Are Home Runs Miss Hits?

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Apr 16, 2013
1,113
83
I'll say a few things regarding this thinking and my DD. She is trying to hit the bottom of the ball. Her HR avg is somewhere between 1 and 2 every weekend. It most likely comes down to muscle memory. When we do BP she is very specifically trying to launch the ball at an angle. When we do BP on the field she's trying to put it over the fence and has around a 70% success rate. She rarely hits the ball on the ground. When she does you can tell that she was ahead of the ball slicing it from the backside upward, putting an insane amount of forward spin on it. That creates a 12 to 6 curveball spin that I've never seen anyone field in a game. Not only does it not create a line drive, it curves downward so hard, and when it hits the ground it literally takes off. Regardless, I would say the most she gets out on is pop ups. When she squares up the ball it's usually a hard hit line drive about 20 feet in the air. Sometimes it still clears the fence, sometimes it goes straight to an outfielder's glove.

In regards to a faster pitcher, she does exactly what another poster said above. She tries to hit the top. Again, it comes down to muscle memory. I'd say on avg, she sees pitching around 55mph (16/18u). Her body just knows where to swing with the amount of drop the ball has. A faster pitcher won't produce as much drop, but your muscle memory can't be overcome so easily. If the ball is at x position, you swing at y position, you don't think about it anymore, you just do it. So when a faster pitcher comes along your muscle memory doesn't change. You "trick" it by specifically trying to hit the top of the ball. This is what works for my DD. It may not work for you and yours, but I'm giving you her thought process when she's facing a faster pitcher.
 
Jun 8, 2016
16,118
113
I'll say a few things regarding this thinking and my DD. She is trying to hit the bottom of the ball. Her HR avg is somewhere between 1 and 2 every weekend. It most likely comes down to muscle memory. When we do BP she is very specifically trying to launch the ball at an angle.
Having a swing which works from behind and up through the ball isn't the same as trying to hit a specific portion of the ball. You have asked her what she is doing in a game and she has told you that she is trying to the hit the bottom of the ball?
 
May 12, 2016
4,338
113
So the question is, why are hitters able to adjust their launch angle to improve their hitting. I know they are good, but it's not even possible to be consistently hitting the ball exactly where they want (fractions of an inch) to get the desired launch angle they want. But statistics show increased launch angles = more HR's and better BA's. And we see players with intention to increase launch angles have success.
 
Apr 16, 2013
1,113
83
Having a swing which works from behind and up through the ball isn't the same as trying to hit a specific portion of the ball. You have asked her what she is doing in a game and she has told you that she is trying to the hit the bottom of the ball?
She's worked at being a home run hitter from the start of softball. She's always concentrated on trying to hit the bottom of the ball. Not saying it always works, but yes, she's always trying to hit the bottom of the ball.
 
May 12, 2016
4,338
113
I'll say a few things regarding this thinking and my DD. She is trying to hit the bottom of the ball. Her HR avg is somewhere between 1 and 2 every weekend. It most likely comes down to muscle memory. When we do BP she is very specifically trying to launch the ball at an angle. When we do BP on the field she's trying to put it over the fence and has around a 70% success rate. She rarely hits the ball on the ground. When she does you can tell that she was ahead of the ball slicing it from the backside upward, putting an insane amount of forward spin on it. That creates a 12 to 6 curveball spin that I've never seen anyone field in a game. Not only does it not create a line drive, it curves downward so hard, and when it hits the ground it literally takes off. Regardless, I would say the most she gets out on is pop ups. When she squares up the ball it's usually a hard hit line drive about 20 feet in the air. Sometimes it still clears the fence, sometimes it goes straight to an outfielder's glove.

In regards to a faster pitcher, she does exactly what another poster said above. She tries to hit the top. Again, it comes down to muscle memory. I'd say on avg, she sees pitching around 55mph (16/18u). Her body just knows where to swing with the amount of drop the ball has. A faster pitcher won't produce as much drop, but your muscle memory can't be overcome so easily. If the ball is at x position, you swing at y position, you don't think about it anymore, you just do it. So when a faster pitcher comes along your muscle memory doesn't change. You "trick" it by specifically trying to hit the top of the ball. This is what works for my DD. It may not work for you and yours, but I'm giving you her thought process when she's facing a faster pitcher.
And she still hits the ball in the air when facing a faster pitcher? How does she know she's facing a faster pitcher. How about faster pitchers who spin it more, basically a natural drop ball. And what happens when the faster pitcher takes something off the pitch and it drops?

FYI, I've seen slower pitchers who get underneath the ball more and it floats to the plate vs a faster pitcher who get's on top of the ball and the ball drops more.
 
Apr 20, 2018
4,581
113
SoCal
Good pitching is hard to hit, period. But the longer the hitter can wait to start their launch and a short hand radius the better their odds of squaring it up. Or you could be a pure educated guess hitter with a long swing.

Side note:
Haven't used one in a year or so but if a team is planning on seeing faster pitching the lite flight machines throw a almost riseball. The ball is not effective by gravity as much and is difficult for some to figure it out and will swing under the ball.
 
May 12, 2016
4,338
113
Good pitching is hard to hit, period. But the longer the hitter can wait to start their launch and a short hand radius the better their odds of squaring it up. Or you could be a pure educated guess hitter with a long swing.

Side note:
Haven't used one in a year or so but if a team is planning on seeing faster pitching the lite flight machines throw a almost riseball. The ball is not effective by gravity as much and is difficult for some to figure it out and will swing under the ball.

Agreed on all points.... personally I don't like hitting machines... however this is one area I find them very useful for. The spin on the ball when being pitched from certain machines reflect that of a rise ball. So it's good practice for a hitter when learning how to hit a ball that doesn't drop as much as a normal fast ball
 
Apr 16, 2013
1,113
83
And she still hits the ball in the air when facing a faster pitcher? How does she know she's facing a faster pitcher. How about faster pitchers who spin it more, basically a natural drop ball. And what happens when the faster pitcher takes something off the pitch and it drops?

FYI, I've seen slower pitchers who get underneath the ball more and it floats to the plate vs a faster pitcher who get's on top of the ball and the ball drops more.
Again, not saying it always works. I'm saying what she's trying to do. It's also pretty easy to know the difference between a faster and slower pitcher. :p At the end of it all, she's trying to hit the bottom of the ball. She's far more successful than not, as her usual out is a pop up. I'd say her outs by ground out are maybe 2 out of 10 and that's almost always on something like a changeup that she got fooled on.

When the ball is at x position, you swing at y position. A good pitcher moves the ball around and at different speeds, trying to mess that up. Sometimes they succeed, sometimes they don't. Doesn't change what she's "trying" to do.
 
Dec 5, 2017
514
63
When a pitcher throws faster than what a player normally sees the hitter will most often swing a miss under the ball. Instead of adjusting (dancing) to when they start their swing, they instinctively try to catch up by using their hands. resulting in swinging under the ball. It sorta a quick fix but if you need a ball in play it works. Like I said I dont like it but it works.
I see this with dd all the time, might give that a try.
 
May 12, 2016
4,338
113
Again, not saying it always works. I'm saying what she's trying to do. It's also pretty easy to know the difference between a faster and slower pitcher. :p At the end of it all, she's trying to hit the bottom of the ball. She's far more successful than not, as her usual out is a pop up. I'd say her outs by ground out are maybe 2 out of 10 and that's almost always on something like a changeup that she got fooled on.

When the ball is at x position, you swing at y position. A good pitcher moves the ball around and at different speeds, trying to mess that up. Sometimes they succeed, sometimes they don't. Doesn't change what she's "trying" to do.
It's good to have a plan and intent when going to the plate. I am very happy that she has found an approach that works for her. She hits 70% of the balls over the fence during batting practice, that's amazing! Of course I understand if you don't answer this, but how old is your DD and have you ever posted a video of her swing on here during batting practice?
 

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