11yo DD Excellent swing mechanics but struggling with timing at the moment

My 11yo is struggling with her timing at the moment which has never happened before. She played rec for 4 years and on a tournament team for 2 years now (no rec this year!). This is her 1st year playing 12u and ever since she met faster Pitching last year she hasn't been hitting anything slower than about 46 well. She is waaay in front of the ball sometimes so i thought now may be the time to get get a batting coach before the tournament season gets under way. He says her mechanics are great and that she needs to work on timing. She has only been to 3 lessons but he said that they are at about the 6th lesson for most other girls. The only other issue is that she sometimes drops her hand a little but he said it is actually the way she moves her hands causes her left shoulder to go out rather than dropping her hands. She corrects it on her own after a few swings but she doesn't feel when it happens. He said her not feeling is because she has young muscles.

Has anyone else's dd gone through this? What age? How long? Does timing really come with age? (Even though timing has never been an issue before?) Any and all advice welcome!

Do you have any video of her swing you can share? It's a lot easier to make recommendations when we can see what's really happening.

That said, it could also be a mental approach issue. One thing I see frequently (currently coaching 12U TB) with girls making the transition from rec to TB is that they wait to see where the pitch location is before starting their swing process. Against faster pitching, the pre-launch process must start before the pitch location is known, or there simply isn't enough time to execute a good swing. The other side of the spectrum is young players who get started early and swing quickly, but there's no adjustability in their swing sequence that allows them to deliver the barrel on time. If the pitch isn't as fast as they guessed, they're way early. Getting the pre-launch process started early and slow is a good thing, but they need to time the ball to contact, not just react to the pitcher's motion. The pitcher's motion gets the pre-launch process started, but the final launch must be timed to the ball..."time the pitcher to time the ball".

Sounds like an athletic kid with an all back all forward swing...I've got one of those.

Pitch to her in the cages. Throw change ups and fastballs. Should help some. Tell her to be patient and trust her hand speed

We have a parent that moves his DD up 3 ft every time she hits the ball until she is really close and then moves her back 3ft each time she hits it. His DD hardly ever strikes out and is an average athlete.

I'm a firm believer that your back hip and knob is your timing device and you must start on deck. some may use hands, knob, knee, heel click, elbow and even stride.

Eric F said:

Do you have any video of her swing you can share? It's a lot easier to make recommendations when we can see what's really happening.

That said, it could also be a mental approach issue. One thing I see frequently (currently coaching 12U TB) with girls making the transition from rec to TB is that they wait to see where the pitch location is before starting their swing process. Against faster pitching, the pre-launch process must start before the pitch location is known, or there simply isn't enough time to execute a good swing. The other side of the spectrum is young players who get started early and swing quickly, but there's no adjustability in their swing sequence that allows them to deliver the barrel on time. If the pitch isn't as fast as they guessed, they're way early. Getting the pre-launch process started early and slow is a good thing, but they need to time the ball to contact, not just react to the pitcher's motion. The pitcher's motion gets the pre-launch process started, but the final launch must be timed to the ball..."time the pitcher to time the ball".

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Took a few days for me to catch it but it happened today! Here is one of her at bats at a 12U round robin today. It was hit to shallow OF and was caught. Same thing for 2 at bats today along with 2 walks and a double which was also a hit to OF.

https://youtu.be/P-EmobCTwEg
https://youtu.be/XeEMwy_9_Ol

11yo DD Excellent swing mechanics

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Sorry, not excellent....

This is what she has been doing at times lately. This clip is not her usual swing at all. She doesn't even know it is happening when it does. This was the other issue that sometimes happens. Her timing was what I originally posted about but this is what happened today.

He says her mechanics are great and that she needs to work on timing. She has only been to 3 lessons but he said that they are at about the 6th lesson for most other girls.

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Sorry, this will sound mean but,....no they are not.
You can either continue to listen to the HC BS or find another or read through the threads and educate yourself.

This is what she has been doing at times lately. This clip is not her usual swing at all. She doesn't even know it is happening when it does. This was the other issue that sometimes happens

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This is what you posted.

Her timing was what I originally posted about but this is what happened today.

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If you and the HC think that is your DD's only problem(timing) then I can't help you. She has major problems from the swings that you posted. Good luck to you and your DD.

rdbass said:

Sorry, this will sound mean but,....no they are not.
You can either continue to listen to the HC BS or find another or read through the threads and educate yourself.

This is what you posted.

If you and the HC think that is your DD's only problem(timing) then I can't help you. She has major problems from the swings that you posted. Good luck to you and your DD.

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RDB speaks the truth. If your DD's hitting coach thinks her mechanics are excellent, you can continue to pay him to say nice things, but if you want your DD to get better, you can get good feedback and advice here at DFP and/or try your luck with another hitting coach.