A high level baseball type swing incorporates the ability to hit fast pitches as well as movement pitches. If you study elite fastpitch hitters like Cochran, Yee and Bustos, I believe you will find that a big reason they hit so well is because of their mental approach to hitting. Yee covers this subject in pretty good detail in her hitting blog.
One of the most interesting parts of Williams' book "TSOH", deals with his mental approach to hitting. Williams, like a lot of great hitters, anticipated what the pitch was going to be. They basically "guess". However they don't just guess fastball or curve; they guess within a framework of information. It's an educated guess, based on their experience and knowledge. IOW, many of the best hitters, know what's coming on many of the pitches they swing at.
I would argue that the best hitters in the world are capable of hitting both hard stuff and movement pitches, because of their mental approach at the plate. Assuming of course they have sound swing mechanics.
The easiest pitch to hit, is the one that you've seen before and you know it's coming.
It drives me nuts to have a player swing at the very first pitch they see in a game. The odds of hitting that pitch successfully are low; and if you hit it fair and get out, you haven't learned much about the pitcher for your next at bat. You've seen one pitch.
One of the most interesting parts of Williams' book "TSOH", deals with his mental approach to hitting. Williams, like a lot of great hitters, anticipated what the pitch was going to be. They basically "guess". However they don't just guess fastball or curve; they guess within a framework of information. It's an educated guess, based on their experience and knowledge. IOW, many of the best hitters, know what's coming on many of the pitches they swing at.
I would argue that the best hitters in the world are capable of hitting both hard stuff and movement pitches, because of their mental approach at the plate. Assuming of course they have sound swing mechanics.
The easiest pitch to hit, is the one that you've seen before and you know it's coming.
It drives me nuts to have a player swing at the very first pitch they see in a game. The odds of hitting that pitch successfully are low; and if you hit it fair and get out, you haven't learned much about the pitcher for your next at bat. You've seen one pitch.