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kenkrause

Had this idea while posting on another thread. We talk about various mechanics, sometimes big things, sometimes more obscure things.

Here's my question: what do you consider to be high priorities, the things you absolutely feel hitters need to learn first, and what are the things you would really only focus on with hitters after they've mastered the first priorities? Or would you teach it all A-Z?

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Life in the Fastpitch Lane

sunshine88

theres no way you can go through all the hitting mechanics at one go
being a player myself now for almost 12 years i know its a career long learning process
i would definately say there are a couple key things to remember, but it all depends on the batter as well
-dont drop your hands, you'll always pop up
-keep your head still, otherwise you're just hitting the ball by luck and not actually seeing it
-don't think(about your technique) when you're at the plate, you'll stress out, and get to tense to hit the ball well or at all
-and i think most of all you have to be comfortable. if your not comfortable in the box, the pitcher will definately be able to tell and is more likely to strike you out

hope some of this helps.

Strikker

Ken,
The first priority or area I want to work on is swing consistency. When evaluating a new student I find she may have three to five different swings (I only want one, even if it is not pretty this will give me a place to start). Second priorities or while isolating the one swing would be eyes, balance and athleticism. I try to avoid overwhelming a student with too many mechanics changes (the a-z methods) until we feel comfortable with these skills.

Amy in AZ.

First thing I teach is feet. They need a good athletic stance, with toes slightly in and weight on the big toe. Knees relaxed and bent, a little.

All hitters need a good base.

cshilt

A very wise hitting instructor that I know teaches his hitters how to throw a ball before he does anything else. This is done to begin building the foundation of proper mechanics. As a exercise, evaluate how the players on your team throws; what you'll generally see is that those who throw the ball with poor form don't hit as well as those who have good throwing form.

Mark H

Sounds like Tom.

My priorities depend. Are we talking about a college junior with a season and a half left, an 11 that doesn't plan to play after her 12u year or a young hitter with ability, fire in her belly and a support system to help her go all the way to the top by the time she's of age?

In general, I'm going to teach a kid to rotate well with good posture and how to connect that rotation to the bat so that it results in a good swing plane and good whip.

ifubuildit

Rotation is where I start. If they cannot rotate they will never hit it hard. Then posture followed by a large dose of connection.

Elliott.

RMGC

There has been quite a bit of discussion about the correct hitting mechanics, some claiming to be experts in hitting themselves, and others espousing methods that some true experts would look at skeptically. Before coaches give the last word on hitting to their students, it would be prudent to do some research. A good place to start is reading the book on professional hitting by Charlie Lau Jr. called "Lau's Laws on Hitting". It was an epiphany for me. The second place I would go is to read Jack Mankin's research on major league hitters he conducted. I do not claim to be an "expert", but I do realize that emulating the greatest hitters in the game today is a good place to start if you are truly trying to help your students with an intelligent and
researched viewpoint.

Mark H

As always, check everything anyone says about hitting against slow motion video of the best in the world. As to Mankin, he got a lot right and he was a pioneer but he went astray on his top hand torque theory.

ang4yanks

RMGC...

Thanks for sharing your wisdom. Priorities will differ with each athlete according to their greatest weakness.

Ang