radial deviation

[Chris O'Leary]

Ah, never mind, surely they don't know what they're talking about.

There's certainly no evidence for the early wrist activation that some people advocate.

 

[Hitter]

I must be misreading your Epstein and Bonds quotes. I see nothing in either of them that talks about the top hand EARLY in the swing. I also see nothing from a female hitter. The typical 18 YO female hitter having maybe 30-40% of the upper body strength of a male hitter.

Scott you are one of the few who has even touched on the differences of females! One of the prime reasons the non elite females have no lower body strength is the flex of the front knee, lack of balance, and ham string strength and how to shift their weight shift either when hitting or throwing and yet we still want to compare what the elite MLB swing is or is not and what the elite MLB players do and that the average female has no glue as to what the average MALE hitting instructor is even talking about because they can not explain it or tell them how it works or feels!


As I think almost anyone would acknowledge, it is hard for ANY of us to describe what we do when we hit, and certainly people who have played at a high level are no different. Their descriptions are of interest only in how they support what video clearly shows they actually DO.

One of the reasons we teach what we teach is based on working with the greatest female hitter in the world. I have been doing clinics with her for 7 plus years now and I still keep learning more every time I get around her. See does individual lessons for $90 dollars an hour and still most MALE coaches are gun shy about talking to her! Why? If it were Bonds you would do it!

An example would be Bonds, who after coming back from the right knee injury late in his career talked about how he felt he was creating more power when he kept his right foot more closed. In an exchange on eTeamZ, Tom Guerry discounted that, saying Bonds was wrong, that wasn't really what he did / felt. Kind of looked like it was, but you get my point. Kind of a goose / gander deal.

Don and I discussed this before and how we could get a hitter to feel it. We thought it was simple, I stood belly button to belly button with Don and held his shoulders with his foot slightly closed and he tried to turn his shoulders and I could not hold him from turning. We repeated it and he opened his foot a little more and I could hold him back and he said he could feel the power or leverage in his lead hip greatly reduced. I did you figure this out? Bustos showed me was my response! Feeling balance is what I showed Crystl and how to teach it we worked on together. Crystl came up with make sure you get the girls to feel the heel of the foot is off the shoe Howard. She took her shoes and socks off and I placed a piece of paper under her heel and she bent at the waist and softened the knees exactly in that sequence and the piece of paper easily pulled out.

Bonds was also an example when in a Spring Training conversation with Don Slaught, he told Don he was slumping because he wasn't hitting down through the ball to get backspin and lift it. Slaught replied to him that he (Bonds) NEVER hit down through the ball, and his swing plane was in fact ALWAYS up. Which of course is true. Bonds told Slaught he was insane, and said, "SURE I hit down, Don. Everybody hits down through the ball. You should know that." Don pulled out RVP and showed Bonds what his swing path really was, and Barry was amazed. That was about 550 HRs into a career most would term pretty good. Slaught later heard Bonds sidle up to A-Rod at the All Star Game BP session and say, "Alex, you realize you don't really hit down through the ball, right?"

Lots of credibility when a guy with 550 HRs says what his swing path looks like. Apparently. Hopefully, no one listened to him until AFTER his conversation with Slaught.


Slaught has told me in a phone conversation that MLB hitters really have very little understanding of what they actually do. 14 year player, developer of RVP, batting coach for a World Series Champion team. FWIW.

Bustos knows exactly what she is doing and how to describe it and explain it in my opinion. 57 seconds verses talking and listening to her and watching how she does it, does not do justice in my opinion! I think being around Coach Candrea for a number of years has not hurt her either or Coach Enquist

Being able to pick the minds of Topping ,Berg, Lowe, Whatley, and Finch does not hurt either and I thank them for that every chance I get. Some of the best female athletes in the world giving you their time to help the girls is giving something back and paying it forward. Don Slaught has done the same thing with me and I could never pay him back enough for giving me his time...he is not the typical MLB ex player...Right View Pro this is Don Slaught can I help you? Don, Howard I have a question, do you have time to talk now? Sure Howard what is it! Nice people! I heard Steve is the same way however I never talked with him yet.

You hit the nail on the head Scott, we can learn from the females IF we just listen and ask how does it feel? One of my students dads is a travel ball coach and she was here for a lesson...complained it looks like she has lost all of her power. I ask her how she felt and she looked at her dad. After a few swings I told her your balance is gone and so is your weight shift and then dad said it, "YOU are not standing tall enough!" Then I gave him the evil eye look and said,"She can not do that and balance that way!" Its my fault Howard I forgot and she tried to tell me and I would not listen! Within a few swings it came back! We need to listen!

Thanks Scott

Howard

 

[RayR]

Thanks for trying it and the feed back. This is what CB uses and 99 percent of our kids now. The wrist rolling and back/ shoulder slapping has stopped and extension after contact is almost too simple now. Now I understand what Don was saying about the additional pine tar and you felt it and heard the difference.

Thanks Howard

Howard,

This is a swing with saran wrap under the top hand. I haven't swung in a while except for fooling around, but all things considered I think there is some whip going into contact. Definitely agree that it feels like I am going to lose the bat.

Sorry for the crappy clip. Need a new camera and better lighting in the garage.

I like the feel of these swings.

Thanks Howard for the tip!

 

[ifubuildit]

Howard,

This is a swing with saran wrap under the top hand. I haven't swung in a while except for fooling around, but all things considered I think there is some whip going into contact. Definitely agree that it feels like I am going to lose the bat.

Sorry for the crappy clip. Need a new camera and better lighting in the garage.

I like the feel of these swings.

Thanks Howard for the tip!

MTS you can feel that top hand unhinge (Release) at the point of bat lag much quicker. The other aspect of this is your not going to roll the hands using this grip on the top hand.

Dana

 

[RayR]

MTS you can feel that top hand unhinge (Release) at the point of bat lag much quicker. The other aspect of this is your not going to roll the hands using this grip on the top hand.

Dana

Dana, do you think enough swings using the wrap will loosen up the top hand grip so when you swing without the wrap the top hand/wrist will still work the same?

I also think the wrap allows the back elbow to come down without effecting the barrel path.

Ray

 

[Hitter]

Dana, do you think enough swings using the wrap will loosen up the top hand grip so when you swing without the wrap the top hand/wrist will still work the same?

I also think the wrap allows the back elbow to come down without effecting the barrel path.

Ray

Ray you look good in my opinion!

You felt what we try and teach...top hand is loose and in our opinion flows, offers no restrictions and we improved the bat speed by 2 to 4 MPH and the hand path improves in our opinion.

Thanks for at least trying it.

Howard

 

[cshilt]

Not a bad swing at all. Need a little more extension. Remember elbow, knob, barrel.

 

[ifubuildit]

Dana, do you think enough swings using the wrap will loosen up the top hand grip so when you swing without the wrap the top hand/wrist will still work the same?

I also think the wrap allows the back elbow to come down without effecting the barrel path.

Ray

It did for me Ray. As for my students they are not that comfortable with it yet. I am just starting to introduce this to them and the typical comment up to this point is " That feels weird". Even after I take the wrap off the hand.

In time they will adjust.

Dana

 

[RayR]

Not a bad swing at all. Need a little more extension. Remember elbow, knob, barrel.

Caught that, huh? Still working out some early shoulder rotation issues.

Do you have a clip of anyone using the elbow, knob, barrel start?

 

[HittingGuru]

For Hitter and Sarge when discussing the elbows leading is this a passive result of core connection and the hips leading early?