Manny

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Aug 2, 2008
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http://www.discussfastpitch.com/mar...hat-makes-manny-ramirez-such-good-hitter.html

I was just looking at this again and noticed something. I hear alot of coaches and parents telling batters to keep that back elbow high, at the beginning and through the swing. Manny's back elbow drops into the slot but stays behind his hands, his front elbow is the one that stays high and pulls the bat through the zone. Am I seeing this correctly? It really illustrates that if you stay connected then everything else falls into place.

Mike
 

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redhotcoach

Out on good behavior
May 8, 2009
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You hear that because alot of coaches and parents have no idea what they are talking about. No good hitters keep there back elbow up.
 
Aug 2, 2008
553
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I never thought that it sounded right and have tried it myself recently, its uncomfortable, and torques the hands at a weird angle. I have watched that video a bunch of times and for some reason this time that really stuck out.
On the other hand the back elbow shouldn't be down to low either right?

Mike
 

redhotcoach

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May 8, 2009
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I just reviewed what it says in the epstein dvd..."you may see some big leaguers that start with a high elbow, but they are athletic enough to drop the back elbow and raise the front elbow in the swing. We want our young hitters with their elbows comfortably down, but not down right at their side."
 
Aug 4, 2008
2,364
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Lexington,Ohio
Back elbow must be stacked , if you watch it in the swing. Never behind the hands or in front of them. If you use software like RVP you can watch many elite swings. redhotcoah is correct, you do see some that use the extremes , but they are professional players and can handle it.. Then you have some dad watch a pro and he has little sussie with the elbow up the bat pointing up in the air and her first move is dropping the hands striking out on high fast balls or only hitting pop ups. Dont teach the extremes.
 
Jan 14, 2009
1,591
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Atlanta, Georgia
Youtube has some great clips of Ted Williams. IMO the position of his hands and rear elbow in his stance are perfect for fastptich. Bonds has a similar setup as do many other MLB players.

Epstein prefers that young hitters keep their back elbow slotted while they are learning. However he has also stated on his old website that when a hitter turns the front shoulder down and in during their load, the back elbow will naturally raise up and move away from the the hitter's side.

I also think it's bad if the hands get outside the rear elbow when the hitter loads. Hitters that do this have a tendency to develop bat drag.
 

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