Does a forward step generate power?

[Coach Al]

I went to a coaching clinic the other day. I really didn't need to go, it was only a 2 hour clinic that was run by a local baseball school. I was looking for reinforcement of thing I have learned and maybe to hear thing I have forgotten. The instructor was an ex professional ball player from the area. He was talking about taking a stride step, which I don't teach unless the child is already using one. He insisted that you generate power from it. Everything I was taught always tell me it is rotation and not the step, which I believe is to be use for timing, that generates power. He insisted that you can get a good amount of power from a step and a no stride style looses power. I am interested In finding out what the forum thinks.

 

[obbay]

I would like to hear what others say.

IMHO- the weight has to transfer from rear leg to front and if you take a step in the process it does add to the energy transferred at contact.

 

[Hitter]

I would like to hear what others say.

IMHO- the weight has to transfer from rear leg to front and if you take a step in the process it does add to the energy transferred at contact.

In my opinion I can generate enough force without stepping to take a grown man backwards several feet with a two inch punch.

I always get a volunteer at the clinics to demonstrate driving off the big toe, off the back foot and I never rotate my hips to show them what a perfectly timed punch can do for you.

Next would I throw a ball without generating momentum? No!

Try to throw without a weight shift or a step and we are not talking about situational throwing either, so you can feel the difference.

In my opinion it takes more athleticism not to stride to generate the power and momentum which when you look at AP he strides about 3.5 inches and starts wider and uses his hips very efficiently and then compare Bonds or Manny. However during HR derby AP was having problems getting it out of the park and you saw him pick up the lead foot to try and put a little more into the ball.

During a regular game in my opinion the pitchers are throwing 85 plus MPH and that gives him some help verses 60 to 70 MPH in batting practice.

Chris may have some clips where I have seen him in batting practice not stepping at all and then in a game he steps about 3.5 inches.

I think it also helps time the pitcher and ball better when they step as they feel the momentum build and explode to the ball.

This is why we do the face the fire drill verses the walk up drill!

Thanks Howard

 

[tom.guerry]

howard said:

"In my opinion it takes more athleticism not to stride to generate the power and momentum"

Good stuff !

 

[Wellphyt]

IMO a properly executed no-stride will work just fine. I do agree with Howard that it is easier to pull off if you are more athletic. Many people view Pujols as a no-strider, but as Howard points out, he tends to take a small stride on many swings. IMO Pujols is close enough to a no-strider to use as a model. For those who like to experiment, I would encourage you to duplicate the way Pujols loads his back hip. It helped me a lot. And... NO, I can't do it as good as Pujols. But I can duplicate how he creates a bind in his back hip to balance himself as he picks up his front foot and turns out his front heel.

Pay close attention to his back leg when he picks up his front foot. His back leg will straighten some at the knee when he picks up his front foot. IMO, that's the key to the no-stride. If a player can do that correctly, they should be able to generate enough force by just unwinding the back hip.

I also saw the HR derby and noticed Pujols picking up his front foot part way through the contest. I think he did that because he was having big time timing issues. I don't think is game stride is setup for casual hitting. I've seen clips of him taking batting practice where he is very upright. It doesn't even look like him.

 

[playball13]

If you want to see a powerful swing with no step check out Michelle Smith. Watch how she shifts her weight with out stepping.

Fastpitch

 

[Dave D]

I've been wondering about this for years. I know that for some hitters, the stride just seems to slow them down. When DD was 10, she switched to no-stride and had some initial success, but as time went on, she really had trouble timing her swings and generating the kind of power her frame suggested she should have. After seeing the face the fire drill (thanks, Howard!), we incorporated that into our routine and had a big lightbulb moment just a few weeks ago. DD (now almost 14) has re-introduced a stride to her swing and the results A LOT of power to her swing. Once we found a way to time that step to the pitching motion, her whole mechanic sped up dramatically. I'm convinced that the stride goes a long way to creating the kind of forward momentum that makes for a more powerful swing. Now if I can just get the rest of the girls on the team to make that adjustment, some good things will happen.

 

[Tewks]

Does a step backwards generate power?? Is the step forward a positive move that is building momentum into the point of contact? If yes, then you will likely have trouble with quality off-speed pitching. If the step forward is a timing mechanism that allows your body to move efficiently, then you could say it helps generate power. I've always viewed the stride (front, back, or even) as a timing thing. If you try to get power from it, you'll get into trouble against better pitching.

 

[kls_hittingacademy]

Does it matter if the batter strides or is a no stride hitter... no it does not. If you stride or not has nothing to do with the swing, it's personal style if you stride or not. All that matters is after the front heel drops.

 

[Shawn]

Bagwell sits very deep in the chair, he places his weight on and against the back leg (as he said while motioning with both hands on the side of his torso). With the wide stance, and the butt to far behind and to low, the body adn torso must unload somehow. It must rise a little, the front foot comes off the ground during this time and is set back down (moving back a few inches).

Combine the deep chair and hand action slightly down when he is already so deep, when the hands raise a little so does the body or center of gravity so it can unload. Thus the front foot moves slightly back.

I don't like people using Bagwell as an example as "how important is the stride if his moves backwards". How important can momentum be if he strides backwards?

I've heard it 100's of times, without discussing why it moves backwards and what is happening in his swing. No one has given an analysis on his swing as to what is actually happening, or at least what they think is happening.