Thread: Rotational Hitting

Hi All,

I emailed the wmv files to my sister and she converted them to .zip and mailed them back. Will try and post them as attachments and see if this works.

Pops

P.S. No such luck, when I did the first attachment I got a message from the forum that the .zip file was too big to post here. Will keep trying

Perhaps someone will convert the after clip, which IS better with reservations (no one ever said Epstein couldn't cure lunging), to something Pops can look at frame by frame. For the future, compare her swing to these in terms of posture and angle set up at the hip etc. Ask yourself how she will adapt this after swing to pitches in the zone, especially low in the zone. Altogether it's a net positive. How far does she want to go?

Couldn't get the post to go through with the links so I'll add them here.

Analysis

And I have to apparently add them one at a time. Must have been a bad link on this one. Should work now.


Siggy's Hitting Clips - ImageEvent

Hi Mark H,

Thanks for the analysis and the links. I'm able to break down her clips frame by frame on my desktop. I just haven't figured out how to post it here, yet.

She seems pretty adept at adjusting to low tosses. We'll find out tonight about game conditions. I'm in the process of getting her a couple of additional private lessons with the Epstein's.

As for how far she wants to go I assume you mean what level does she want to play at in the future? Or are you talking about what degree of effort she wants to make to become the best hitter she can be?

Best Regards,

Pops

Originally Posted by Pops

Hi Mark H,

Thanks for the analysis and the links. I'm able to break down her clips frame by frame on my desktop. I just haven't figured out how to post it here, yet.

If you can post it in something quicktime or wmp can view then watching it frame by frame is easy. I understand gifs are great.

Originally Posted by Pops

She seems pretty adept at adjusting to low tosses.

Well maybe she was but we don't know what she'll do with this new swing she's been given to drive around the track with. Should be better since she's not lunging but the key question is HOW she adjusts for the low pitch. Epstein says you hinge the back knee and tilt back toward the catcher for a low pitch which is obviously incorrect on the face of it. Reportedly when someone pointed out the tilt over the plate to adjust for pitch location and to load the bigger muscles of the body prior to rotation his comment was, after looking at the video for awhile, "I don't teach that". Well yeah Mike, do we teach what we see? Hopefully he figures out a graceful way of easing this into what he teaches. Photo 4 of 31, Analysis

Originally Posted by Pops

As for how far she wants to go I assume you mean what level does she want to play at in the future? Or are you talking about what degree of effort she wants to make to become the best hitter she can be?

Well constructed question. I would answer...both.

I do expect you will see some exciting results given where she is now versus where she came from. How far does she want to go?

Hi Mark H,

She wants to go to College to become a nurse. She understands that education is the road to take to achieve that goal and that softball may be the vehicle to get her there. She plays volleyball and basketball as well. Softball is number one, volleyball two, and basketball three.

She'll be in 8th grade this year. She's been her school's Varsity starting pitcher since 6th grade. She also has played up on her other teams and starts. 12u when she was 10. 14u when she was 12. She'll be 13 in late July and next year she may play up at 16u next year depending on circumstances.

She is internally motivated and I try to provide the best opportunities that are available in our area. She has a natural athletic gift and I'm doing my best to nurture it as best as I am able. I don't push. If she wants to do something all I ask is that she gives 100%.

She wants to play at the College level and I think she can, that's why I'm getting the best instruction that I can find for her. She's a quick study and a hard worker that excels athletically and does well academically. She wants to be the best pitcher and hitter that she can be.

I'm just along for the ride.

Pops

Sure she can play in college. It's just a question of what level. That question is partly her call and partly the college coach's call. Two ways to use softball. One to help pay for college or two to get into a college she might not otherwise gain admission to. Or there is the just enjoy softball at a college that happens to be her academic choice option. All are valid. Maybe I missed it. What level of ball, what tournaments if any away from your area and what is your area of the country? First advice is, get Aradi's book on finding a college fit for a softball player. Now is NOT too soon to learn the ropes.

As all this relates to hitting may be less than that important given she's a pitcher. Course hitting is fun too. Have you posted a clip of her pitching anywhere on here or elsewhere?

Hi Mark H,

I've been to the Arandi website so I'm aware of her book. She'll be in 8th grade and academically she's a good student. I understand that schools look at grades beginning in 9th grade and it's important to start a profile of her accomplishments. We are planning for her to attend a college prep school here.

We live in the Denver Metro area. She's 12 and plays up on a 14C team that plays both C and B tournaments in state. With her pitching we are a good team. With her back up who's 14 we haven't experienced the same results. She enjoys playing with her friends so I haven't pushed for her to hook up with a more experienced travel team at a higher level. She also plays on a Fall team and her school team for a total of 50 or so starts per year. Next year will be the year for her to find a team that travels out of state. Although we are lucky to have three major recruiting tournaments in our backyard.

I don't have any pitching clips of her available, yet. Will work on that and post them on Youtube when I'm able. Still working on getting the hitting clips posted here.

Regards,

Pops

P.S. She went 2 for 4 tonight with a walk, 3 runs and 3 rbi's. Hitting it over the fielders heads instead of line shots into their gloves.

Good. You need to be heading toward A ball asap but I understand playing with her friends. If she doesn't enjoy it she won't be playing long. If her desire is to play at a top 20 D1 level she needs to be on their radar as a freshman because many of them are committing money around their sophomore year. If she wants to play at a D3 and just enjoy the game while she's getting a great education, no rush. Grades are good. Get them from a highly rated high school and they are great. ACT or SAT score is a big deal because that isn't high school dependent.

It's a little different for pitchers but B and C ball much past 12 isn't doing much for her and isn't impressing coaches BUT, as I said, it's different for pitchers. If they throw hard, control spin and spot it, they can walk in from the outback never having played a day of organized ball and get attention to use a tiny bit of hyperbole. Still, if the next Cat walked on to the scene as a high school senior, lots of top 20 schools would have difficulty offering her anything as their money for that class was committed two or three years ago. At the levels athletically below that, it's a different story.

And oh yeah, hitting. Do you see in the links I sent, the tilt over the plate I'm talking about that your DD isn't doing?