Miggy 6 Home Run GIFS

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fanboi22

on the journey
Nov 9, 2015
1,138
83
SE Wisconsin
In reviewing some old threads someone posted this gif. Can someone comment on the uniformities of the swing and when they diverge? Perhaps some lines and arrows as to when this happens on each gif? I am curious if it happens at the same time on every pitch. To me, if they are the same up until the same point, then i would argue that would be when the 'swing' is 'launched'. Anything before that is whatever you want to call it, but it would be the same each time. 'Preparing to launch', 'loading' whatever the term you want to use. I don't care about terminology, I would just like to know if there is a consistent beginning and when the adjustment starts. My personal feeling is he starts seeing the pitch location just before his hands disappear behind him and he will 'short' the tip, or pull back a little farther and tip more or pull in tighter, etc. To me this is an excellent example of one swing at many pitch locations. What is the same and what is different in each and does it become different at the same spot each time and why?

Thanks in advance.

UYBdE5.gif
 
Apr 11, 2015
877
63
They're not really ever the same at any time in the swing (specifically speaking) past maybe his initial stance, as his "stride" varies in them, and IMO Miggy (the clip) does a good job in showing a hitter exemplifying Ted Williams "Guess? Yes" chapter from his SoH book.

Just by his "stride" or maybe lead foot placement is a better term, to me it appears that he's already looking for, and anticipating pitch location as he opens up or closes up to just ever so slightly on some, and doesn't even stride in one of them. JMO....OMMV.
 

fanboi22

on the journey
Nov 9, 2015
1,138
83
SE Wisconsin
They're not really ever the same at any time in the swing (specifically speaking) past maybe his initial stance, as his "stride" varies in them, and IMO Miggy (the clip) does a good job in showing a hitter exemplifying Ted Williams "Guess? Yes" chapter from his SoH book.

Just by his "stride" or maybe lead foot placement is a better term, to me it appears that he's already looking for, and anticipating pitch location as he opens up or closes up to just ever so slightly on some, and doesn't even stride in one of them. JMO....OMMV.

Thanks Mud, Are you saying that there is never a consistent starting point, or rather, the stance is the only consistent point? After that every move is 'guessing'? I see the no stride in the upper right frame on the high and inside pitch. Looks like he intended a no stride, as it looks like a different action altogether. His hips turn back more it looks like. You would expect the low and inside to be similar at least in the step.
 
Apr 20, 2018
4,581
113
SoCal
Miggy is a master hitter. If you blocked out the face and number on these gifs most would know it was him. I don't know if he is guessing on all these pitches. Against good pitching and late in the count especially the best hitters will anticipate or educationally guess on pitch and location and adjust from there. Great hitters study pitchers. Combine that with great eye hand coordination and lots of practice and you might get a superstar.

Remember the only place "success" comes before "work" is in the dictionary.

I didn't make that up. Facebook. But I like it.
 
Apr 11, 2015
877
63
Thanks Mud, Are you saying that there is never a consistent starting point, or rather, the stance is the only consistent point? After that every move is 'guessing'? I see the no stride in the upper right frame on the high and inside pitch. Looks like he intended a no stride, as it looks like a different action altogether. His hips turn back more it looks like. You would expect the low and inside to be similar at least in the step.
Let me expand on the Williams thing a little more, as I think it might shed a little more light on your question(s).

What Ted meant was that a hitter should be "guessing" the pitcher's next move before he even makes it (the pitcher that is)...and by "guess", it's as much as an "educated" guess as possible given the definition. IOWs, the hitter has already studied the pitchers tendencies before he ever steps into the box (unless he's the leadoff hitter at the start of the game), and becomes more "educated" wrt those tendencies as the game goes on (and this is if it's their first meeting, prior games and/or films are also taken into consideration if/when available).

So wrt to all of those clips, it is my "guess" that Miggy already had an idea in his mind what was coming wrt the pitch and location simply because of the count, inning, score, pitchers strengths/weakness (over his career and/or what is, and isn't working for him that day), Miggy's perceived strengths/weaknesses (which as W=w points out lean far more on the "strengths" than "weaknesses" side of any hitter out there)...then with all of that info (and probably more I'm not thinking of at the moment) determines/"guesses" what and where the next pitch will be, and adjusts his swing mentally for it.

Let me also say this. As you go further, and further up the ladder, hitting becomes more and more difficult, and the idea that a hitter can step in the box, and have some magic mechanics that allows him/her to be able to suddenly adjust for any pitch thrown is just nonsense shared by those trying to make you believe that IF you learn *their* mechanics...you too can hit any and ever pitch thrown to you at any time and/or any location...which is just not so.

Because if that were really the case, we'd never see a hitter swing and a pitch when they swung at it...nor would we ever see a professional hitter in 2-strike count just look at the FB right down the middle, never taking the bat off his shoulder, then tip his hat to the pitcher as he walks away thinking he was sure he was going to get the CB in that situation. IOWs, sometimes even the best "guess" is the wrong one, and you get beat...that's just the game, and why it's so much fun. :D

So I'm more or less saying that Miggy already had in mind the swing he was going to put on the ball/pitch...that he already had in mind before the ball left the pitcher's hand. Hope that makes some sense, and is what you were inquiring about.
 
Jul 16, 2013
4,659
113
Pennsylvania
Let me expand on the Williams thing a little more, as I think it might shed a little more light on your question(s).

What Ted meant was that a hitter should be "guessing" the pitcher's next move before he even makes it (the pitcher that is)...and by "guess", it's as much as an "educated" guess as possible given the definition. IOWs, the hitter has already studied the pitchers tendencies before he ever steps into the box (unless he's the leadoff hitter at the start of the game), and becomes more "educated" wrt those tendencies as the game goes on (and this is if it's their first meeting, prior games and/or films are also taken into consideration if/when available).

So wrt to all of those clips, it is my "guess" that Miggy already had an idea in his mind what was coming wrt the pitch and location simply because of the count, inning, score, pitchers strengths/weakness (over his career and/or what is, and isn't working for him that day), Miggy's perceived strengths/weaknesses (which as W=w points out lean far more on the "strengths" than "weaknesses" side of any hitter out there)...then with all of that info (and probably more I'm not thinking of at the moment) determines/"guesses" what and where the next pitch will be, and adjusts his swing mentally for it.

Let me also say this. As you go further, and further up the ladder, hitting becomes more and more difficult, and the idea that a hitter can step in the box, and have some magic mechanics that allows him/her to be able to suddenly adjust for any pitch thrown is just nonsense shared by those trying to make you believe that IF you learn *their* mechanics...you too can hit any and ever pitch thrown to you at any time and/or any location...which is just not so.

Because if that were really the case, we'd never see a hitter swing and a pitch when they swung at it...nor would we ever see a professional hitter in 2-strike count just look at the FB right down the middle, never taking the bat off his shoulder, then tip his hat to the pitcher as he walks away thinking he was sure he was going to get the CB in that situation. IOWs, sometimes even the best "guess" is the wrong one, and you get beat...that's just the game, and why it's so much fun. :D

So I'm more or less saying that Miggy already had in mind the swing he was going to put on the ball/pitch...that he already had in mind before the ball left the pitcher's hand. Hope that makes some sense, and is what you were inquiring about.

Just to expand on MB's post a little... Sometimes the hitter can use these things to his/her advantage as well. DD has an open stance. During a game her senior year in high school, she overheard the coaches in the other dugout quietly state: "Look at her stance. No way she can hit the outside pitch." To be honest, she hits the outside pitch fairly well, and was expecting it. She actually opened her stance a little more to tempt them. She ended that particular game 4 for 4 with 3 doubles, including the walk off rbi to win the game.
 
Jun 8, 2016
16,118
113
What Ted meant was that a hitter should be "guessing" the pitcher's next move before he even makes it (the pitcher that is)...and by "guess", it's as much as an "educated" guess as possible given the definition. IOWs, the hitter has already studied the pitchers tendencies before he ever steps into the box (unless he's the leadoff hitter at the start of the game), and becomes more "educated" wrt those tendencies as the game goes on (and this is if it's their first meeting, prior games and/or films are also taken into consideration if/when available).
Bolded is one of the main reason why people panning for the good ole days where starters went 7+ innings every game are fighting a losing battle. Wonder if softball will start to go that way more at some point..Smaller rosters won't allow it to get to the level of MLB but Oklahoma was doing it to some extent with the two Paige's the last few years.
 

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