Bat Lag / Bat Drag

No opinions on this?

quote:

Originally posted by nails8794:
No opinions on this?

I am not sure about it. But I do know some big kids hitting the coach toss in the batting cage very well. The ball just fly out of their bats. But in the real game, they almost strike out everytime. In the end, the kid got cut by the team. I think they probably got a bad habit of hitting in the cage and their bat-speed are way too slow. Maybe this is called lag bat? I don't know.

Bat lag is when the hands are moving in a circular path towards the ball and the wrists are still "unbroken" at roughly 90 degree angles. When you analyze a swing frame-by-frame, there's a point in time where the bat will be parallel to the ground with the knob pointing at the ball. From this point on, the wrists will start to break/unhinge.

Bat drag is simply positioning the bat parallel to the ground while the shoulders are turning, then moving the hands in a straight line to the ball.

The bat lag position isn't one you need to focus on during the swing. It's just a checkpoint when looking at video to see if the swing is executed properly.

Bat lag contributes to batspeed. Bat drag is bad.

Lag is when the barrel is lined up behind the hands as the hands move to contact area. In the lag position the hands are over the back elbow or forward of the back elbow.

Drag is when you drop the hands and the elbow before you launch. In the drag position the hands are behind the back elbow after launch.

Lag would be proper and help with a quicker swing.

Drag would be inproper and create a long swing.

Too many kids cast their hands - they go away from their body as they start their swing. You want the barrel to come through last - too many kids try to get the barrel to the ball and wind up going 'around' the ball. The fence drill is a good exercise to do.

http://www.travelbaseballnj.com/hitting%20video.htm

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The fence drill is a good exercise to do.

I would advise not to do the fence drill......The hands and arms must find the swing plane......Alligator hands and arms is not the way to teach a hitter......

Teach a diagonal swing plane and you won't have a hands to the ball swing.....

I guess everyone does the fence drill differently. If it doesn’t require hitting a ball, just a slo-mo swing next to a fence, I like it as a way of helping kids “feel” what it’s like to cast the hands late instead of early.

What are alligator hands?

“Hands to the ball” swing may be bad but “hands to the ball” is a great mental cue for a lot of young hitters (in my opinion).

THop

The fence drill when done wrong will create alligator arms..but if you get proper hit rotation you shoulnd't have a problem. Too often kids will change their swing to avoid hitting the fence and they won't get any extension their arms look like short alligator arms. If done properly they shouldn't have to change their swing at all to avoid the fence.

The reason some hitters cast and hit around the ball is because they don't know proper arm action.....

Using improper arm action while swinging against a fence will not help....It will only reinforce the improper arm action they already have....

Changing their arm action is the help they need.........

quote:

“Hands to the ball” swing may be bad but “hands to the ball” is a great mental cue for a lot of young hitters (in my opinion).

As long as the hands are going to the ball with the proper arm action....Add in some lateral tilt and you're on the way.......

Hands to the ball with improper arm action is the same old bad swing, whether it's against a fence or against a pitcher....

Blue Dog...

Did you check out the video? I'm curious to your thoughts. I read your post about arm action and I'd like to know more about your methods.

http://travelbaseballnj.com/hitting%20video.htm

Bat lag is a good thing - you want the tip of the bat "lagging" through the zone as you generate power through separation of body parts in your rotational swing. By delaying the bat, you will transfer maximal momentum through your body and arms to the bat, then the ball.

Bat drag, on the other hand, is quite bad. It's common in hitters who have a lazy back elbow and don't get it in tight with their body. As many have said, it puts the hands on a direct path to the ball, which is not good.

Bat Drag can be cured in 5 minutes.....one swing or less.

STOP PULLING THE KNOB. STOP ROTATING THE SHOULDERS.