Taking Hands to the Ball

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Danger....Will.... Robinson....

Visual hands flayling in the air......

Hands to the ball?

Try the hips first and let the hands follow.

BTW where have all the hitter guys gone?

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Try the hips first and let the hands follow.

Amen brother! I don't think anyone really wanted to get into this one.

Started my son early on with the "short bat" one handed drills. First bottom hand then top with the object to drive inside, to and through the ball. With the short bat, you have to go straight forward to make contact.

Today, mucho years later, still start every hitting session on the Tee, beginning with that drill (use regular bat now of course). Furthermore, while hitting in the cage, always begin hitting only to the right side, and then progress "driving the ball the length of the cage EVERYTIME." You kind of reinforce the idea, after years of repetition, that hitting the ball "gap to gap" is a good objective.

Hey Prime9 I am getting to like you.

Those short fat bats are good, particularly to build up the forearms and bat control, but you must always be connected to the hips.

Seems like the hands start behind the hips. How do they link up if the hips go first?

floridafan,
check the hands and the back hip of nearly all MLB hitters at the start of the swing after heel/stride plant. What do you see? Are the hips firing first or the hands firing first?

Or....are they firing in unison with the hands trailing the hips because of their starting position?

When was the last time you ever told a hitter to "trust his hips" and when was the last time you said "trust your hands"? Doubftul any hitter has been told to trust his hips.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by BOF:
Hey Prime9 I am getting to like you.

BOF .... my wife, and others, might say liking me is much like learning to drink scotch. I.E. it's an aquired taste that for many just never happens!

Have a great day and for the record, "I listen when you speak."

quote:

Originally posted by floridafan:
Seems like the hands start behind the hips. How do they link up if the hips go first?

The rear hip turns/moves forward as the hands and forearms turn the barrel rearward. When cusp is reached, the rear hip pulls/yanks the arc created by the turning forearms forward. It is all a loading process until cusp is reached.

My only point is that hands may need to move first to get aligned with the hip. Then they fire together.

My son has always been told to have his hands in motion, to combat inertia. If the hands go first, but only to the point of finding alignment with the hip, then go together. That is real power.

quote:

Originally posted by floridafan:
My only point is that hands may need to move first to get aligned with the hip. Then they fire together.

My son has always been told to have his hands in motion, to combat inertia. If the hands go first, but only to the point of finding alignment with the hip, then go together. That is real power.

Agreed and that's why it is so important for the hands and forearms to take the barrel rearward first, so the rear hip can turn in front without creating slop in the swing. Syncing both pivot points is key to having a consistent swing. The unload (hip thrust and hands taking barrel to the ball)of the hips and hands happens at the same time.

When I hear or say "hands go first" this means syncing them up with the hip to explode together. Obviously if the hands lead the swing, infront of the hips, everything will fall apart, at least from a power perspective.

S.Abrams - I think you and I are in agreement and you have helped me make my point.

quote:

Originally posted by S. Abrams:
floridafan,
check the hands and the back hip of nearly all MLB hitters at the start of the swing after heel/stride plant. What do you see? Are the hips firing first or the hands firing first?

I have a lot of high speed video of pro, college and high school hitters. With pro hitters, I see the hands, hips and back knee attacking the ball together as the front heel moves toward the ground/plant. The stance, foot placement, flexibility of the player often dictates if the hands or hips have to cheat to get moving together, but the most explosive movement I see on video is all three of these pieces moving together.

Also, the hands of pro hitters almost always settle in front of the back shoulder before attacking the ball. College/HS players tend to start their hands higher and then drop their hands before attacking the ball. They get "disconnected" or "un-linked" and the swing becomes loopy. Pro players are very, very consistently direct to the ball with their hands.

floridafan,
Just here to help those I agree with and spread enlightenment to the others.

Preswing motion is a good thing in most hitters as it helps keep the hands/hips/shoulders loose...so they can work in unison. I like what POF said about synching pivot points.

Semantics often get in the way of hitting discussions...everybody has catch phrases,etc. that just muddies the water. KISS is the best system for most baseball players.

quote:

Originally posted by BobbyTewks:

Also, the hands of pro hitters almost always settle in front of the back shoulder before attacking the ball. College/HS players tend to start their hands higher and then drop their hands before attacking the ball. They get "disconnected" or "un-linked" and the swing becomes loopy. Pro players are very, very consistently direct to the ball with their hands.

This is spot on. Almost every HS hitter I see has their hands disconnected and out in front. That is why I HATE the term "hands to the ball"

quote:

Originally posted by BOF:
That is why I HATE the term "hands to the ball"

The phrase certainly isn't for everybody, but for some players it can help. I prefer "take the barrel to the inside part of the ball."

A drill I love using instead of saying "hands to the ball" is putting a hitter's back foot against a fence for dry swings. If they loop/drop/get long, they hit the fence. If you are at a batting cage, you can step on the net with your back foot to get the same effect.

Again, video is an extremely powerful tool. Showing a player high speed video of themselves versus a pro player can be extremely beneficial.

Allot of the time, its detrimental to over-analyze this ****. Just swing hard and things will take care of themselves.

quote:

Allot of the time, its detrimental to over-analyze this ****. Just swing hard and things will take care of themselves.

Not if you let go of the bat.....

And, please don't curse on a High School board...OK?

Hey Blue Dog since when is **** cursing?

Glad your back I need a little aggravation...

quote:

Originally posted by BlueDog:

quote:

Allot of the time, its detrimental to over-analyze this ****. Just swing hard and things will take care of themselves.

Not if you let go of the bat.....

And, please don't curse on a High School board...OK?

C R A P is not cursing, but apparently the communist sensors think so.

These kids need to grow up sometime....

I was alway told its hips that fire first, then the hands. By allowing the hips and bottom half to turn first it triggers the upper body and hands follow thru after creating torque, giving the hitter more power.

When coaches say hit the ball with your hands it sometimes gives a kid the wrong impression because they will swing with there upper body first, so they dont use there legs and hips which are vital to a good swing and good timing.

Bluedog,

Atta Babe. Well said...

Film clip is interesting...watching Williams stride foot landing and where it is pointing (nearly directly at the pitcher) certainly isn't something that Williams himself espoused.

Love BP swings. LOL.

Here's a very good article by Perfect Game's David Rawnsley on evaulating Batting practice that may shed some light on taking the hands to the ball.

Evaluating Batting Practice