Help with swing mechanics

[DrPipes]

Help with swing mechanics or a psychiatrist?

My daughter just turned 17 yo. She's always been a solid power hitter. She works on hitting everyday and has been going to her hitting coach for 1 1/2 years.

This has baffled several D1 coaches, her travel ball coach (2x D1 All American), 2 ex MLB player/coaches and everyone in between.

This summer she started hitting with a bunch of girls from her Gold level travel team. The sessions included tee work, weight training, abundant front toss and high level live pitching about 30% of the sessions.

With all this work she went into 'the tank' and stayed there. Last AB of the ASA Nationals was a HR but the summer was brutal. Part of the problem was the inability to get multiple AB's in each game. The coaches substituted often and without fail.

This first video was taken at a recent college camp. The D1 coaches that reviewed the video had nothing to add. Loved the arm and body angles and absolutely went bonkers over the back elbow and back knee synchronization. My question then is why the complete melt down? Mechanics or lack of hitters confidence.

The second video is at her daily hitting sessions using a small beach ball to maintain "the hitters box" of the arms.

 

[DrPipes]

Second video as described above.

 

[straightleg]

Her arms are getting alittle in front of the hips on rotation and hands dropping just alittle. First video she is standing straight up and down Second video she has some tilt.

First video the hit looked to be off the neck
Can you take a video of her from behind her. Lets see if her hands are going out over the plate. It will also tell other things.
Try to get 2 or 3 swings

I tell the girls I think hitting is a bunch of small pieces. Sometime a piece or 2 will get out of sinc and needs an adjustment.
I also tell the girls. You used to hit. It is in your body. Its still there, we just need to find it.

I normally check different parts with different drills to see what part is off.


SL

 

[redhotcoach]

I am with the D1s....she looks like she would hit the ball often and hard.

Is this a test?

Timing? Eyesight?

 

[RayR]

I am with the D1s....she looks like she would hit the ball often and hard.

Is this a test?

Timing? Eyesight?

I was thinking same thing ....but....- one thing that caught my eye was that the barrel gets cocked more in the 2nd video....wrists should stay oily....wrists should never be frozen or holding an angle.....maybe tension causing the wrists to freeze up in the 1st video....she looks more relaxed and loose in the 2nd video....



Never discount tension as a potential swing killer....also I will NEVER doubt the effects of the wrist/hand action on how the brain organizes itself to use the lower body more efficiently....one swing looks like she is ready to throw and the other swing she looks stuck...

 

[bobbyb]

In video one...she linear loads and squats...someone mentioned scrunching in a recent post...this is what i envision it as. She takes her head lower...then she is moving her head back up as she swings. She doesn't do that in video two. That can mess with contact.

 

[crankermo]

I with Bobby. She's changing planes with her body and that makes it extremely difficult to hit. Personally that's where I would start.

 

[RayR]

you guys are on the mark...but you are seeing the symptom not the cause imo...she is bodying the ball because she is not using her hands/wrists efficiently...her upper body is controlling the swing in the first clip because her hands are dead...

I wonder why the constant rebuttal against using your hands and wrists correctly and relying on slower bigger body parts to try and get the job done...

 

[FiveFrameSwing]

Top hand wrist (right wrist) does not whip in the first swing. Improper tension level is preventing the top hand wrist from lagging (twisting backwards in the direction of flexion and radial deviation) and then untwisting. She is using more of a feel of top hand wrist strength as opposed to wrist snap.

 

[FiveFrameSwing]