Dealing with Major League Hitting Coaches

[@davidschalk7874]

Check out Pete Rose's advice on getting out of a slump. One of the things he says is, "Your swing is what got you to the Major Leagues. Now is not the time to change it."

[@timcorey8474]

his advice is perfect , move up in the box, back in the box, away from the plate, closer to the plate, but dont change your swing.

[@ricky5369]

really cool line, but don't take that literally

[@tortillathebun8304]

A hitting coach will always try to fix things that arent broke to justify there position.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Very good point!! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@ognqski]

@@AntonelliBaseball my kids are tennis players. In that world it is even worse. Coaches in big name clinics will ask you what is your best stroke? (forehand, backhand, etc). Then they will film you and nit pick it like crazy. They will get you to change it because of this or that, then next thing you know your main weapon is gone, and time and money are ticking like crazy, and of course if things dont work out it is the players fault. Next thing you know you are totally dependent on them and drifting. I was told they do this on purpose from a former tennis academy employee. Just so you know that people are motivated by money and power in every sport. They care nothing about the player. There is a lot of that and very little wisdom for the player.

[@lfrizelle3535]

My son in 2016 went out of state to play for a 15u Majors team in Kansas City. He attended his first practice and they asked him to change his swing. The coach was Rod Meyers a former MLB player who's speciality is hitting. My son very respectfully said told him that his swing was working for him and he wanted to keep it. The coach came up to me at the end of the practice with my son beside him and bragged on my son's honesty and integrity. The coach said if you go 0-4 regularly, we'll see you and work on your swing. My son said OK, but ended up having the best average on the team and batted 3rd in the line up. Confidence is so key. Now his swing is growing, changing and evolving, but not broken. That's how I look at it.

[@lfrizelle3535]

BTW Rod Meyers is an awesome coach and a good man. Totally recommend his program KC Elite

[@KingSoap-fy1oq]

Laura Frizelle interesting because i did the same thing to a coach trying to change my swing in travel ball and almost got booted off the field even though i was hitting 400 with an even higher obp. He was trying to get me to line my knuckles up when swinging ................ so uncomfortable . What's even more funny is before the lesson he said jokingly " if you are hitting .400 we arent going to mess w. ur swing" (he said this to the group not me personally) lol

[@CSDonohue11]

Exactly. Confidence is the key. It’s unbelievable that MLB hitting coach called him in to mess with his head after going 1-4 in Matts MLB debut and didn’t just congratulate Matt for going 1-4 & getting his 1st MLB BH off of 1 of the Greatest HOF pitchers of all Time. That’s why the Padres have sucked for 20+ years. Also why you see some Guys just force their way out of being drafted by certain teams. Then you get people treating them like they should just be grateful but it’s not their lives that take a completely different path just by being drafted to a turd organization or being drafted to a real team that has real coaches that understand how to build a young man’s confidence.

[@tomshultz9554]

KingSoap88 88 99oi8

[@Criminal.Lawyer]

C'mon Matt; gotta start earnin' some of that money

[@MrGameMeister]

I wonder how many baseball careers have been sidetracked or ruined due to competing coaching methods. As Matt says you never know what's going on behind the scenes, a promising player may fail not because of their inherent ability but because they have been coached to death.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

I bet a decent amount. I've seen it happen a good amount of times. Thanks for watching!!

[@iamkurgan1126]

Coaches motivated by politics??? Screwing one player to favor another??? Happens often enough in every other line of work.

[@timcorey8474]

@@iamkurgan1126 i doubt that. these hitting coaches want to take credit for improvement in players so they have job security. They will just throw random ideas at players, had those ideas worked and turned antonelli into griffey Jr. he would be praising the advice at HOF induction. Alot of these coaches basicly bs there way thru a career after baseball. You think guys like A-rod and griffey needed a hitting coach once in the majors, you think a guy like randy johnson or roger clemens needed a pitching coach who had a 5.0 era . Competetive nature of these teams they hire anyone they think gives them an advantage, sports shrinks, voodoo doctors, etc. Most of it is b.s.

[@Nihilianth]

@@timcorey8474 Well, to be fair, Griffey had the smoothest swing in all of baseball history. Absolutely GORGEOUS. I like to use Sheffield as an example here. Gary Sheffield wasn't someone some random clinic coach could screw with. He had an awkward weird ass swing. But he had a lifetime .292 batting average over a 21 year career with 9200 AB! If Sheffield actually went through what Antonelli went through, he completely ignored them all and did his own thing. And here's why: His numbers. As long as you're producing, they can't touch you. It's YOUR skills that are in demand. These hitting coaches have the highest turnover rate in the entire sporting business. Here today, gone tomorrow to never be heard from again. A coach isn't the one performing. A coach isn't the one the team is sinking all this money into. The player is. This is true for ANY profession that requires skill or knowledge. I'm a truck driver. Under federal DOT rules, you can drive for up to 11 hours a day. I don't got much past hours of driving. Never. I have a perfect driving record. Never been in a single accident. Never been caught tailgating even with sensors and cameras on the truck that constantly monitor for that sort of thing. I've always managed to get my product to it's destination safe and sound. I've had dispatchers try to tell me this, that, the other thing. I've had safety trainers (my company requires periodic safety training) try to tell me a completely different technique for backing up a truck. I always ignore them all, and do what's I find most comfortable, accurate, and safe. Had one safety guy try to pull that bullshit on me that Matt said happened to him. He INSISTED I back up the truck a certain way at a 45 degree angle. I igored him, and backed it up MY way, which is a cross between a 45 and 90 degree angle. The way I've always backed up a truck. He tried telling my fleet manager that I was "uncoachable," and "thinks I know better than him." Yup. I do. Know why? Because of my perfect driving and safety record. I told my company they can fire me if they want, but I'll be in another truck for someone else the very next day. Meanwhile, you'll be filling my seat with a rookie driver fresh out of school that's going to flip your $250,000 rig carrying $100,000 worth of goods on the side of a road somewhere. Meanwhile, I'll have that exact same load successfully delivered without a scratch on the rig. Guess what? I kept my job, and that safety guy was the one reprimanded. Know why? Because my job is a hell of a lot more valuable than his. A baseball player, especially a first round draft pick, is a hell of a lot more valuable than some random schmucks who aren't even his team's actual hitting coach. Just a bunch of randoms from other teams in the organization attending a clinic. Same with dispatchers. I've had some actually insisting I drive up to my 11 hour allotment. Nope! Not doing it. It's MY ass in that chair behind that wheel on a deadly road. It's MY career as a captain on that large and fast land ship. If I'm done after 8 hours, I'm done. Not gonna drive an hour more. That's how the Gary Sheffields keep their goofy-looking stances/routines/windups. It's THEIR career. THEIR the ones doing the actual performance that gains actual results for the team. None of the coaches are in the lineup hitting home runs for them. Now, there IS some kind of fine line you gotta walk. You can't be disrespectful. Pull the coach aside and do what Matt said he did, in a respectful professional manner: "Hey man, I'm really sorry, but that isn't working out for me. I'm more comfortable doing it this way, and I've had more results." That's perfectly ok. That guy you pull aside to speak with like that, he can lie on you all he wants. That's on him. You did your job, and you did it in a professional manner. That's all you can do. If he's lying on you and telling false stories to coaches and scouts above you, and your agent gets wind of it and he's all pissed off at you, so be it. Nothing you can do about other peoples' actions and false intentions. All you can do, is tell your side of the story and control your own actions and go about your own career in a way that's best for you. Of that coach (or immediate supervisor) is going to write up that kind of a nasty (untruthful) report on you after trying to give you clearly bad advice, then that coach just showed his true colors. He's being a politician trying to get you out of the way in favor of someone else. It's no longer a professional environment. And if other ball players are saying the same things, then that coach will very quickly find himself on the short end of the stick. It's the Gary Sheffields who figure this out pretty darn quickly, who quietly go about their business as usual.

[@paulslobodzian8105]

My high school coach used to try and make every player have a really wide stance no matter if they felt comfortable or not. I think he did it because that's how he had stood and had success in college, so I'm sure he thought it applied to everyone. In the end, one of my good friends went in a terrible slump that year because the coach was changing his swing even though what my friend was doing previously was working for him. Just proves that not all former players make good coaches and we need more guys like you, Matt, to teach the next generations of ball players how to do things the right way. Keep up the good work!

[@CSDonohue11]

Paul Slobodzian Yeah man. Build these young Men’s confidence up. He should have just given Matt congratulations after getting a BH off of Greg F’n Maddux. Unbelievable.

[@buckeyejrd]

This was one of the best, most honest assessments of "hitting instructors" I have ever heard. Hitting is not a science - it is an art, or a skill. It most of all is muscle memory and repetition. Everyone does it differently. Obviously there are certain core principles that everyone must have, but everything else is superfluous overkill. I had the exact same experience in college as you did in the pros. Changing what I was comfortable with and making it seem impossible to hit any longer. I'm pretty sure Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig didn't have hitting instructors. What made them great? Successfully learning, through repetition, how to hit with their body, and muscles, and eyes, and brains. And since everyone has a differing degree of giftedness in each of those things, everyone will be somewhat different in their approach. The only hitters who need instruction are the ones who can't hit. Everyone else should be left alone. Love your videos. They are the most brutally honest videos about baseball I have ever seen. Great job and congrats on the baby!

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Great point and thanks so much!!!

[@Couchpatato4131]

Do a video on how much the guys in mlb lift and regular workouts you go through

[@MichaelScott-j7w]

i am so addicted to your videos... When I was 17 I threw upper 80s (touched 92) with some solid movement... ENTIRE family is made of current/former MLB players... Had a kid 18 so no more baseball for me... Wouldnt change anything of course but was always curious about the intricacies of Pro ball.... My ego is to big to ask my family all these questions your answer so THANK YOU KING

[@CoolIHandIMatt]

There once was a .400 hitter named Krantz Who had a most unusual stance But with the coaches correction His swing is now perfection But can't hit the seat of his pants

[@prestonschumacher1314]

As a college baseball player I can tell you that pitching coaches are the exact same way

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Haha most are! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@tonysahatjian3719]

Literally exactly what I’m going through right now so deflating and sucks your energy to go to the facility.

[@drizzle452]

I can totally see that coming for my boys. But there’s really no “one size fits all” technique-just basic principles. I felt like no matter what stance I took, I could hit if I was in a confident state mentally.

[@Jackmerius_Tacktheritrix5733]

All the hitting instruction you'll ever need comes from a Domingo Ayala video

[@jpoconnell8]

Da' Beetus Cat or Kent Murphy

[@carljohnson2406]

xD

[@Mangini_baseball_instruction]

This is very true! Happens all the time, everyone wants to be the hitting coach that gets you to the big leagues

[@CSDonohue11]

Matt Mangini Yup. They want to try and take the credit for your success. Sucks. Some turds will ruin a hitter just to try and be able to say they had something to do with your success. That hitting coach should Have just congratulated Matt after going 1-4 & getting a BH off of Greg F’n Maddux in his MLB debut, just to continue to build Matt’s confidence. Not say hey get in here early tomorrow I want to mess your head up. WTF?! That’s why the Padres organization has sucked for so long.

[@josephcox3091]

I honestly think that it's a professional baseball thing. I had a HS coach that played in the minors and I was changing my swing like every week in HS. It wasn't until I was a senior, worked out on my own and simulated game in my workouts to figure out what was best for me. Told my coach to basically shut up. Come spring senior year I had a really good season and was recruited to play college. I always think about those 3 seasons I wasted in HS.

[@090djc]

I’m impressed with how self aware you are. I’ve watched many of your videos and have had this thought many times.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thanks!!! Thanks for watching our videos!

[@djrdjr8888]

You were a good ball player. You are a hall of fame young man. Props to Mom and Pop.

[@robthagod4870]

I know this isn't the same, but I had the same experience in high school. I was the MVP on my team at a lower level travel ball and led my team to the championship. As soon as I got the high school, the hitting coach made everyone hit without a stride like Albert Pujols (I toe tapped). I couldn't hit without it and quit after that season. Our team was trash, which was comprised of players that did well in travel ball and everyone hated the coaches.

[@martinwill5546]

I liked the part of the story when you talked about the teammate that helped you. He watched the videos with you and you guys talked it out what worked for you. A players swing is not cookie cutter. I try to let kids be themselves at the plate and just clean up any bad habits that I see. They fact that they tried on more then one occasion to get you to leg kick is crazy. I love your videos. The hands routine video is my favorite.

[@lisafalahee4571]

Rob Deer a hitting coach? I grew up a Tigers fan and all I can remember about Rob Deer is that he was about a career .220 hitter that either struck out, walked, or hit a homerun. In 1992, between him, Tettleton, and Fielder, they hit 99 homeruns and struck out 419 times! Moneyball, they were not.

[@theeyesurgeon1]

Office topic but in one of your other posts you discussed the old metal bats. How sick was the Gen1X. Good lord it made me feel like a god my senior year. Graduated high school in 03. I’m only 5’6 and could hit a home run but was never a home run hitter until that bat. 5’6 hitting in the 3 hole on a very good Florida high school team. The only time before we had a bat that poppy was the air attack

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Haha old school metal bats were the best! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@MrGameMeister]

Hey Matt. I’ve watched this video several time as it’s quite insightful on how coaching works at the pro level. I feel for you and all the others where coaching was delivered but it was done in a passive aggressive and unhelpful way. I’m curious you opinion now looking back over it if mechanical issues the reason for your slumps or was it other things like pitch recognition, selection, discipline, or mental side of things?

[@2ndAveScents]

That’s a huge problem with the coaching industry in general. At the level you were playing at, it’s not about switching up fundamentals. You are not gonna turn someone into a Ted Williams by fucking with their swing when they are trying to make a living playing baseball. This is true of all sports, you stick with what works for the individual. It doesn’t matter how they swing, if they get the job done, that’s what counts. Hitting coaches in the majors should be focusing on timing drills, hand eye drills, mental and strategic approaches to every at bat and how to face certain pitchers. That’s it. They try to over complicate shit to justify their salary and it’s unnecessary.

[@mtty34]

Thanks for this video. I know you made it a long time ago but I have this right now with my academy and club coaches telling me different things about my swing. Helped me get my head around it.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

No problem! Thanks for watching!!

[@Wyland42]

This is basically what happened to my pitching coach back in highschool. He won the highschool state championship 4 years in a row when he was in highschool and got drafted by the reds. They literally wanted him to change everything and then he was never the same. He couldn't change how they wanted him to so they cut him. Idk why they draft talented people just to force them to change how they want them to be. Why not just use their talent?

[@Nihilianth]

Yeah, played a small amount of college ball myself. But more importantly, I became a big rig truck drivers. Bear with me here. As a truck driver, you get various different trainers and dispatchers. Exactly like what Matt was saying, they all have their different opinions on how you back up. What schedule you keep, etc. But in the end, like Matt was saying his psychologist told him: "It's your career." You do what works for you. For me, I never drove more than 8 hours in day. (You can legally drive as many as 11). Dispatchers would ask why I didn't drive out at least 10 hours that day. They would give assignments that required I pull in at 11 PN when I get up at 2:30 - 3:00 AM and be done by 1 or 2 PM. Ignore them. Ignore all that BS. I learned this very quickly, particularly as a truck driver. Those roads are literally deadly. It's MY ass on the line. Not just my career, but my actual life. Dispatchers are sitting in their nice AC (or heated) office somewhere. You never see them. They're not the ones on the roads, risking their life every single day for a bunch of candy bars or cereal or whatever. Same this with any sports. Any profession. You do what works for you. Don't allow yourself to be bullied by dispatchers, managers, supervisors, coaches, or agents and whatnot. As long as you get the job done, and you've done it safely and you go home at the end of the day in one piece, you've done an honest day's work. In baseball, you have your official statistics to show for it. Some uppity lying coach may put in a report that you're "uncoachable" all he wants. But if your method is working and you're hitting .300, you gotta stick with what's actually working. Ain't no team in the world not gonna give you a shot if you're getting the job done and showing results. Like look at Gary Sheffield and his swing. Look at his stats. You think Sheffield listened to any of these assholes? Fuck no! He did him, had a 21 year career, and 9200 AB with a lifetime career .292. Any team that rejects a player putting up numbers just because they're "uncoachable," is a team that'll wind up like the Oakland A's. These coaches are much more expendable than the players that are actually directly affecting the outcome of games. Same exact thing with truck drivers. At the end of the day, I have an excellent safety record and have never once failed to get the product to where it needed to go. I've never been in any sort of accident. Never been pulled over except for random inspections. Pass all of my random inspections with perfect scores. Dispatchers aren't the ones physically getting the product there. It's the drivers directly affecting the performance of the company. A dispatcher trying to get me out of my comfort zone, is a dispatcher that's easily replaceable. As long as you've developed a skill that's in demand, there ain't nothing any business or company can do to you. They can't fire you because they'd be the ones getting screwed. Unfortunately, Matt Antonelli was too young to really have this kind of experience in life. He was.a bit TOO humble. Being humble is fine, especially at a young and inexperienced age. But you also have to know yourself and walk a fine line between respectfully humble, and asserting your own skills and abilities that are in demand. His coaches screwed him up, when he should just smiled, nodded, and gone about his own business anyway. Exactly like what his one team coach and his psychologist were pretty much telling him to do. If someone is telling you to do something and you know in your gut that they're wrong, deceptive, or confusing, go with your gut.

[@lilwedge9]

Being a Brewers fan, I want to say I love you got to learn from Rob Deer. My opinion in hitting is the less movement you have, the less you have to mess up. I was never even a good hitter, but realized the less moving parts you have, the better you'll hit. Please let me know you're opinion on that. Looking back, I've though just keep it simple.

[@Speedy28Gonzales]

This is one of the most incredible videos I've ever seen. Love ya Matt

[@wewin03]

I had a high school coach that didnt like the way I threw the ball even though I had thrown like that all my life. So he told me to change it and not wanting to be that guy, I tried to do it how he said. Anyway it felt completely un-natural and I developed the yips and was never really able to throw a baseball straight again. So sometimes you have to know when to say no to a coach.

[@mggailitis7231]

That's a great story. Sorry to hear about the controlling asshole at the Nationals. That guy should have just stf up, let you do your thing and take credit for it in the end.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Haha thanks!!! Thanks for watching!!

[@kevinz.8107]

Thanks for your videos - really enjoy watching them. Similar thing happened to me in school took 2 seasons to get back to "normal". (You need to widen your stance and go to a high leg kick, oh and try dropping your hands and elbow).

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Haha crazy huh! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@theswingmechanic]

Thanks for this! Fascinating stories. Unbelievable that they wanted to change your swing during your call up!

[@e2go]

I think not only does this happen in the Major Leagues but in high level college baseball as well, maybe even more so. Coaches get this idea in their mind that there is only one way to do things and unless you are an ultra high level recruit or have great success immediately, they will be breathing down your neck constantly to do it that way. I saw it time and time again in college and at least 80% of the time the player would end up ruining what made them successful in the first place. Then the player would be left out to dry because coaches are only going to spend so much time with someone who isn’t playing, and now that they were fully screwed up, they weren’t seeing the field. In my opinion, hitting coaches should enhance and tweak and not totally rebuild someone’s swing unless it’s the beginning of an offseason and they plan on making a great project out of it. Even if that is the case, make sure they have some kind of commitment to you before you rebuild everything, like a scholarship. Players should always listen and be respectful, but at the end of the day, it’s your swing, your stats and your career. Make sure you don’t lose what makes you a good hitter and what makes you comfortable at the plate.

[@baileysmith4744]

i play similar to you. i hit high average and can hit with power but never hit home runs. most of my at bats are line drives and ground balls into the outfield but i cannot hit home runs out of the park (can hit inside the park)

[@MH-Tesla]

Very interesting insight. Thanks for sharing

[@mirraco323]

Maybe messing with a guys swing who is raking is one of the reason the Padres have been garbage for years now. Also, your stories from the Nationals kind of make me not like how they run their organization lol.

[@bradleygalli7745]

Thats what i was thinking. Seems like the Padres are breaking players. Always have a lot of talent with no success.

[@RadioArmitage]

Love your videos Matt! Thanks for giving some insight into the world of pro baseball! Much love from Australia!

[@brennanhyde6418]

Hey Matt, can you please make a video on how to stop "jumping at the ball."

[@shadowxpredatorful]

do you contributed the swing change to your injuries or do you think you would have gotten injured anyway?

[@chobby1830]

So this seems to describe the Mariners system under GM Jack Z. I imagine this is what happened to Dustin Ackley and a bunch of other prospects they never were able to develop, some of which went elsewhere and found success. Just constantly tweaking everything until their heads are spinning. Jerry Dipoto's approach is supposed to be the opposite of this- streamlining the whole system, from rookie ball right up through the majors- continuity throughout the whole coaching staff at every level.

[@adamdavis4417]

Chobbes as a brewers fan I remember jack z very well. A ton of fans were pissed we let him go. In the end he got lucky with like one or two drafts and bounced. I can’t really say he ran the mariners into the ground because he did draft talent, and they weren’t considered a successful team when he got there. So maybe it was ownership? Or perhaps jack could scout talent, not coaches?

[@CSDonohue11]

Dude the hitting coaches are doing too much. I think they called you up too quick as well. They should have let you get your groove for a lil longer to build your confidence back up and especially shouldn’t hav called you right in the next day Messing with your swing after going 1-4 & getting A hit off of Greg Maddux in your debut. WTF?! They should have just been congratulating you. That’s why the Padres are such a bad organization or @ least have been for the last 20 years. That hitting coach sucks. He should have congratulated you and told you Good job just to build your confidence. That’s the most important thing of everything is being confident. Some of these haters want to think it’s their doing when you do Good and want to try & take the credit & say it was even though it had absolutely nothing to do with them. How weird. Sucks man. You can tell you’re A Great dude. I hope that hitting coach isn’t in baseball @ all anymore. I’ll have to try and see who it was when you came up.

[@TP82396]

first year of college my coach was trying to change my swing because i pulled the ball to much and did not go opposite field enough and it hurt me more trying to go opposite field on outside pitches when usually i could just foul them off and or lay off and wait for the pitch i could handle and put up the middle or pull for power

[@mikeangelson]

You should give baseball another go ! What better job is there?

[@mrlafayette1964]

There's been a lot of good MLB players with wide stances,Bagwell comes to mind. I remember you in the ACC,quick bat and good arm,sorry the dream ended that way.

[@stoneyj1a1]

Joey Meyer? No way. The former Brewer who hit longest HR in history? Bummer dude, seems all those coaches really screwed you up and screwed you out of a career.

[@alecmcjarison999]

The old fart hitting coach's are shit. We need more young guys like you who actually understand how slumps work and how to fix them

[@davemenzimer5721]

Sometimes "old farts know more than just how to stink up the place. Yea buddie.

[@coachfrankperez7176]

Yes they do all good hitter have high elbows at front foot touch

[@MICKEY1982DJ]

So what can you do if the person coaching your child tells you that your child needs to swing down but you trained your own child to turn the barrel to have an early swing path to the ball coming in.

[@christianroman738]

Can you help on ways we can get used to what happens in the back leg or drills we can do?

[@liammcentee6617]

As a college player with power how would you handle a hitting coach how wants to change your mechanics and wants you to swing at 60 to 70 percent of your max. Effectively making you an average hitter. So Ignore, reason, what ?

[@bmarla1313]

My thoughts... Hitting coaches seem to try to cookie cut players. Happens all the time. You progress thru high school then college and if you dont hit a few games they try to reinvent the wheel . I personally have seen them take a good hitter and turn them into a bad hitter overnight.

[@chrisd2722]

I was never a pro ball player, after the navy I joined a men's hardball league or what they called "semi-pro ball". My uncle put together a hitting clinic and had a few former pros come in to teach guys. My uncle got me in there and I was paired up with George foster who is a hall of famer and played for 1975 reds..... who beat our Red Sox.... now I'm 5'5" like 100 lbs soaking wet and I was always told to get as low as possible to make my strike zone small. That always felt so uncomfortable but I walked a lot. George looked at 2 swings and told me stop stepping and spread my legs out like Jeff Bagwell because my swing was too slow..... long story short I still suck

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Interesting stuff!!!! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@KingSoap-fy1oq]

(this is back in hs ball) so its non comparable to this guy although i did move past hs ball. Anyway, i remember i was raking that year (year i won mvp) i was hitting around 460 ish as a leadoff hitter sometime 3hole hitter and we were at a practice thing where this coach was trying to get everyone and thwir second cousin to hit with their knuckles lined up and drop ur elbow. Now when i did this i was a popup machine. i Normall hold the bat like i always do and always have my elbow as high up as i can till its almost strained. i remember ingot in for bp and i wasnt listening to him and he started getting mad. And before this all happened he said if any of u guys are hitting 400 we aint gonna touch ur swing. so i told him and he got all mad and the damn guy threw me out but my coach didnt care cus inwon the batting title that year and finished hitting at 464 ( i also played in the same area hs ball as mike trout . trout is from millville i was from cmc so same type of pitching playing teams like holy spirit,buena,and sacred heart and st augie)

[@hsafranify]

Matt - thank you for this! Nothing worse than any baseball coach behaving like a narcissist and/or plain toxic. I dealt with it in college. Then it can get worse when there are a couple of "flying monkey" teammates sucking up to any coach in power who is a narcissist and/or toxic in some way (whether covert or overt).

[@alexanderwinkins7158]

This might sound weird but one year I copied Ryne Sandberg swing and stance and I was raking everything, before that I was a below average hitter.

[@theswingmechanic]

Matt, do you think that possibly you were kept down because of that interaction with that coach playing for the pirates?

[@mclew1234]

Really interesting watch, I coach university baseball/softball in the UK and we have issues teaching hitting, as we are all student player/coaches every time a player comes to BP there is someone new usually working on their swing, do you think it might be more beneficial then to have 1 coach working on the swing rather than several coaches working on the swing

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thanks!!! I think it can get confusing when too many coaches are offering opinions. I think if you have multiple coaches you all need to make sure you are on the same page before offering up suggestions to players. Good luck!!! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@ceadeses]

Have you ever delt with Kenny Joyce he is from Maine and a hitting coach I think he is with the Yankees double A. I don't know him myself but know his brother Kevin.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Nope I never worked with him before. Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@patobrien3928]

Could you help hitters with being able to see the ball? I have a hard time tracking the ball

[@stevendeckert6373]

That story makes me like the Nationals organization even less.

[@hazelwood55]

I remember hearing a story that Ted Williams was the Red Sox roving minor league hitting instructor and he always had players uppercut on the ball. Then the players came up to Boston and Walt Reniak would have them chop down on the ball and all the young hitters got screwed up.

[@saurondp]

Yeah, hitting styles are NOT one size fits all. I think Wade Boggs credited Hriniak with helping his swing, but other successful players just stuck with their own style. I still vividly remember watching Rich Gedman taking one-handed swings at breaking balls in the dirt.

[@bryantperdomo7374]

How can a player get in contact with MLB Scouts in College ?? and try to get tryouts with them ?

[@mickeymelendez1605]

Hey can you a video on how to understand major league baseball WAR....?

[@AntonelliBaseball]

I actually probably don't understand it as well as a lot of other people that are in front offices. I wish I knew more about it! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@martindeslugger8048]

This is situation is the epitome of "if it ain't broke don't fix it."

[@avender6077]

I have and I’m not out of 13U

[@jgiff1436]

Do you have a winter ball program?

[@hectoraz98765]

Is it annoying to ball players when fans start yelling at them just for a toss up??

[@ThunderPants13]

Rob Deer being a hitting coach is like Charles Manson being a family therapist.

[@buckeyejrd]

I was thinking the same thing! Is this the same Rob Deer who would hit a 450ft home run once every month, couldn't bat his weight, and struck out about 200 times a year? If so I would have run away as fast as I could from that guy! Maybe Anto, being a youngster, wasn't familiar with his career stats!?!

[@adamdavis4417]

As a brewer fan all I can say is rob deer is very .. interesting. I didn’t think he ever really fit, but a lot of fans and players liked him, especially around here. He reminds me of a Craig Counsell. Another dude brewer fans nut over that I can’t stand. Now there is the worst swing in baseball. How was that never changed??

[@davemenzimer5721]

This question is a little out there. Goofing around trying to play the drums, the way drum sticks bounce off the drum feels a bit like bat & ball. Seems to me that could in some way help with hitting. If you do a little drumming see if you might agree. Call me what you like but in 1967 the nicknamed me Boomer. I have the papers to this day!!!!

[@Stooch]

i hope somebody is still reading my first year in highschool i could hit it anywhere i wanted, it took one coach to ruin it for 3 years he told me if i didn't change my swing i would sit bench, and i sat bench because he had no idea what he was talking about

[@AntonelliBaseball]

@@Stooch sorry to hear that was the case!

[@mikegibbons2889]

Its sounds to me that there is some type of Sabotage going on. It makes sense especially after you spoke your mind and this Nats hitting coach took your plea way out of context. I only played to small college level, and was a decent lefty pitcher n hitter but all through this time I would get mixed messages from certain coaches. But at the pro level they would know they are messing with your head because we both know baseball is 90% mental. Also, how could they say with a straight face that stats dont matter. Stats are what directly relate if you are getting better as a hitter. At least you got a taste of the show, you must have known many on your rise that never got the chance. Thanks for sharing.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@Sphere723]

Rob Deer was your hitting coach? Did he ever teach you how to strike out 180 times in a season?

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Haha yes he was. I enjoyed playing for him. Thanks so much for watching!!!

[@brianwhitehead90]

Great story 😉.....man

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thanks!! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@davidrybkiewicz1318]

Matt can you do a video on bryce harpers mechanics

[@KingSoap-fy1oq]

there is so many moving parts in his load and swing but when he comnects its power. hes hitting about 240 right now with 20 rbis and 6dingers so hes settling in alright. id like to see him hit 255 ish but he also steps out alot when he needs to step straight on. itnworks for him. hes a streaky hitter. hes in a slump now but hes ok rnow. we all know he always gets hot l8 in the year. last year he hit 250 100rbi 35 hr....which is fine and a good year (bdown year for.him) but good. borderliine hof guy

[@stuckinchaselandia6427]

Dude, that shirt! Has anyone ever mentioned to you that the foul lines look like legs, and the plate...well... lmao. Maybe I just have issues.

[@burrr6873]

Politics and and ego on the big league side!! BS

[@davidrybkiewicz1318]

Matt what did you do right after you got drafted?

[@davemenzimer5721]

Probably....Jump 4 Joy????

[@dannyboyle169]

How many other good players got coached all the way back home.

[@BlaineDP]

In your whole story the only smart guy was minor league coach who said "Don't change anything and just keep on raking". Now, it'd been nice to have video of your previous "good" swing and work off that the whole time...but knowing why you hit well with those previous mechanics is what was key. Timing, head on the ball, bat path, swinging at good pitches ect.. what you do now with you teaching hitting/mechanics is great how you increase bat speed for guys. The Nationals coaches just show how stupid many of them really are at all levels. Glad you stood up to the Nationals "coach". You should have asked him "How many .300 hitters have you developed?" and I'm sure the answer would have been "Zero".

[@prorobo]

Same thing happens in other sports. See Jordan Spieth.

[@miri9885]

I've always wondered how a professional HC can think he is qualified enough to coach someone to be a hall of fame hitter when the coach himself is not one. It's like having a reckless driver teach you how to drive, makes no sense. The first thing you should have told all those clowns was "Can You Show Me How to Hit the Long Ball?" Enjoy your videos...

[@crazymonkey3689]

YES.... I know exactly what you were talking about. But it wasn't baseball... if was college football.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

I hear ya!

[@jko0526]

That’s what is happening to my son already in 8U and he was having a hard time hitting the ball when he was real young and now he smashes the ball. He is the best hitter on the team and they keep trying to change him.

[@Brody1007]

J. Ko 8U? Shut up.

[@ricky5369]

I cannot believe your agent called you and they said you were uncoachable, that is an insane ending to the story. Maybe you were supposed to act like you were going to take their advice so that they could THINK you had room for growth from them? I would think hitting coaching would be more of a legitimate science. They have so much money you would think they could develop mechanics to make most people better. Another thing I definitely would have done is show them the tapes of you hitting and go into detail then ask them what they think you should do given your situation.

[@michelorphey5227]

They’re paid to do that. Haft to make it look like they’re doing something. I think if you make it to the majors you have been coached enough.

[@Joeystrauss42]

Did you ever pitched?

[@jpoconnell8]

Joey Strauss cmon man, ur better than that

[@thenukeman3657]

Joey Strauss Yea, English please

[@Jackmerius_Tacktheritrix5733]

Joey Strauss Did you ever grammar?

[@tomasito4106]

Ur shirt 😍

[@timmydacheese9962]

If ur raking then just let them rake

[@garydavis5703]

If it works, why change anything? Leave well enough alone....:)

[@povertygarage705]

Shohei has a very high elbow. Someone should try to "fix" him. 😆

[@TomNguyen]

I hate Walt Hriniak's swing!

[@austinpace7885]

He was just trying to justify his job

[@CSDonohue11]

Austin Pace Exactly. Terrible. There’s people and especially @ those levels but even in every day life there’s people that want to try and be able to take credit for your success. That coach just destroyed his confidence hitting him with that BS right after his 1st game that he actually got a BH off of an HOF pitcher, 1 of the All Time Greats. That hitting coach should have just said Good job Matt, Keep up the Good work, we’re glad to have you on the team.

[@marchebert9813]

This is why I HATE booing fans. You guys are under so much pressure. Literally to feed your families. The least tge fans can do is try to build the HOME TEAM up. You listening, Philly fans!?

[@SevenCostanza]

really weird baseball waste a lot of their players good years in minors. i mean 22 youre in youre athletic prime they should be getting mlb use out of em. i watch hockey and if you havnt got a spot in nhl by 22 youre starting to get worried

[@dfens1987]

People think they need to deserve their job.

[@heavylit1760]

Kinda sad

[@glgoonery7201]

Damn, I would be depressed if I were you. Got robbed of a solid mlb career because of injuries and some poor coaching

[@Hjaelteomslag]

That's just bad attitude, man! I assume Matt is glad he got to the majors and is happy he now gets to work with young baseball players and make a living from baseball. I'm sure he feels dissapointed sometimes but there is no reason for him to be depressed. If you knew how few players that become veterans out of all that were once drafted your perspective would be different. You'll understand when you grow up.

[@KingSoap-fy1oq]

coming up in a highly dysfunctional organization like the Padres and hearing this does not surprise me. Thats like being drafted by the Browns. Sounds to me u were dealt a shitty hand. I know i will get h8 for this but it is the truth.

[@jefforta4989]

Damned if you do and damned if you don't.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Haha yup! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@simpleagain1]

So sad what conflicting confusing coaches advice will do to players