Extra move

[FiveFrameSwing]

Lots of reasons why kids are late. Logically speaking, if you have time for a hip cock/coil you have time for a hand cock/hitch because they happen at the same time.

Using similar logic, if you are going to coach the hand cock out of kids, then you might as well coach out their hip cock. Same can be said about the stretch part of the sequence. Each of those movements take time to perform.

Of course any move in hitting can be overdone. Perhaps this player is lowering her hands down to her waist. Most players could never pull off lowering their hands as far as Cochran does.

Which brings up a good point that Dixon documented .... the best hitters have a longer period of time between the start of their swing sequence and contact.

 

[FiveFrameSwing]

A different opinion.

I see some young hitters that drop their hands and start the swing with their hands in the drop position (between the chest and waist) A hitch where the hitter drops the hands then gets the hands back in a proper load position prior to initiating the swing is not as big a problem.

The problem I do see with the hitch is you have to include it in the timing sequence. A hitter has 4/10 or a second to swing against the elite pitchers, taking a roundabout hand path is a disadvantage to the hitter IMO, although some can be successful using hitch. The better pitchers a hitter sees as they get older the more of a challenge it is to be successful having a hitch in the swing.

The hitch is in a hitters muscle memory not a quick fix, I like the matrix drill and think elbow, knob and barrel to contact.

Peppers, IMO you have this somewhat backwards. You speak of a hitch disrupting a hitter's timing, when in fact it can accentuate a hitter's timing. For many, the resulting "up & IN" action is a transfer of control to the hands. The very use of the hands here, even the "up & IN" action, can be used to effectively control one's timing within their sequence.

 

[Wellphyt]

Which brings up a good point that Dixon documented .... the best hitters have a longer period of time between the start of their swing sequence and contact.

You actually make the point better than I did in a lot fewer words When the sequence is properly understood, there is all kinds of time.

 

[PEPPERS]

I’m on the other side of the fence on the hitch, I would rather see a smooth direct transition to load to the swing. I have been to a number of clinics Alabama, Georgia and UTC none of the coaches in their instruction recommended/supported the use of a hitch in their instruction.

As Alabama recommends: Minimize Movement to Maximize Performance!

 

[wannahit]

peppers, in your notes from the alabama clinic you said the hands go direct path bach and up, and foreward and down, was the back and up a wrist cock?

 

[Bouldersdad]

I will expect those on both sides of the fence to jump my big briar butt after this post. But here goes, this is one of my pet peeves. If I go back 2 or 3 years to a clinic I was doing with Bustos/Carrier somewhere in the wilds of SE Indiana. I think it was maybe Ohio I forget as I get to my tender years like Howard is. My dd asked Crystal if she had a few moments to look at her swing as she was stumped by something. Being Crystal she dropped what she was doing, took the dd to the gym and soft tossed for close to an hour. Never said a word the entire time. After it was over when she was leaving I asked her what the damage was, she looked at me and I waited for the answer from the greatest female hitter hitter ever to be the equivalent of the red sea parting or some magical words of secret wisdom known to only a few and protected by all.

What she said to me was as simple as it gets and I have used it over and over to overzealous fathers....... She needs to mature into her swing...... That was it no parting of the red sea, no trumpets, nothing. Just as plain as the nose on my face.

I have been told by alot of people that my dd has a hitch in her swing. You know what? Its ok. Dont get so caught up in the perfection of mechanics that you forget that she is an individual. There are a ton of good ball players that dont do everything just right. No one does. The Hanson Principle tells us what we need to do to emulate mlb players, but yet those same models we drool over went to the hall of fame batting 3 to 400..... do you understand that means they failed 6 or 7 times trying to do it?

Do the best you can with your dd, be patient, consistent, understanding and encouraging Using common sense in her approach to her goals what ever they may be and you will succeed and someday have not only the pleasure of watching your dd at the next level but seeing her do it in her own fashion.


Tim

 

[RayR]

Tim, Don't why you think your post would cause a tizzy....I think it is spot on. I coached a girl when she was 8 years old and she had a fantastic swing....played up and hit. Now she is 14 and freshman in HS and has been to at least 4 different hitting instructors (that I know of)....she had a nice swing and it was productive playing up....but that apparently wasn't good enough....for her DAD....

 

[FiveFrameSwing]

You actually make the point better than I did in a lot fewer words When the sequence is properly understood, there is all kinds of time.

Bold .... this is so very true that it isn't funny.

 

[Wellphyt]

I’m on the other side of the fence on the hitch, I would rather see a smooth direct transition to load to the swing. I have been to a number of clinics Alabama, Georgia and UTC none of the coaches in their instruction recommended/supported the use of a hitch in their instruction.

As Alabama recommends: Minimize Movement to Maximize Performance!

What do the coaches in their instruction say about the hip cock during these clinics?

 

[Wellphyt]

What she said to me was as simple as it gets and I have used it over and over to overzealous fathers....... She needs to mature into her swing...... That was it no parting of the red sea, no trumpets, nothing. Just as plain as the nose on my face.

This is the approach I'm now taking with my dd. There are some things that I don't totally agree with in my DD's swing, but I've decided to give her some time to work it out. Ted mentions in "TSOH" that kids need to experiment. They need to develop their own sense of style and rhythm. My DD is experimenting more lately than she ever has. An unexpected benefit of allowing her the freedom to experiment, is her and I actually discuss hitting in a way I never thought possible. It's opened up a two way conversation where she talks about how various changes affect her swing. Instead of giving her drills to do, now I just make suggestions for her to try and then we take about it.

Based on my experience the sequence is the gateway to experimentation. Do you remember the Slaught video where he says that hitters need to be able to get to a good ready to hit position regardless of where they start from? My DD told me the other day that she feels like she is doing in her regular stance, the same thing she does from this stance:


What she is really feeling is the underlying sequence. Every time we hit now, she always takes a few swings from the open stance shown in the image. It's how she gets loose. The open stance exaggerates the sequence. Sometimes she will transition from the open stance to the Babe Ruth feet together stance, and take a few swings from that stance. Eventually she will end up in her normal stance with her feet a little more than shoulder width apart.