Bat Lag the same as bat drag? Other questions

[LousivilleSlugger]

I apologize if this has been posted before...but I have some questions. Is Bat Lag and Bat drag the same thing? I hear talk about Bat drag being bad....what causes this?

Also, What is a gated swing?

I understand what barring the front arm is, why is this so bad?

[pstein]

I apologize if this has been posted before...but I have some questions. Is Bat Lag and Bat drag the same thing? I hear talk about Bat drag being bad....what causes this?

Also, What is a gated swing?

I understand what barring the front arm is, why is this so bad?

Bat lag and bat drag are not the same thing. To me, bat lag is a position that occurs because of upstream actions. There are two sources of bat drag. One is pulling with the rear arm. The other is pulling with the front side of the body.

A gated swing is one in which the entire body rotates without segmentation in any place.

Barring the front arm is only bad if you do it by pushing the hands back with the arms. That loads the lead shoulder and forces it to unload. Barring the lead arm isn't an issue if you retract the scapula to pull the hands back.

[LousivilleSlugger]

Thanks, much appreciated!

[PCC]

How do you correct bat drag? I have filmed my son a few times and sometimes he has it and sometimes he doesn't. What can we do to make that part of his swing more consistent?

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[pstein]

How do you correct bat drag? I have filmed my son a few times and sometimes he has it and sometimes he doesn't. What can we do to make that part of his swing more consistent?

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk 2

Bat drag can be a huge pain to fix. I would say the two best ways are to teach the role of the wrists, forearms, and arms, with the feeling centralized in the hands, or you can create/buy a device that forces the elbows to be the same distance apart until extension.

[PCC]

...teach the role of the wrists, forearms, and arms, with the feeling centralized in the hands...

I don't think I understand what you are describing. Is there a specific drill he can do to help with this?



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[azmatsfan]

How do you correct bat drag? I have filmed my son a few times and sometimes he has it and sometimes he doesn't. What can we do to make that part of his swing more consistent?

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk 2

It depends on what is causing the bat drag. The most common cause is when the hitter is dropping or dumping the barrel of the bat as he is striding. He may be dropping it behind his head or back toward the catcher, but either way it will cause him to drag the bat, getting his elbows ahead of his hands and ahead of his rear hip. It looks like this...

Example_BatDrag_013.jpg

I've had success focusing on getting the hitter to load his hands correctly, keeping the barrel and his elbow up as he strides and loads. It's a hard habit to break.

[Baseball gLove]

It depends on what is causing the bat drag. The most common cause is when the hitter is dropping or dumping the barrel of the bat as he is striding. He may be dropping it behind his head or back toward the catcher, but either way it will cause him to drag the bat, getting his elbows ahead of his hands and ahead of his rear hip. It looks like this...

[ATTACH=CONFIG]112115[/ATTACH]


I've had success focusing on getting the hitter to load his hands correctly, keeping the barrel and his elbow up as he strides and loads. It's a hard habit to break.

A coach was teaching this to his club team and so I pulled my kid from the team.

[PCC]

It depends on what is causing the bat drag. The most common cause is when the hitter is dropping or dumping the barrel of the bat as he is striding. He may be dropping it behind his head or back toward the catcher, but either way it will cause him to drag the bat, getting his elbows ahead of his hands and ahead of his rear hip. It looks like this...

[ATTACH=CONFIG]112115[/ATTACH]

I've had success focusing on getting the hitter to load his hands correctly, keeping the barrel and his elbow up as he strides and loads. It's a hard habit to break.

I just took another look at some of the video and when it happens that is what he is doing.

[Swing Coach]

Best drill I have used to fix bat drag is the fence drill. When you keep your hands in close to your body it is very hard to lead with bottom elbow. Teach your kid how to initiate his hands down and forward during this drill in connection with his hip rotation. For a while, telling him to use his hands and drive the ball off a tee into the ground is a good start.

SC

[azmatsfan]

A coach was teaching this to his club team and so I pulled my kid from the team.

I'm not sure if you mean he taught them to drop the barrel or to load their hands.

[Swing Coach]

I'm not sure if you mean he taught them to drop the barrel or to load their hands.

the hands do initiate down and forward and the barrel does begin to move rearward and drop, but one can not happen exclusively of the other. They should only be taught in isolation to fix one of the hands leading ahead of the bodynor barrel dropping without hands moving forward.


SC

[azmatsfan]

the hands do initiate down and forward and the barrel does begin to move rearward and drop, but one can not happen exclusively of the other. They should only be taught in isolation to fix one of the hands leading ahead of the bodynor barrel dropping without hands moving forward.


SC

I agree, but the root cause of most bat drag is dumping the barrel before toe touch. The bat drag is the symptom, but it's important to be aware of the cause.

[PCC]

Best drill I have used to fix bat drag is the fence drill. When you keep your hands in close to your body it is very hard to lead with bottom elbow. Teach your kid how to initiate his hands down and forward during this drill in connection with his hip rotation. For a while, telling him to use his hands and drive the ball off a tee into the ground is a good start.

SC

Is this drill described somewhere? I'm not familiar with it.

[Swing Coach]

Is this drill described somewhere? I'm not familiar with it.

Put knob of bat on belly button, barrel against net or fence. Take swings this close to the fence. Try it yourself and you will see that anytime you keepmyoir handsin. It is nearly impossible for rear elbow to lead.

SC