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JC heir · 09-24-2008, 01:59 AM

does anyone have any experience good or bad with the swingaway product? Thanks Lane

yoda1277 · 09-24-2008, 03:02 AM

I purchased one for my high school team last year and while we were inside (which was most of the time last year) we used it as a station to bridge between tee work and live pitching. I like it because it gives them repetitive swings without using several people to shag or throw, etc. It also give the girls instant feedback on their swing if taught properly. We also use a tool called the Hurricane which also does something similar to this but has different resistance settings that you can do and work several more different aspects of swing mechanics (top hand, bottom hand, hip turn, inside-outside) which you cannot necessarily do with the hit-a-away. We also used both in our home pre-game warm-up as optional tools to use between ab's or in personal time before the game starts.

Hope this helps!!

Scummer · 09-24-2008, 05:26 AM

I have used it with my girls for the same thing. I bought the portable stand with it too and have brought it to tournaments. Its a nice tool for warming up.You swing one wrap early and its a high pitch and one extra wrap late and it is a low pitch. It isn't always the same height as that changes based on how high or tight it wraps. Not something that is going to change someone's swing or show you too much about their swing, but used the right way, it is good for warming up, focusing on the top half the ball, giving reps without needing a pitcher and instilling confidence in the hitter right before their AB.

Rick Pauly · 09-28-2008, 03:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scummer

I have used it with my girls for the same thing. I bought the portable stand with it too and have brought it to tournaments. Its a nice tool for warming up.You swing one wrap early and its a high pitch and one extra wrap late and it is a low pitch. It isn't always the same height as that changes based on how high or tight it wraps. Not something that is going to change someone's swing or show you too much about their swing, but used the right way, it is good for warming up, focusing on the top half the ball, giving reps without needing a pitcher and instilling confidence in the hitter right before their AB.

Curious why you focus on the top half of the ball? I hear this a lot but have never seen an explaination as to why. Seems to me that if the ball is dropping (and most do) that focusing on the top half will result in a ground ball.
Rick

Scummer · 09-28-2008, 07:12 AM

FYI - I am in by no means an expert. I have simply worked with our local travel team coaches for softball and an ex-minor league ball player who seems to know his stuff (all of his kids are incredible hitters). They have all reiterated focus on the top half of the ball (ie, bottom half of bat). I am not sure if I know the exact reasons, but I will tell you my understanding (and I'm sure I'll be corrected if I'm wrong). First thing is that ball isn't necessarily going down - depends on the pitch and the level of play. At 10U, the ball is usually going down as pitchers aren't fast enough to throw otherwise. At 12U you have a lot of flatenning out and at 14U you start to see some rise in the ball (unless off-speed pitch). I agree that in baseball the ball is primarily going downward, but I don't agree with that for softball. Secondly, when I watch film of swings, I don't see a level bat unless the batter is swinging at something around the shoulders. At contact, the bat is actually coming up. If you hit the ball with the top half of bat then it is an easy pop-up. If you hit head dead nut, then, unless you have great power or gap it, tends to be a really nice line-drive to the outfielder though not knowing enough, I have a hard time arguing against this (it was always what I was told as a kid - aim for the middle of the ball). If you hit it on the bottom-half of the bat (top of ball), the ball gets and upward trajectory, with a bit of a top spin that brings it back down, hopefully, before the outfielders and after the infielders. I would tell my girls to hit it either dead nut or bottom half. If they erred while going for bottom half of bat, then hopefully it only errs as far as being dead on. Lastly, would you rather hit a pop-up or a grounder? I hope that helps, and if it is the wrong reason, then hopefully someone will correct me and we'll both learn something new.

JC heir · 09-28-2008, 01:57 PM

actually my question was about the swingaway- not the hitaway...2 entirely different products.

Marc Dagenais · 09-30-2008, 02:00 AM

The SwingAway - The college team I coached with several years ago had 2 of them. We used it extensively. Great tool. A bit of getting used to set up and play with the angle of the ball but after that - it's an easy tool.

It allows for tons of swing on a REAL ball with the REAL feel without having to chase it or any coach present. Girls liked it.

Marc

09-24-2008, 01:59 AM	#1 (permalink)
JC heir Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: NW Pennsylvania Posts: 49	swingaway does anyone have any experience good or bad with the swingaway product? Thanks Lane

09-24-2008, 05:26 AM	#3 (permalink)
Scummer Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Posts: 8	Ditto I have used it with my girls for the same thing. I bought the portable stand with it too and have brought it to tournaments. Its a nice tool for warming up.You swing one wrap early and its a high pitch and one extra wrap late and it is a low pitch. It isn't always the same height as that changes based on how high or tight it wraps. Not something that is going to change someone's swing or show you too much about their swing, but used the right way, it is good for warming up, focusing on the top half the ball, giving reps without needing a pitcher and instilling confidence in the hitter right before their AB.

09-30-2008, 02:00 AM	#7 (permalink)
Marc Dagenais Peak Performance Coach Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Montreal, Quebec, Canada Posts: 355	The SwingAway - The college team I coached with several years ago had 2 of them. We used it extensively. Great tool. A bit of getting used to set up and play with the angle of the ball but after that - it's an easy tool. It allows for tons of swing on a REAL ball with the REAL feel without having to chase it or any coach present. Girls liked it. Marc __________________ Marc Dagenais, MHK, CSCS http://www.softballperformance.com Marc Dagenais is a softball peak performance coach that helps players be more confident, mentally tougher, hit with more power, run faster, throw harder, and be more dominant on the field. He also helps coaches win more games and get more out of their team. To get tons of performance-boosting softball tips, tricks, and advice by email, sign-up for his FREE softball newsletter. To quickly and easily boost your performance, check out Marc's powerful softball resources.

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09-24-2008, 03:02 AM	#2 (permalink)
yoda1277 Junior Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 11	I purchased one for my high school team last year and while we were inside (which was most of the time last year) we used it as a station to bridge between tee work and live pitching. I like it because it gives them repetitive swings without using several people to shag or throw, etc. It also give the girls instant feedback on their swing if taught properly. We also use a tool called the Hurricane which also does something similar to this but has different resistance settings that you can do and work several more different aspects of swing mechanics (top hand, bottom hand, hip turn, inside-outside) which you cannot necessarily do with the hit-a-away. We also used both in our home pre-game warm-up as optional tools to use between ab's or in personal time before the game starts. Hope this helps!!

09-28-2008, 07:12 AM	#5 (permalink)
Scummer Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Posts: 8	FYI - I am in by no means an expert. I have simply worked with our local travel team coaches for softball and an ex-minor league ball player who seems to know his stuff (all of his kids are incredible hitters). They have all reiterated focus on the top half of the ball (ie, bottom half of bat). I am not sure if I know the exact reasons, but I will tell you my understanding (and I'm sure I'll be corrected if I'm wrong). First thing is that ball isn't necessarily going down - depends on the pitch and the level of play. At 10U, the ball is usually going down as pitchers aren't fast enough to throw otherwise. At 12U you have a lot of flatenning out and at 14U you start to see some rise in the ball (unless off-speed pitch). I agree that in baseball the ball is primarily going downward, but I don't agree with that for softball. Secondly, when I watch film of swings, I don't see a level bat unless the batter is swinging at something around the shoulders. At contact, the bat is actually coming up. If you hit the ball with the top half of bat then it is an easy pop-up. If you hit head dead nut, then, unless you have great power or gap it, tends to be a really nice line-drive to the outfielder though not knowing enough, I have a hard time arguing against this (it was always what I was told as a kid - aim for the middle of the ball). If you hit it on the bottom-half of the bat (top of ball), the ball gets and upward trajectory, with a bit of a top spin that brings it back down, hopefully, before the outfielders and after the infielders. I would tell my girls to hit it either dead nut or bottom half. If they erred while going for bottom half of bat, then hopefully it only errs as far as being dead on. Lastly, would you rather hit a pop-up or a grounder? I hope that helps, and if it is the wrong reason, then hopefully someone will correct me and we'll both learn something new.

09-28-2008, 01:57 PM	#6 (permalink)
JC heir Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: NW Pennsylvania Posts: 49	actually my question was about the swingaway- not the hitaway...2 entirely different products.