CSB Question and Answer Session

This article is going to consist of questions from our readers. Over the past seven months, we have received a ton of questions regarding mechanics. This is the first Core Savvy Baseball™ Q and A session. I hand picked two entries from our readers about hitting mechanics that I believe to be popular questions that will help the masses.  The CSB Team will only answer two questions per article to make sure we do not overload you with information.

1. Question from Robert A., Cincinnati, Ohio

My ten year old is having problems hitting slow pitching. He seems to be way out in front of them when he swings. Have you heard of this before? I am looking for drills that will help him with this problem. I recently bought a thunderstick for him to practice with, could it be part of the problem?

CSB Team Answer :

Hey Robert thanks for the questions. I would say that the biggest issue for youth hitters is called disconnecting. Your Son is suffering from a very common flaw. 

Disconnecting happens when the hands and arms initiate before the core/torso, which is why your Son is ahead of everything.The core of the swing comes from the torso, not the arms like many people believe. Tools like the thunder stick (a light training bat), will only make your Son want to use his arms more. Your Son is most likely used to the light weight of the training bat, and now in games he wants to do the same things mechanically. 

So how do we fix flaw this so your Son can be on time and utilize his power?

The first thing your Son needs to begin to understand is where the power in the swing comes from. The power in the swing is initiated from the core and torso, not the arms. A drill that you and your Son can do that will almost instantly make him understand where the power comes from is called the one-knee drill. 

What this drill will do is make your Son use his core to get his swing started, not his hands. This is an easy drill that I suggest be done 3-5 times a week. Some of the best hitters on the planet use the one-knee drill religiously. The reason the one-knee drill is so effective is because when we hit off the ground, we must use our core to generate power and bat speed because our legs are completely out of the equation.. Naturally your Son’s hands will stay back using this drill, because he can no longer drift forward with his legs, disconnecting and getting ahead of every pitch. This drill will make your Son turn from his backside (helps keep weight back), which is optimal. Your Son will also instantly feel his timing improve when he stands back up to hit. 

As hitters we cannot use linear momentum to go forward. The one-knee drill is the best teacher of the rotational swing that exists. 

Try this drill with your Son and let us know his progress.

2. Question from Mark S., Baltimore, Maryland

I'm a 6'2 220 pounds, a freshman in high school and use a 34 inch 31 ounce bat. My problem is that I am hitting pop-ups that travel far but they are still pop-ups. I do not know why. What do you think I should do to fix this?

CSB Team Answer :

Hey Mark, thank you for the question. The mechanical flaw you have is extremely common, so do not worry. It's called bat drag. 

First off, a 34, 31 is way too much to get around consistently, even for a player your size. The first thing that I would do is go out and buy a 32 inch 29 ounce bat. Even Barry Bonds used a 31.5 inch bat (small bat = a ton of barrel control). This will instantly increase your bat speed and your pop-ups will travel 30ft further as a result.

Bat drag occurs when our hands drift away horizontally from our body when we begin to rotate our hips, core. When our hands drift, the elbows lead the swing, causing the angle of the barrel to slice through the ball instead of through it. Some coaches call this "casting", at CSB we prefer bat drag. The result of bat drag is a ton of pop-ups to the opposite field side. 

This is what bat drag looks like. I apologize for how grainy the picture is. As you can see below, the hitter's hands have drifted away from his body as he begins to turn. Also his elbows are clearly leading the hands which will cause him to slice the ball instead of hitting through it. .

Look at the picture below of Pujols. Take a look at his hands. They are clearly leading the elbows which will keep him inside and through the baseball. This is why his pop-ups go out of the park. 

How do we fix bat drag?

I believe the most useful drill to fix your bat drag would be the one-knee drill. The one-knee drill will make you initiate your swing from your core/torso and not your hands. Your hand path will naturally become tighter to your body through practice on one-knee.

We want our hands to rotate around the axis of our body as tight as possible to allow ourselves to eliminate as much drag as possible. The one-knee drill will help you find your natural, short hand path to contact point.

Remember when you practice the one-knee drill have the person feeding you be no more than 30ft away. This will ensure the velocity you are seeing is relative to game speed. It is ok for you to be late in this drill.

Once you pick up a 32 inch 29 ounce bat, you'll feel your bat speed increase. Your popups will turn into line drives into the gaps if you use this drill 3-5 times a week.

The most important thing the one-knee drill will do for you is keep your hand path short and through the baseball.

Let us know how it goes and send us any other questions you have.

That's it for the first CSB Q and A Session. Keep the questions coming!

CoreSavvyBaseball@yahoo.com