8 yr old DD in cage

[HYP]

What she does is sometimes an indication that the bat is too long. The hitter has to lag it back like that so they can then pull down the length of it to get it around.

I'm with the others that say that she should try a shorter bat.

Lag it back like what? She starts with it laid back and then tips it/cocks it and then swings with no drag or pulling down the length of the bat.

 

[crankermo]

My DD and I just watched it and we are both extremely impressed with her swing. Like everyone else I believe the bat is way too big & I would just concentrate on getting her in an athletic stance, which will help with balance. IMO Howard Carrier's philosophy on that is the best out there, I'm sure Straightleg/Boulder's Dad would help you with that. Other than the stance, LEAVE HER ALONE, she does a lot things correct naturally.

 

[RayR]

I am not sure what more you can ask of her at this point....how she holds the bat before movement is style.....she gets here on almost every pitch.....keep pitching to her and let her develop....by all means don't let someone "fix" her set up....

 

[straightleg]

She grab the wrong bat bag on the way to the cage??

I agree about watching her swing with the right size bat before comment.




SL

 

[Snapperny]

Thanks for the feedback !!

OK, looking at the video, her bat does look HUGE for her...LOL It's only a 29" 17.5 oz. It's about the size of what most of her teammates used last summer. She asked for it & I'm a sucker, so she got it. I guess the problem is that she's a year younger than most of them, and she is little for her age. I think she is about 50" tall and weighs around 58 Lbs. She is very strong for her size (thanks to gymnastics) so she seems to handle it ok. If her swing looks good, is there a drawback to using a bat that looks too long for her, or will she just grow into it??

As for the mechanics of the swing, I would like to get her to stop "tipping" the bat back, if only because I think it gives her more to do while loading if she has to cock her wrists that far before launch and may slow her down a little. Am I mistaken about this? I don't think she does it because the bat is too big for her. I think it is a product of me always telling her to be "relaxed & loose" in the box, so she just relaxes with the bat that way.


Also, is there anything that can be done to help young kids with their timing? That is the one area where she gets a little out of sync at times. She will wait too long and jump at the ball to "catch up" (like the 4th swing in the video) & then if I tell her to go slower & earlier she will start too early and finish her stride before the pitch is nearly there (and usually tell me that I'm "messing her up" in the process). When she is hitting off of a tee and timing is not an issue, her swing looks beautiful & she really crushes the ball. Is timing just a matter of getting lots of reps, or is there a way to "teach" it to kids??
Overall, I think her swing looks pretty good for her age, so maybe I'm better off not messing with her ??

00fpdaddy...she really is fearless in the cage...she is little, but very spunky !!

Amy...you are right...her overhand throw is really impressive for a kid her age/size, so maybe there is a correlation ??

Crankermo...Thanks for the kind words...Much of her swing is a result of hard work that she has put in, so I can't say she does all those things naturally. I would, of course, welcome any tips that SL or Boulder's Dad (or any of the other knowledgeable posters on here) could give me.

Thanks

 

[HYP]

As for the mechanics of the swing, I would like to get her to stop "tipping" the bat back, if only because I think it gives her more to do while loading if she has to cock her wrists that far before launch and may slow her down a little. Am I mistaken about this? I don't think she does it because the bat is too big for her. I think it is a product of me always telling her to be "relaxed & loose" in the box, so she just relaxes with the bat that way.

I would not change this. let her keep the tip.

 

[crankermo]

Timing is learned through repitition but as her swing get's more efficient her timing will neeed to be adjusted accordingly. Honestly she is way ahead of the game and as she get's stronger a lot of the issues will get fixed naturally so I wouldn't get to complicated right now. Get the stance down and watch the progress from just doing that.

 

[RichK]

As for the mechanics of the swing, I would like to get her to stop "tipping" the bat back, if only because I think it gives her more to do while loading if she has to cock her wrists that far before launch and may slow her down a little.

Giving her hands "something to do" before launch is a great way to naturally let her hips get ahead and lead the way. Her swing is fantastic. Keep the tip and hand cock as is, that's what most here are responding to. For timing, just hit a bunch. Play some whiffle ball with her too. Let her hit anything you can throw at her. Also, show her a bunch of good female swings and don't say much to her, just let her see if she'll emulate them naturally the way boys emulate big league swings. Expose her to older players and let her absorb it. Then check back in 8 years and let us know where she's signed : >

 

[Chris O'Leary]

Lag it back like what? She starts with it laid back and then tips it/cocks it and then swings with no drag or pulling down the length of the bat.

Did you even look at the clip frame by frame?

Watch her back elbow.

There's bat drag in at least the first two swings. I didn't look beyond that.

As is typical, she starts her swing by pulling hard with her back elbow.

 

[HYP]

Did you even look at the clip frame by frame?

Watch her back elbow.

There's bat drag in at least the first two swings. I didn't look beyond that.

As is typical, she starts her swing by pulling hard with her back elbow.

So, you see bat drag? What would you have her do to fix it?