Swivel....versus....Hammer.

Above is the great Barry Bonds, swiveling, next to one of the great internet censors, Brett McMillan, from baseballdebate, hammering.

Both launch their swings downward. Their hands are up by their shoulder tip at launch and they end up down by the waist. There is no other way to describe that direction but.....DOWN. Yet, one of those swings is high level. And the other very amateur.

The internet wannabe hitting instructors will tell you to NOT swing down. But, the most feared hitter of all time.....swings down. The problem is, the amateur swings down also. So what gives?

What is the difference? There are several. Swivel versus hammering. One leg versus two legs. Shift AND swing versus shift THEN swing. Back versus chest. Pivoting around the rear hip socket versus hip rotation. Turning the barrel versus pushing the barrel.

A swiveler's barrel comes UP THROUGH THE BALL....even though he swung down. A better phrase would be HE TURNED IT DOWN. Therefore it comes up when it reaches the bottom of the arc. A hammering barrel goes down and stays down through contact.