Posted by: The Hitman (ahsnumber3@aol.com) on Wed Mar 6 23:33:18 2002

Jack, I reviewed my swing today and I hit the ball fairly hard. I noticed some differences in my initiation and the swing frame #1 on your site.
> As my hands seperate I get a lot of cock in my bat. I am left handed so if you looked at my swing from the right batter's box side the top of the barrel would be hidden behind my head. At my initiation, my back shoulder is slightly lower than the front(about 3 to 4 inches) and my back leg is not as rotated as frame #1. Also my front knee is bent, but not as much as frame #1. In frame #1 the hitter's shoulders are almost level and he has about a 90 degree bend in his back leg.
> I was hitting on a gym floor of a pitcher throwing on a knee at about 20 feet away. On my finish, the front toe points up at the end of my follow through.
> I noticed that throughout my swing I was closed off with my front foot about 4 to 5 inches. This may have been why my back foot was rotated less at initiation. The pitches I had the most trouble with were well inside and this may be due to lack off reaction time hitting at a short distance. I popped most of those pitches up. I noticed I was keeping my arms very relaxed and trying to stay back and rotate. My transfer mechanics looked good.
>
> So this brings me to a few questions.
>
> 1. Do I need to be more toward the pitcher and not closed off with my front foot?
>
> 2. How can I get more bend in my front knee so that my shoulders are level at initiation?
>
> 3. Would a little less cock in my bat at seperation help me?
>
> 4. Is the front toe coming up at the follow through a sign being too far back?
Hey Matt
Don't get carried away turning that front toe in 4 inches closed, it does nothing for power, and it makes it harder, and longer, to get to the inside pitches. Most M.L hitters have a good amount of cock in their bat at launch. The Heigth of your hands determines the level of your shoulders. I don't think u want to dip your back shoulder at launch because it could lead to a huge uppercut, and it could cause you to drag the bat through the zone. Simply raise your hands up, or try to elevate your back elbow. I think the front toe coming up after follow through could be a number of reasons. 1. You uppercutted, and dipped your back shoulder like crazy. 2. You failed to transfer your weight to the front leg. 3. You have a wide stance.
The Hitman