What you see as "drag", I see as "stretch", which I also see as a good thing. Being late to contact is not one of her issues.
16yo Maddie
- Thread starter Eric F
- Start date
Welcome to Discuss Fastpitch
Your FREE Account is waiting to the Best Softball Community on the Web.
What you see as "drag", I see as "stretch", which I also see as a good thing. Being late to contact is not one of her issues.
Sosa does have a little hand pump as well.
being under the ball is usually a late thing. Hitting pop ups as well. That was my reference. Hitting ground balls usually means your early.
It's not a timing issue. If anything, her timing tends to be early, not late. Even when her timing is right, miss-hits and outright misses are under the ball. It's an alignment issue. The cause if it, we're still trying to sort out. She has a head tilt that happens as she tracks the ball. This change in her eye position might be a contributor, but it's just a guess.
The lower the pitch the more she tilts. (first pitch has most tilt) I think you figured it out already. Just ask her to keep eyes a little quieter on low pitches. Not changing too much with that swing. That being said, her swing doesn't look like a Teacherman swing. It looks much better!
She tends to do better with lower pitches.
While Mike Q and I agree with a lot of the stuff TM talks about, we also agree that there is room for individuality within that framework. Not every player's swing needs to look exactly the same. How the motor works under the hood is more critical. Maddie's swing looks quite a bit different than Mike's other student posted on DFP (Haley), yet they are being taught the same concepts, from the same instructor, at the same age. Each player's personal strengths, body type, and natural movement tendencies all play a part.
- Jun 8, 2016
- 16,118
- 113
Could it be something as simple as the timing of her hand pump is off a bit and she is launching a bit lower than usual?
During BP tell her swing over a few balls. It’s a bandaid but something may click. Usually players dump the barrel slightly behind them. I don’t see her doing that. You can check it using a two tee drill with higher ball in front and lower ball in back. If she has any dump she will tip the back ball. Can do that and don’t tell her anything but hit the front ball. It’s definitely not a timing issue. Shoulders could work downhill a little longer during stride but that’s nit picking
Did another short cage session last night. Her rate of solid contact vs. pop-ups was definitely higher, and hit a few into the ground. She mentioned maybe doing more work tonight. I love her determination to work through her challenges.
Early in the session, she hit an absolute rocket directly back over my head, and paused to comment on it...
I have no idea if she made any adjustments from the night before. Except for this moment, she kept earbuds in both ears, which is always a sign that she doesn't want to hear anything from me - LOL.
Early in the session, she hit an absolute rocket directly back over my head, and paused to comment on it...
I have no idea if she made any adjustments from the night before. Except for this moment, she kept earbuds in both ears, which is always a sign that she doesn't want to hear anything from me - LOL.
- May 21, 2018
- 568
- 93
The bolded should be a sticky.
