Someone explain to me the obsession with "knee drive" for hitting

[TDS]

Yup

AJ, can now hammer the inside pitch but we will see how adjustable his movement pattern is..

 

[Work=wins]

AJ, can now hammer the inside pitch but we will see how adjustable his movement pattern is..

yeah. He’s been feasting on the weaker pitching. Doesn’t seem to be tilting as much. Front loads a bit more. Less pullback. Getting more out front. It’s early. We will see.

 

[rdbass]

Glad you agree

 

[rdbass]

 

[Bobby Shirer]

Newbie here and posted in Coaching forum as well...

I'm hearing "knee drive" all over the place and I don't understand it.

I've taken a few competitive swings in my life and nothing about my swing can be explained with the words "knee drive"

Do I think "staying connected" is important? - Yes
Do I think the left hip opens and the right hip drives forward before contact(RH Hitter) - Yes
Do I think the back foot can become un-anchored? - Yes
Do I want the hands to get forward and make contact on the front side? - Yes

I would say "knee drive" may appear as a result or symptom of these other movements but I would never think of "knee drive" as a primary movement or swing thought. Educate me!

Consider this... the legs work in tandem. When walking, running, or riding a bicycle, one leg extends and the other raises. If you focus on the leg that's doing the resisted movement, the motion will be powerful but slow. On the other hand, if the focus is on the un-resisted leg, since the legs like to work in tandem, the resisted leg will speed up.
So why would we want to speed up the front leg? It's the one that remains in contact with the ground and it's the one doing the work of turning the pelvis.
The motion of the rear leg gets all of the attention, but much like the high hurdler (or high jumper or basketball player doing a layup) the leg going over the hurdle isn't the one that's launching the runner. The work is being done by the leg that's pushing against the ground at the time the launch/acceleration happens.
But I could be wrong.
It could also be the rear leg is naturally returning to it's neutral state after it's work is done and the front leg kicks in.

 

[rdbass]

So why would we want to speed up the front leg? It's the one that remains in contact with the ground and it's the one doing the work of turning the pelvis.

Okay.....

 

[Bobby Shirer]

Okay.....

If that's the most powerful and efficient movement, then why not hit that way in the game?
Do you have any footage of Richard doing that against a live pitch or in a live at bat?

 

[rdbass]

Do you have any footage of Richard doing that against a live pitch or in a live at bat?

You got one of you doing what you say against a live pitch or in a live at bat?

 

[efastball]

" "Drive the knee" or rotate the hips in order to coil and uncoil? "

Neither knee 'drives'. However, in pitching and hitting you should stride with the back leg, never the front. So, when you land, your head is well past your back foot.

Most cues in baseball like 'drive the knee' are nonsensical and/or destructive, and nobody knows what they mean, and you will waste the prime years of your kid's life trying to understand them.

Just coil the hips and shoulders 45 deg inward as you stride forward with your back leg. Isn't that easy to understand by anyone?

 

[julray]

Personally I would rather stride with your midsection.. glutes, core, hips etc



I know the back leg is involved, but that's not where I would want to put the focus. See way too many amateur hitters striding with back leg and achieving nothing.. the back leg "gets" straightened.

As always, JMHO