Swing Mechanics - Releasing the Back Side

Backside Release - The swing mechanics of the back leg

Question: What does the back leg & foot do during the contact phase of the swing? If you ask 99% of coaches, players, etc, the answer would be pivot, squish the bug, rotate your hips, etc.


FAULT: This is actually a MYTH that has been passed down from generation to generation without really finding out what does happen.

***All premier hitters do NOT SQUISH THE BUG.
 
WHY: If a hitter pivots or squishes the bug with the back foot;
1        They lose most linear movement which results in diminished power
2        Their margin for solid contact decreases
3        The swing mechanics start to break down immediately(Cast, dip, etc)
4        The hitter becomes strictly rotational
5        The hitter has lessened their chance for solid contact if fooled by off-speed pitch    

Hitting, like many other athletic skills (throwing anything, striking in boxing or MMA, hockey slap shot, etc) requires a full weight transfer to maximize power and execution.
Hitters must transfer most if not all their weight forward against the front leg in order to maximize power and swing execution.
The back foot needs to be in a “non-weight bearing” position (off the ground, on the toe, dragging) as opposed to a weight bearing pivot or “squish the bug” position.

             
Hockey players and boxers “release their backsides” and get a “weightless” back side during impact or contact… a full weight transfer from back to against front.

Keys:
1. Roll up on inside of foot initially
2. Keep the heel of the foot behind mid-line of body(do not over rotate)
3. get to a "weightless" position at contact
4. Drive inside of back knee towards front knee

Question: Why should the hitter “release the back-side” (get most if not all weight off back foot) as opposed to pivoting or “squishing the bug” and keep some weight on back foot?
Answer: This allows the hitter to create maximum force at contact… unleash the beast! Also helps keep the hands above and inside pitch plane to create short, flat, powerful swing.Transfers ALL weight and kinetic energy to and through ball. 
 FIX/KEY POINTS:
1        The back foot must be in a non-weight bearing position at       contact (i.e. on toe)
2        Do not squish the bug
BATTING DRILLS:
1        Fungo drill            .
2        Wall/fence drill
3        Drop drill
4        Frank Thomas drill
5        Walk drill






Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Fishing made me do it

Image
Driving on I-25 towards Denver in the early summer of 2004, I was on top of the world! I was to test my new found "Facts of Hitting" teaching program on one of the best American Legion Teams in the country and do some fly fishing! Heaven!!! With the 107 degree Arizona heat in my rear view mirror, so was my inferior, theory-based coaching style!  But I was nervous as a fish out of water! How was it going to work? How would the kids and coaches receive the information that was so foreign to me, a baseball lifer, just a few months earlier? Am I walking into a perpetual mine field called baseball tradition? Would they like me as a coach? Would they respect me? But most important of all... would it truly make each one of them better?!? And would there be an explosive hatch while I was their so my fish stories wouldn't be fish stories. The whole trip, I had fished thoroughly through my mind for answers to try and be prepared for any and all questions. Arriving ea...
Read more

Swing Mechanics - Front leg mechanics

Image
Front Leg Position WHAT:   The front foot should end up flat after stride. The foot should be somewhat closed (pointing at base coach) until after contact. The foot is the anchor to the ground during the athletic striking phase of the swing.  The front leg lands bent and athletic and stays bent until contact or right after contact. The front leg angle is a key factor in solid hitting mechanics. The front leg angle is generally at 55 to 75 degrees at contact point. This angle (combined with a proper base width) allows backside release to occur without drifting over the front leg. This angle allows the hitter to hit AGAINST the front leg, rather than allowing the body to drift over the front leg. This also keeps the hitter back or behind the ball with limited head movement.                KEYS: ·           The base (distance between feet after the stride) is a...
Read more

The 4 Absolutes of Being a Good Parent of a Young Athlete

Image
I would venture to say that just about all parents of young athletes want the absolute best for their kids. That is not something I believe could become a legitimate debate. The debate begins when the subject of how to be a good parent gets mentioned. There are an almost infinite number of scenarios and angles to look at this topic... but just like in Hitting Mechanics, there are absolutes in being good parents of young athletes. Smiling Young Athletes 1. Remembering that it is their life, their likes, their "want to's" , their time, their dreams... not your life, your likes, your "want to's", your time or your dreams. We all want our kids to be good at what they do, enjoy what they do, learn from what they do and have and chase dreams. But here is the hard truth from 40 years deeply entrenched in youth athletics.Too many parents are living their own dreams through there kid. I'm not going to write a report on the psychology of this but by observation, i...
Read more