Watch Justin Stone explain 1 hitting drill that can cure 5 hitting woes. See all of their hitting, pitching and defensive videos at www.elitebaseball.tv
This is what you are doing and this is what is probably happening . . . you should be doing this . . . and this is why . . . these are the questions answered in each drill. Good teaching.
Tremendous video. Now this guy is truly an expert. He described everything my son is currently going through. What's strange, is that why do I not hear other hitting coaches explain it like him? This guy makes sense. Gonna try it out.
It is rare that I ever watch a video of this length to the end, but I will say it was very well done with great articulation and sound advice. I would however debate the idea, or teach of the hands intentionally being pushed back, going back as the lower body goes forward. From the video I have studied of elite hitters (MLB) it is rare that an elite hitter actually pushes their hands back, if ever at all, but it appears as if they do (optical illusion?) as the front shoulder tilts with the stride, or weight shift. Great job, Justin. Well done.
Rich Lovell-The Baseball Barn I think to create that stretch/rebound and torque it's necessary to actively engage the abs & shoulder to pull back. If it was simply optical and the hands stayed in the same position (or worse actually moving slightly forward as the knee/instep pushes) there wouldn't be nearly as much power created when firing forward
@Rich Lovell - - - - a scap load is not a "push" back, it is a "pull" back...…….. I know you know hitting but I think that is the idea. Nobody (that hits well) actually pushes their hands back. A strong scap load will pull those hands back and stretch the upper body into a ready to spring position like a rubber band. Andrew McCutcheon immediately comes to mind.
By far, your the best instructor I've seen on batting. Thanks so much for your videos. It's really appreciated. Great drill! I coach machine pitch for 7 and 8 year olds with balls coming in at around 40 mph. For me that's unreal for this age group. Any suggestions on how to get the proper stride in with this machine pitch speed along with the fact there is no arm action since the balls come out of the machine and not an actually person. Basically it seems hard to get these young kids to stride fast enough along with getting the proper distance in order to have " enough room" between the feet to allow for the back side to work through the baseball. Thanks.
Djura Malevic I would try and have them match their forward move up with the release of the ball. Obviously, much more difficult off a machine, but if you can get them to feel like they are "gliding" through their step, that should be a good tempo. JS
In machine pitch we used both visual and audible cues to help the hitters with their timing. The coach had our left hand on the lever, right hand in the air, and a hard, metered count from 1 to 3. Between 2 and 3 we would begin to bring our right hand down in a pseudo-pitching motion. These cues helped a lot and the team collectively hit .750+ in our last season.
My only issue with this drill in the way you change eye planes as you stride forward. You are diving into the pitch creating a variable that reduces success probabilities. If you had more flex in the knees at the start, this variable would be eliminated. Fewer variables equal higher success... Just my opinion - I hope it helps!
I see your point bro. We don't actually get to see him hit the ball off the tee to see is actual swing. I think he is just demonstrating the load stride sequence. I could be wrong but I think if he was to hit the ball of the tee you would see him drop down to the ball.
You mentioned "leaning back" during the load phase. My son has a tendency to do this, as well as squatting while loading the backside, thus creating some weak hits when he does this. When he loads his backside and is more erect or "taller" he absolutely squares it up. Is this drill a good one for this flaw and what others can I work with him on?
The video is an absolute must if you want to really build the foundation of your swing. This guy is just so spot on, great job!! @4:13 when he mentions foot skipping as he describes it this is OK and preferred your back foot shouldn't be weight bearing at contact he is just cautioning against a big long drag which is usually indicative of too big a stride.
The key to any swing is knowing proper mechanics of the body and how to maintain form w balance to maximize speed! Drills are what teach you the feel of a great swing and until you make that mind body connection you’ll never excel in any sport. That’s why this video is a good 1...
Too add, not that I disagree with this swing, but this swing is assuming all things go perfect. Therefore I teach all methods of hitting, off the back foot, on the weight transfer, and off the front foot. It’s not a matter of which method is the best, but more so about having all the methods at your disposal.
I started doing this drill with my son a few weeeks ago and it's helping his weight shift a little but his impact position with his hands is all jacked up. When he was 7/8 he was pounding the ball of a 200' fence but now at 9 he hasn't even come close. He got into a habit of flipping his hands and breaking down his wrist before impact and lost all his power and he doesn't hit the ball solid anymore at all. He's a wide shouldered lanky kid(5' 2" 95 lbs) and he just seems to look awkward at the plate now....wish I had video of him from then and now to show you so you could see what I'm referring to. He has excellent eyesight and his hand/eye coordination is well above average but I can't seem to get him putting the bat on the ball solidly. He's always been one of the best hitters in the league but from last Fall to this season it's been a real struggle...I hate to see it and I know his confidence is taking a beating. Anyway, I enjoy the videos and look forward to seeing more and hope to get my boy back on track for the Allstars coming up....
Jose Ramirez . I kid you not. He hit the ball to the fence in the air consistently at that age. We've worked really hard with him and he's now 10 years old and can absolutely crush a baseball. He's still not getting much air under the ball but definitely smoking it. He dropped 6 bombs in a row at BP two days ago though. He loves this game of baseball and it really does my heart good to see him so happy when he sees what hard work can help you accomplish.
I see a lot of videos and I'm am usually disappointed in the things I hear. I have been teaching hitting professionally for over 25 years and as my only income for about the 10 years, and I can't say I disagree with any of this video. That is rare. Very rare. I might actually recommend this guy. Only thing I would add is that my name for this drill is better, "the Babe Ruth Drill". The "step and whatever he said" not too catchy. Other than that, I'd tell you to rewind and watch this over and over and try what he is saying, then get feedback from video and a good instructor until you actually begin to grasp what he is talking about. Good stuff.
Rock Scruggs your teaching old school methods. Have the same problem with my sons coach. Philosophies change. Best example for a power hitter is Josh Donaldson. I train my son and tell his old school bunt crazy coach hands off
Steven Nihipali ichiro was a pure contact and placement hitter and w o that foot speed he wouldn’t have been such a great player. I dare you to teach your son to hit it like Ichiro someday or whoever you might teach.
This step and hit drill will teach them bad habits, this is not a good drill for younger kids. Load and shift is a better drill to run for younger kids.
I find it difficult taking hitting advice from a person who wasn’t good enough to be a pro, so with that being said.. do you guys think this guy knows what he’s talking about?
Just becasue you cannot physically do it and or had the natural talent needed to be pro does not mean you are not extremely good at the technical. Its the same like a really good hitter does not just naturally translate to a good hitting coach! Actually hitting the ball and being a good hitter is a different skill set to analyzing the swing and understanding the physics and mechanics of it! For that I would put faith in people that can make those that are good get better > trying to just copy some one that was really good but might not even know why other than "I swung...I hit...it worked".
Why do you guys want to move the hips towards the ball? Then you want to unhinge the back foot from the ground. Those two moves make you weaker at contact. Barry Bonds and Arod plus Big Papi had it right. Step to read the pitch and at the same time do not commit any weight toward the ball. It looks smooth but when you do that your head is moving and your foot now is going to come off the ground which makes you weaker at contact than you should be....care to ask me how?
You actually believe what you're shouting out to a gullible audience that on average believe you know what you're talking about through your own "successful" experience. You're defying physics! Way too many things wrong, starting at your beginning.
The Whalens LMAO. The more I hear this guy fool himself, that he would have been a decent hitter if only he had known what he believes to know now, the more I both laugh and cry. Yet another generation of baseball bad science robots to be plagued by this same nonsense. Can you see the Machado video from Twitter?
Branden Nong This drill is the absolute worst thing a hitter should ever do to start a baseball swing. If you wanna result in a golf like swing like 99.99% of hitters now do, then stay blind to what good hitters actually do.
