Reverse Hand Hitting Drills
What am I not getting? I see these videos where the girl is supposedly reversing the top and bottom hand on the bat but they actually are not. Right hander with left hand on bottom and right hand on top is normal to me. Am I not seeing this correctly?
I don't think you are. It is the top hand is on the bat upside down. Thumb on the bottom vs thumb on the top. Very good drill.
Ahh. Now I get it.
It is a lead arm drill, Top hand does very little and the swing ends up one armed. You swing hard and it gives you a great follow through
Straightleg
After softball ride
I’ve used the drill with my daughter and other kids as I learned from Howard and Straightleg on the form. It has worked great to help promote a great finish in the swing which is a weak part of the swing for many girls.
I suggest have the hitter start out slowly at first and increase speed as the hitter gets better at the RHD.
I guess I'd need to understand what you mean by "very little".Originally Posted by straightleg
Try this experiment. Perform the drill without the top hand/arm. I think you'll find a highly significant difference.
For me, the top hand provides balance and stability when it's upside down, but not power. Its main purpose in my experience is to allow the bottom hand to work. If you just do it bottom hand only, there's a tendency to let the bottom hand drop down because the bat is too heavy. The reversed top hand creates a better overall swing.
Ken Krause
IOMT Castaways 18U
Contributing editor, Softball Magazine
Life in the Fastpitch Lane
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This is a very effective drill. I first saw it in a Lau, Sr., book.
The way I like to hold the top hand is to put the chopping edge (karate chop) of the hand against the bat while the palm fingers are over the back of the bottom hand. That way the top hand can still assist with moving the bat but will not be able to hold on to it.
The reverse hand does very similar but is somewhat awkward and can't help as well with initial movement. The basic difference is that the top hand palm is not against the bat but instead is resting on the back of the bottom hand. Much more natural feeling.
Many girls are surprised when the ball actually goes farther. Primarily because the top hand is not holding the bat back.
Last edited by softballphreak; 07-15-2010 at 01:01 AM.
watched your youtube video and your dd does a great job. I showed this drill to our HS first baseman and we had a hard time when we first started. We went normal speed off tee at first but she had to slow down until she got the hang of it. It was kind of comical at first! MUCH BETTER NOW
I first used this drill with my 2 dds the drill is excellent for getting the hitter to extension. I had heard this drill was used by Don Mattingly when he was playing.
i was reintroduced to this drill by Howard Carrier. As SBFAMILY knows Howard has a great feel for teaching hitting. IMO Howard is a good as some of the other hitting gurus Steve Englishbey, Mike Epstein, Jack Mankin etc.
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