This could be interesting.... I will provide my opinions on this, and I am curious to see others.
What is good barrel turn? How does one achieve it? My personal definition of barrel turn is getting the barrel on plane quickly, i.e. deep. One of the first things I look at with a tee swing is the location of the tee. Often I see the tee positioned too far toward the pitcher. I like to have the tee deeper (if I use one at all). Place the tee deeper and see if the hitter can still get behind the ball quickly and elevate the ball (over the pitcher's head). In many cases once the tee is placed deeper the hitter will either hit the ball downward or slice under the ball to lift it and destroy the tee in the process Honestly I don't use tees very much...
I try not to get involved in all the other word parsing that occurs. Folks have their own favorite gurus and that is fine. To each their own...
Are all the best hitters in NCAA softball turning the barrel? Yes, but to different degrees. Again this comes down to the word parsing. It all depends on your personal definition of 'turning the barrel'. All of the better hitters are able to time their launch and control their body movements so that they are able to handle the fastball or off speed. That adjustability is required in order to be one of the best hitters. And to accomplish that, turning the barrel is required as well. Having the ability to get the barrel behind the ball deep gives the hitter a longer window to launch. When you are facing a pitcher that throws 70 mph, the window is incredibly short to begin with. You need all the time you can get...
Thanks FP, I agree they do turn the barrel, but I do not believe they are all not turning from start. I was trying to teach my DD to turn from start, it just seemed really awkward for her. I agree with you 100% that getting the barrel on plane deep is the right way to go. I do not like instructors who preach chopping down on the ball. I believe a hitter can get on plane early without focusing on turning the barrel.. JMHO.
I even tried to learn with her and I've played a lot of ball when I was younger (seemed simpler to me, see ball, hit ball...LOL). It was awkward for me as well.
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