Swing Speed Radar Results?

Everyone on my tournament team got their swing speed done back in december. I swung 84 -86 consistantly and swung 91 one time. as far as the team went we had kids ranging from upper 70's to 92.

Not really sure that this has much to do with hitting though because some of the kids that were in the 70's are pretty good hitters.

I got a kid in high school from a tee (dead stop) at 100 mph with a metal bat. The best hitter on the team was up to 95 mph. The 100 mph is a defensive end at the University of Texas.

I use it for T-Work. I have a 12YO that has hit 78 and averages 72 using a 33/30. I'm normally 82 to 84 and have hit 94 but don't believe it was right. Have seen mid 90's from very good high school players.

It is good for looking at swing adjustments, choosing bats, and measuring progress. Swing speed consistency is also very important and it is good for measuring that. Unfortunately you don't hear enough talk about consistency and hitting.

Batted ball exit speed may be a better indicator (speed of a ball after it's hit).

Sultan,
We measure both bat speed and ball exit speed. Both are indicators of how hard you might be able to hit the ball in the game. With pitchers, we talk about the velocity they "touch." We treat these numbers for hitters in the same manner. There is a huge difference between a high school player who can "touch" 90+ with ball exit speed than kids just getting into the low to mid 80s.

When you look at the comparison between the two numbers, it helps look at efficiency and how much energy/force is getting to the ball. For example, the independent player only hit 86 on bat speed but was 96 on ball exit speed. The Boston College player who tested at 91 on bat speed topped out at 87 for ball exit speed because his swing direction was poor. He was consistently around 87 after improving his swing direction and topped out at 90. This is only one example of why bat speed doesn't translate into ball exit speed, but it certainly doesn't hurt with diagnosing hitters. The high school player at 92 bat speed is 94 ball exit speed.


Leverage,
We play a game with ball exit speed called "The Radar Gun Game." I pick a number for the hitter based on their max ball exit speed - usually 5-7 mph lower than their max. They stay in as long as they hit the ball as hard or harder then their number. The kids get pretty into the game and is promotes consistency with approach, pitch selection, mechanics, etc.

Where can you buy a swing speed radar?

BobbyTewks,

How are you measuring ball exit speed? Putting the radar on the other side of the batting cage?

Good to see technology being put to good use.

Have you done comparative swing/ball exit speeds in choosing the proper bat for each player?

Quincy,

I use it to see how much a swing slows when moving up in bat size. Also very good to use like BobbyTewks says in comparing a hitters consistency. Good hitters seem to have consistent swings including swing speed and contact.

I've found that swing speed doesn't slow noticeably over 3 ounces in bat weight. Personally I believe the youth are using too light a bats. Now I'm sure the bat reps want the kids buying a new bat every year so they have so many different weighted bats. A kid is probably better off buying heavier bats based on what I see off the radar.

Bobby,

Like your explanation. Love your game.

quote:

Originally posted by Catch43:
Where can you buy a swing speed radar?

I got mine from amazon.com. You should be able to find one for less than $100. I just hook mine to the batting cage netting - no need for the tripod if you use it this way.

quote:

Originally posted by Leverage:
BobbyTewks,

How are you measuring ball exit speed? Putting the radar on the other side of the batting cage?

We have a Jugs radar gun that we use from behind the hitter. You can get radar reading from the front or back, but I like to keep the gun safe. Since the gun picks up anything over 30 mph, we only do front flips (underhand style). This keeps things pretty consistent in terms of how much energy the thrower is providing.

Here's a link to some video showing the process:
http://www.abathletics.com/_bl...t/Bat_Speed_Testing/

BobbyTewks,

Thanks for the link. Try hitting heavy weighted baseballs off a tee. This seems to help increase power at the plate.

quote:

Originally posted by Leverage:
BobbyTewks,

Thanks for the link. Try hitting heavy weighted baseballs off a tee. This seems to help increase power at the plate.

What weight ball do you use?


I'll have some of my upper players try this. I imagine it will help them feel getting through the ball more and emphasize swing direction.

quote:

Originally posted by Quincy:
Have you done comparative swing/ball exit speeds in choosing the proper bat for each player?

The more we do this, it becomes very obvious when a player is using a bat that isn't properly sized or weighted. From a basic level, I send the player to the bat bag to try a new bat and see how the results improve. They often get a new "favorite bat" after a few swings.

From a more technical level, we are trying to maximize the force put on the ball while still maintaining consistency. We visited the Lowell Baseball Research Center (where they do the BESR cerfification) in the fall and they showed us some pretty intense air canons and high speed video. They kept talking about the MOI - moment of inertia - and how different bats react differently. When I have a player try a new bat, I am trying to match the bat with the player to maximize the MOI.

With wood bats, a 271 and a 243 are going to make a hitter feel two incredibly different things because of the weight and weight distribution. The amount of force put on the ball (and the resulting ball exit speeds) can drastically change as a result.


For intensely technical explanations:
http://www.sie.arizona.edu/sys.../momentOfInertia.pdf

quote:

Originally posted by BobbyTewks:

quote:

Originally posted by Leverage:
BobbyTewks,

Thanks for the link. Try hitting heavy weighted baseballs off a tee. This seems to help increase power at the plate.

What weight ball do you use?


I'll have some of my upper players try this. I imagine it will help them feel getting through the ball more and emphasize swing direction.

We are using a 10 ounce ball. They need to use non-game bats as weighted balls are really hard. Retired bats are best. After doing it for a couple of weeks it makes hitting a baseball like you are hitting tennis balls in the front yard. Hitters have to use them for tee work as throwing them in BP would be dangerous. We typically take 20 to 30 cuts with the weighted ball.

They will definitely feel getting through the ball when they hit regular baseballs.

This whole thing seems really cool. Here are some test ideas i had that you could do with it.

1. Test your bat speed and ball exit speed.
2. Do the same tests with heavier and lighter bats of the same model, trying to find the right weight for maximal ball exit speed.
3. Test ball exit speed with different bat models in order to find the best game bat.
4. Test strength and conditioning programs in 6 week cycles and find which ones provide the most improvement.

Theres a million things you could do.

FYI, an easy way to increase bat speed, swing a fungo before you hit. Swinging a fungo (23 ounces about) is the ideal weight for maximal bat speed. Swinging a bat faster than you swing your normal bat will teach your body to move faster than it normally does, thus adapting to higher speeds of swinging.

Lastly, about the weighted balls, simply find a handful of old balls and water log them. easy and cheap!

also can you post the link on amazon? Thanks

quote:

Originally posted by Andrew Dunlap:
also can you post the link on amazon? Thanks

This should give you the google search results for the product:
http://www.google.com/search?c...ar&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8

quote:

FYI, an easy way to increase bat speed, swing a fungo before you hit. Swinging a fungo (23 ounces about) is the ideal weight for maximal bat speed. Swinging a bat faster than you swing your normal bat will teach your body to move faster than it normally does, thus adapting to higher speeds of swinging.

Excellent idea!

Maybe they should do this in the on-deck circle also?

Did anyone see the "Sport Science" episode where they tested bat speed after swinging a weighted bat?

It was lower!

quote:

Excellent idea!

Maybe they should do this in the on-deck circle also?

Did anyone see the "Sport Science" episode where they tested bat speed after swinging a weighted bat?

It was lower!

The same principle applies with lifting, running, throwing, etc. Resistance training will build power, but not speed. The combination of power and speed will determine the force you are generating. My business partner (he'll start posting on the forums soon!) always tells our players "If you want to be slow, train slow. If you want to be fast, train fast."

An example of this is the overload/underload training. The way I explain it to new players is the overload engages the bigger muscles of the swing and forces you to be more efficient (assuming the swing doesn't break down - which is why you shouldn't go too heavy) while the underload makes those big muscles move faster. Overall, you build strength and speed (and the hitters timing usually improves as well!)

One factor to consider if using a fungo on deck is the player's confidence. Using a light bat while on deck will make the game bat feel heavier. If they feel like they can't get the barrel to the fastball, they are going to be in trouble. Testing bat speed in a training environment will help them understand and get over this mental hurdle.