like work at this age. Just watch as he progresses and give him some pointers here and there. If he seems confused, just let him be and wait till he gets older. You never know, he might make the adjustments on his own. You could maybe start with him stepping towards the pitcher instead of stepping out.

[Jake Patterson]

Let's start with the legs. Record a MLB swing on SportCenter and watch it in slow motion. Or record a local high school stud. Watch the difference between their front leg and how your son's is bent.

I believe coach pitch teaches bad hitting mechanics. The pitch comes in from to high of an angle promoting hacking at the ball like swinging a tomahawk. If your league insists on coach pitch over machine pitch, get on a knee. It brings the angle down to something more reasonable for a small kid.

Getting him connected might be a great start.. Although its difficult to properly evaluate anything with the pitches he's getting (common for this age).. I agree with the bat throwing - it should be easy to correct.

Overall - He's doing fine for his age... Fun first!

[Onebigwhitevan]

At this age I find it is not the angle that has an effect, but more the slowness of the pitch. New hitters it is not bad because they are slow to react and swing very slow and deliberate with little hip rotation. The pitcher can "find the bat" in the zone as long as they are consistent swing to swing. When I taught T-ball I just focused on new boys swinging the same each time. Now we get to your son who is working the body and hands well. The hips turn all the way and the hands stay in. They tend to start when the pitchers throws the ball, especially when dad works with them a lot and he throws harder and straighter. This makes contact very out front, where arms are a little weaker and roll over is taking place. This leads to reaching up for the ball and then finishing down and rolling over(creates a tough momentum to hold onto bat). If he were mine, I would try to talk to pitcher and throw a little harder. If he can do great, but it is hard to do because t-ball pitcher dads/coaches are trying to place/aim the ball so it is in the "right" spot. Which they feel they cannot do throwing faster. Otherwise create something to slow him down while ball is in the air. Start hands at waist and load up to shoulder before stepping. Or the harder,just have him wait. A good drill is soft toss where you throw higher than his head but he cannot move till ball comes down into strike zone. Then have him finish high even on a high swing. This should help a little with the rolling over early and help him to stop throwing the bat. I put it to kids this way, don't roll into back swing until you point bat at pitcher. But contact needs to happen closer to his body. That is a long comment for a 5 year old. Hmmmmm.

[utseay]

Thanks for all the great comments! I'll help him work out the minor things and talk to the head coach about pitching techniques. I'll post another in game vid when we get everything worked out.

Great stuff guys!

[utseay]

Worked with him on keeping both hands on the bat and not stepping out.

Just in time for a local tournament.

Two swings, each slow motion, then in their entirety.

http://youtu.be/fWbVcE3HlPk

[pthawaii]

Worked with him on keeping both hands on the bat and not stepping out.

Just in time for a local tournament.

Two swings, each slow motion, then in their entirety.

http://youtu.be/fWbVcE3HlPk

Kid looked like he grew some lol. He's strong and bashing that ball. A lot of kids that age don't turn their hips, he seems to do it better than most. I do agree with others that his swing is in part due to the pitch.

Still threw the bat on that first swing , then again, most parents would trade that issue for hits like that