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The kid on the right was a prospect a couple of years ago. I don't even know his name. But I made this clip at the time he was being looked at for the draft. When asked I said I liked his swing. He does/did a lot right. I see very very few amateurs that 'get an A' on the high level test'. And this one didn't get an A....but he did get a passing grade. He does a lot well. And when I look at amateurs I look for the sequence and the pattern. Most of the time I'm making a judgement as to 'if' and/or 'with how much work'...will it take for him to 'get there'....from where he is currently. This kid is advanced for draft age kids. But.....
This hitter is very good right up until launch. But....he has the dreaded pause/redirect in his swing. He doesn't 'complete the arc'....he has to redirect 'back' into 'forward'. And THAT is a problem. He gets some stretch. That stretch helps him quite a bit. That stretch is what 'puts up his numbers'. But numbers at the high school or college level do not translate automatically into 'numbers at the professional level'. A lot of mlb players do what he's doing. But the greats.....they 'circle'. They complete the arc. They do not redirect. They do not go back, simply to gain added range of motion, to help them go forward. They complete the arc. THEY CIRCLE.
That arc is very very important when you work your way up the playing level ladder. The higher you go, the better the pitching. There comes a point when you have to be better than the pitcher. Not just as good as. Relying on 'pitchers mistakes' only lasts so long. Mistakes are few and far between at high levels. You have to be mechanically better. You have to have the technique that #1) creates early batspeed and #2) offers late adjustability.
The only way to do that is to create a swing where the line between load and unload is fuzzy. If you can tell where the load ended and where the unload began....the swing you're looking at is not high level. They must OVERLAP. And, the only way to do that is to create the rearward arc that sends the barrel 'continuously around'.....AND.....you have to do something special in the rear hip socket.
In this hitter you can see where his load ends. When his rear elbow gets up and back the load ends. He holds it as he reads the pitch. Not long...but he pauses. Then he redirects the barrel forward. That load/hold/unload....that loadback/pause/unload forward.....is absent in the best mlb players. But it is prominent in his swing.
When the hitter unloads it his stretch is working for him. But he has to plunge the arms forward. He looks to be turning the barrel...but with substantial forward arm push/pull. Notice the lead arm extension. Not good. In his case his lead arm extension DOES NOT load the front side of his torso....which is a good thing. Usuallly, lead arm extension creates a load in the front of the torso near the lead arm pit and the hitter PULLS from there with his rotation and/or his arms. Either way....pulling with hip/shoulder rotation or with the arms is an absolute killer. It has no chance at high levels. In this case....he loads well 'around' his rear leg/hip. His weight is back. His weight remains back. He pivots about his rear leg to launch the swing. He gets some stretch. But it isn't enough. You can clearly see him launch forward.
He does a lot right. But he does enough wrong that changes are necessary before he will reach his potential.
What are those changes? Why does he load/pause/unload? What is missing? What is the circle? How do you create the circle? What advantage does the circle provide?
All three pros above....Jeff Kent, Albert Pujols, Manny Ramirez....they all circle. They all get the HUGE advantage of circling.
Study a bit. FEEL what they are doing. FEEL what the amateur is doing. Take some notes. Swing a bat. Try to duplicate BOTH the right and the wroing....so you can FEEL the difference. Form a conclusion in your mind.
I'll be back with answers.
The pros REAR HIP SOCKET works like the clip on the left. (hand is hip socket; baseall is ball of femu.....for those from bbf)
The kids PELVIS works like the clip on the right.
HOW do you make your rear hip socket work like that?
Stay tuned.
Their hips are RESISTING rotation. The muscles that rotate the hips are never used. The muscles that keep them from rotating do the work.
You see, in order to circle, the REAR LEG is the driver, not the rear hip. And as the rear leg internally rotates, the weight of the body 'circles' around the ball of the femur.
First, the torso, by way of the rear hip socket, is coiled around the ball of the femur.
Next, the torso, at the rear hip socket, LATERALLY TILTS.
Next, the leg internally rotates some more....bringing the laterally tilted torso 'around'.
All this time the weight is 'circling' around the ball of the femur.
Guess what, you already do it if you throw properly.
Here is a great example of the rear hip and rear leg action that causes the 'circling'....
http://www.hittingillustrated.com/Br...ssinaspine.gif
A hitter does the same thing. A pitcher bows then arches, then bows again to throw. A hitter bows, then launches with the action of the arch. That arch action is caused when the coiled torso laterally tilts over the ball of the femur. When that happens the weight circles the ball of the femur.
What you must understand is WHERE separation occurs. Virtually everyone 'sees' separation between the hips and the shoulders. That 'look' is definitely there. But separation takes place.....it is felt.....in the hip socket. High quality separation is between the hip socket and the ball of the femur. Which means....
Calling your hips the 'lower body' is totally inaccurate if you wish to reach the high level pattern. They are in the upper body.....the bottom part of the upper body. THE LEG....is the lower body. Separation, is considered 'upper' separated from 'lower'. If that is the case, in the high level swing, the point of separation is between the rear hip socket and the ball of the rear femur. Therefore, the hips are the bottom of the top....not the top of the bottom.
This is an absolute truth about both hitting and throwing. NO ONE except HI.com understands this truth. NO ONE except HI.com teaches this truth. The stretch that proper coiling and pulling back of the hip and lower back and scap.....against.....the internally rotating leg....IS THE ONLY WAY.....to create the sudden launch that high level hitters have.
Separating between the hips and the shoulders leads to a very slow, slop-filled, sluggish launch. Separating between the rear hip socket and the ball of the rear femur....creates a corner, around which the barrel is whipped. And this allows a very tight stretch 'around the corner' that is unattainable between the hips and the shoulders. This tight stretch allows a hitter to get further into the swing before he must commit. This gives him a longer look at the pitch. It leads to better decisions....better ball squaring. And most importantly, the swing is 'RELEASED'....not swung. The high level swing is a release of stretch....not a muscle action.
Watch these hitters with your new found knowledge. FEEL what they are doing.
http://www.hittingillustrated.com/library/Bonds4.gif http://www.hittingillustrated.com/library/Pujols1.gif http://www.hittingillustrated.com/li...Gonzalez14.gif
Can you FEEL the arch....that launches their swing?
If you pick up your bat and use this knowledge....you'll have an aha moment.