How important is it to have the bat be aligned with the forearm at contact?
Bat an extension of the forearm
- Thread starter Doug Romrell
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I really like the box/square shape his arms form, particularly the bottom forearm (being perpendicular to the bat and the upper elbow being up and pointed in the direction of somewhere between the pitcher and shortstop.
My DD's front elbow gets down by her side or belly and I believe it messes up her swing. She's bombarded the HS coach when he's coaching third. Also, her upper forearm isn't inline with the bat at contact. I would like to have the above picture as her goal as what she wants to look like at contact. Of course, girls should swing like guys (tongue in cheek).
My DD's front elbow gets down by her side or belly and I believe it messes up her swing. She's bombarded the HS coach when he's coaching third. Also, her upper forearm isn't inline with the bat at contact. I would like to have the above picture as her goal as what she wants to look like at contact. Of course, girls should swing like guys (tongue in cheek).
- Oct 10, 2011
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Doug, I haven't seen video of your DD, but it sounds like what I am working on with my DD. We added front arm swings with a short wood bat with the thought of back handing the ball/bag. We started on a heavy bag and then went to front toss. The bottom hand needs to give direction to the swing, so we are "turning the barrel with direction." That's something I'm getting help with from someone on another site. Watching a game on t.v. the other night, the announcer said "you need to get the knob going in the right direction," and I agree. This, seems to fix the front elbow without thinking about it. This is DD's homework, while at HS practices and working on the tee, which they do a lot.
I hope this makes sense
I hope this makes sense
I'm going to try to get a better photo of her swing today at her game. However, notice her follow-through here. I think it is very telling of some problems. There is a disconnect between her bat and her arms that I see, probably indicating problems closer to the point of contact (referring back to the Cabrera ideal above).
She generally collapses her front elbow such that it ends up at her side. I prefer it up and out away from her body. It seems to better facilitate the tip-it-and-rip-it style.
She generally collapses her front elbow such that it ends up at her side. I prefer it up and out away from her body. It seems to better facilitate the tip-it-and-rip-it style.
Though not necessary, I think the front elbow up and out (helping form the box/square) helps result in this...
Yes. the front elbow needs to be up, not down, to facilitate proper release through contact. This might be a situation where a "connector" device might be helpful in getting your DD to feel how the triangle turns as a one-piece unit. Having the lead forearm be in line with the bat at contact is a good cue to work with. You might also want to see how she reacts to the cue of keeping her hands above the ball. I hope you're sharing the pics of Mig with her, too. Have her work in front of a mirror to replicate passing through his same positions, or mimicking a slo-mo gif.
Your thoughts are absolutely correct on this. If the front arm breaks down, you'll never get to where Miggy is. I've posted some bottom hand/arm drills recently in some other threads. They are ones I use with my hitters. I'd be interested in hearing other's thoughts/drills they use to fix it.
I think it is one of the absolutes of hitting.
- Oct 10, 2011
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Epstein has a drill that you set up with a wide stance (after the stride) The bottom hand forearm is parallel to the ground and the bat is at the back shoulder, with the elbow down. You turn the barrel to contact from this position just to get the feel of having the front elbow raised and bent.
- Oct 10, 2011
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