Reply to "Dropping the hands"

For it to make sense, you need to change your reference plane.  From the north/south (head to toe) plane, clearly the barrel is "below" the hands.  However, if you look at the plane created by the shoulder/hands, the barrel is "above" (or at least in line with) the "hands."  IMO, the point of the key is to create barrel control and have a "strong" barrel though the zone.  Seems to have helped Longoria.