November 25, 2003
Girls Fastpitch Softball Hitting
vs. Baseball Hitting Part 2
In my last newsletter I started a discussion on the difference between girls' fastpitch softball hitting and baseball hitting. If you missed it, you can read it by clicking this link and then clicking on issue #004. I left out some of the differences due to space.Most of the major league coaches are advocating a swing that's rotational. What the softball hitting swing advocates is a quick, barrel of the bat to the ball in a slightly downward motion.
The biggest difference you can see visually on the baseball swing is the slight upward motion to be more in the line with the pitch that is coming in a downward plane. One other less obvious difference is the watching the rear elbow. With a baseball swing the elbow goes down and in close to the body, by the hip. With the softball swing, it stays more on the plane with the other elbow (almost like both elbows were resting on a table).
This action would show another difference in the plane that the bat's path will take. For the softball swing the bat barrel will stay above the hands, where the baseball swing will have the bat barrel lay flat (parallel to the ground) or even below that.
Now UCLA is teaching a baseball swing
Just as I was preparing this newsletter, I visited the National Coaches Clinic in Irvine, California and heard Sue Enquist talk on hitting. Her views have changed over the past 2 years and she is starting to teach the baseball swing to her hitters!This is a huge upheaval to all of us that are teaching hitting. I have talked to Larry Mays, 12 ASA national championship coach, Phil Bruder, 11 ASA national championship coach, Kim Maher, hitting coach for 2002 NCAA champions and runners-up to UCLA this past year, Bobby Simpson, international hitting clinician, and Ralph Weekly, former hitting coach to the national teams and University of Tennessee head coach. Each of them still hold to what we've been teaching, but they all respect Sue and her study of the game. Even Sue herself acknowledges that she taught the same things as we all do, just 2 years back.
I've arranged a meeting with Coach Enquist to give you the most up to date theories in hitting. So hang on to your seats, it looks like there will be a Part III.
Here are a couple of Recommendations
in time for the Holidays and the new season
If you're like me, you want the latest softball toys or want to help out your team financially. As such, you're probably in need of a little extra money each month.I have found a program that makes money that will merge TV technology with the Internet technology and delivers how to information. It's free right now, so check it out and it just might be your ticket to some extra cash.
There are some pretty big names (Mark Victor Hansen, "Chicken Soup for the Soul", Brian Tracy, #1 sales trainer in the world, Les Brown, motivational speaker, Beverly De Angelis, relationship expert, et al) are backing this, so it should go pretty big and thus help everyone involved.
Check this out now
Another way, is to make your own website, either to help your existing business or start your own.
Here's some information that's free on how to do that from the source I use to create my website and this newsletter.
Tell me what you want to know
Is there something you'd like to know or to talk about? Please e-mail me, I'd love to hear from you Click here to write to meDon't forget to sign up for my Free Hitting Lessons that will make you a better hitter. (You may have thought signing up for the newsletter was for the lessons, but it's actually two separate sign ups.) link for free hitting lessons
Welcome to the new subscribers, especially to those from Canada.
I want to help as many kids (adults) as I can. If you could help me by passing this newsletter on to your teammates or anyone you know that could use the help we're offering here, please forward this to them. Thanks in advance.
Talk to you next time.
Coach Andy