Does anybody know of a way to get a hitter to not drop their hands before they swing?
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Take a look at my post (would you take the bat off his shoulder) and watch how my son has the bat on the side of his shoulder.Simple yet effective way to hit and it will stop dropping the hands.
Basicaly just take your shoulders to the ball.IMO,great starting point to a great swing.
Basicaly just take your shoulders to the ball.IMO,great starting point to a great swing.
Sometimes high tee work will correct this, put the tee on top of a bucket and have your kid hit down on the ball.
Something I got from Bob Morgan when he was coach at Indiana University about 10 years ago has really worked for me over the years.
Get an old bat, tee, something to hit into and a chair (or broom). Set up the tee at the normal height and let them take a couple of cuts to get into a rythm. Once that is done take the chair and put behind the tee about a foot. You want the chair back to be about 8 - 10 inches higher than the tee. If you have a broom instead of a tee then hold the bristles end about where the chair back would be.
Have them take cuts and if they hit the chair / tee on their swing path then they are dropping their hands. It gives them instand feedback if they do something wrong. Don't start out the chair / broom very high at first but work your way up to where they need to be.
One thing to watch for is them overcompensating because they know there is an object there they have to barely miss. They will overcompensate by wood chopping down to the ball. Have them see how the ball comes off the tee and into the net. If the ball hits the ground and bounces into the net then they are chopping wood instead of hitting the ball. Once again instant feedback as to what they are doing.
If they do this drill right then the ball will come off the bat and into the net on a line. You can move the tee around for inside / outside / middle pitches and nothing else changes.
I'm not sure how many others do this drill and I realize it sounds different but I have seen it help many kids. We have broken many chairs over the years but it does work.
Get an old bat, tee, something to hit into and a chair (or broom). Set up the tee at the normal height and let them take a couple of cuts to get into a rythm. Once that is done take the chair and put behind the tee about a foot. You want the chair back to be about 8 - 10 inches higher than the tee. If you have a broom instead of a tee then hold the bristles end about where the chair back would be.
Have them take cuts and if they hit the chair / tee on their swing path then they are dropping their hands. It gives them instand feedback if they do something wrong. Don't start out the chair / broom very high at first but work your way up to where they need to be.
One thing to watch for is them overcompensating because they know there is an object there they have to barely miss. They will overcompensate by wood chopping down to the ball. Have them see how the ball comes off the tee and into the net. If the ball hits the ground and bounces into the net then they are chopping wood instead of hitting the ball. Once again instant feedback as to what they are doing.
If they do this drill right then the ball will come off the bat and into the net on a line. You can move the tee around for inside / outside / middle pitches and nothing else changes.
I'm not sure how many others do this drill and I realize it sounds different but I have seen it help many kids. We have broken many chairs over the years but it does work.
Works w/ a 5-point tee too, btw.
tfox,
Do you mean that he has the bat next to his shoulder, not on his shoulder? I tried having him put the bat on his shoulder and he would just lift it up early and still drop his hands.
Also, how did your son learn the Epstein stuff? Did you get his DVD? Did you like it?
Do you mean that he has the bat next to his shoulder, not on his shoulder? I tried having him put the bat on his shoulder and he would just lift it up early and still drop his hands.
Also, how did your son learn the Epstein stuff? Did you get his DVD? Did you like it?
Downcaster:
Is it possible for you to observe the old film clips of Albert Belle, Ted Williams, Eddie Matthews, Ernie Banks, Jimmy Foxx and Babe Ruth.
They all dropped their hands, however they were quick enough to hit the "high" pitch.
Maybe the definition of a "high" pitch is different to you, your son and the umpires.
As these players become experienced and the umpires
gave them the benefit, the players did not swing at any pitch above their hands.
Personally, I enjoy the hands movement. "This is a trigger".
Keep swinging, not thinking!
When Henry Aaron first played in the ML, he was taking BP and a news reporter said - "you are hitting the ball on the trademark"
Henry said "I came up here to hit, not to read"!!!!
And read, he did. Right!!!
Bob Williams
Is it possible for you to observe the old film clips of Albert Belle, Ted Williams, Eddie Matthews, Ernie Banks, Jimmy Foxx and Babe Ruth.
They all dropped their hands, however they were quick enough to hit the "high" pitch.
Maybe the definition of a "high" pitch is different to you, your son and the umpires.
As these players become experienced and the umpires
gave them the benefit, the players did not swing at any pitch above their hands.
Personally, I enjoy the hands movement. "This is a trigger".
Keep swinging, not thinking!
When Henry Aaron first played in the ML, he was taking BP and a news reporter said - "you are hitting the ball on the trademark"
Henry said "I came up here to hit, not to read"!!!!
And read, he did. Right!!!
Bob Williams
quote:Originally posted by danocaster:
tfox,
Do you mean that he has the bat next to his shoulder, not on his shoulder? I tried having him put the bat on his shoulder and he would just lift it up early and still drop his hands.
Also, how did your son learn the Epstein stuff? Did you get his DVD? Did you like it?
My son actually went to an Epstein instructor and much of the stuff is real helpful.
You actually put the bat on the side of the shoulder,not on top.
We have a kid on our rec team that would drop his hands to his waist and then swing straight up.I made him do this and instructed him to take his shoulders to the ball and he has started hitting the ball.
Thanks.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwogLVGtDa8 - Ted Williams - Put your cursor on the 25 second mark to see his loading mechanics.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NAEeKhbj7kQ - Albert Belle - Need only watch the first 5 seconds of this infamous moment to see the swing itself.
http://www.baseballhalloffame.....jsp?playerId=118416 - Eddie Mathews - The video link is in the lower right corner of the page. Put your cursor on the 38 second mark and play it through as often as needed. As a note....if this is the dropping action you see in your son's swing then he is OK.....if not....you want to help him get through this flaw.
Jimmie Foxx - http://www.baseballhalloffame.....jsp?playerId=114367 - 27 second mark.
http://www.baseballhalloffame.....jsp?playerId=121578 - Babe Ruth - 2 second mark or 37 second mark.
These are indeed hitters that drop their hands (trigger) before lifting them again to load. That could very well be what is seen in your son's swing. If so then no problem.
And any other type of dropping motion of the hands is probably causing some reduction of ability to hit at his peak.
In my opinion, connecting the bat to the side of the shoulder is indeed a great way to stop the dropping motion of the hands and knob while launching the barrel.
Have your son lift his shirt sleeve and put the bat to the skin of the shoulder so he can feel the bat should it begin to drop down early.
Best of luck and good pick up on your part. Great initiative to come on here and seek friendly advice.
Coach James
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NAEeKhbj7kQ - Albert Belle - Need only watch the first 5 seconds of this infamous moment to see the swing itself.
http://www.baseballhalloffame.....jsp?playerId=118416 - Eddie Mathews - The video link is in the lower right corner of the page. Put your cursor on the 38 second mark and play it through as often as needed. As a note....if this is the dropping action you see in your son's swing then he is OK.....if not....you want to help him get through this flaw.
Jimmie Foxx - http://www.baseballhalloffame.....jsp?playerId=114367 - 27 second mark.
http://www.baseballhalloffame.....jsp?playerId=121578 - Babe Ruth - 2 second mark or 37 second mark.
These are indeed hitters that drop their hands (trigger) before lifting them again to load. That could very well be what is seen in your son's swing. If so then no problem.
And any other type of dropping motion of the hands is probably causing some reduction of ability to hit at his peak.
In my opinion, connecting the bat to the side of the shoulder is indeed a great way to stop the dropping motion of the hands and knob while launching the barrel.
Have your son lift his shirt sleeve and put the bat to the skin of the shoulder so he can feel the bat should it begin to drop down early.
Best of luck and good pick up on your part. Great initiative to come on here and seek friendly advice.
Coach James
