Hitting Instruction and Drills

[@richbiagioli8585]

I've used these techniques for a few years to 7-10 year olds. The hitting has greatly improved. Teaching this and a few other thing made it easy for kids to pick up consistent swing. Thanks guys.

[@dnasportsonline]

Thanks for your feedback Rich. Please keep us updated, and feel free to follow us on our website and FB

[@pat2e962]

Great teachings coach. Im 40 and did same thing regarding the Kirby Puckett leg kick. Now i coach my kids on the team much differently. Small ball is king with the grown guy, gone are the windup stances!!

[@dnasportsonline]

We teach lower body rotates first - kinetic chain starts from the ground up. What we were focusing on was making sure that when a player starts his swing with the lower body, the upper body does not fly out with it. As the lower body rotates, the upper body resists. In theory, the lower body starts with a 45 degree turn. The shoulders remain closed. This pulls the bat into the hitting zone.

[@coachs267]

Hey guys I appreciate the videos. Not sure what some of these critics have problems with. If I've learned one thing, it is that there is a million ways to do some of these things. Not sure I agree with the numbers but a local college hitting coach mentioned a few years ago that even a majority of good mlb hitters may have something mechanically that isn't the best but with their physical capabilities (strength, quickness, etc) allow them to get away with it, or they make another change somewhere in the swing that equals out the mechanical issue. Our #1 rule is not to change anything on kids who are having success, that being said we have tons of kids who are not hitting and some of the first things we do are: 1--Get rid of the big strides (I'm big lift foot and put it down where it was) and stop our hitters from stepping forward on their strides. A big stride and a big step forward seem to go together and equal bad hitting. 2--Grip on the bat. This is probably the one thing we started looking at after seeing some of your hitting videos. We say line up the back of your fingers and point your pointer finger. 3--We also work on that idea of having the back elbow up. I've heard this from so many kids I want to scream. We try to focus less on how high the elbow is and try to focus on maintaining a 90' angle with your arms from load until you start to extend (I guess you would say). We got this from a clinic guys several years ago. 4--The other thing I am tired of hearing is linear swing people saying to hit down on the ball. We want kids to think about hitting through the ball if that makes sense. (I am not a proponent of linear hitting systems, I can't get past the idea that the ball moving toward the base on a downward plane and the bat moving toward the ball on a downward plane.) 5--We want our hitters to limit the movements they make.

[@dnasportsonline]

Thanks for you comments and insights. I like your approach, and your athletes are lucky to have you as their coach. The criticisms doesn't really bother me that much - our record as coaches speak for themselves, and it comes with the territory when you put your information out to the public. What does frustrate me however is the inability for detractors to communicate in a collegial and respectful manner. I'm not sure why this "I'm right, you're wrong" culture exists among baseball coaches, but it is really setting the sport back. Instead of recognizing that there are many different approaches and philosophies, we spend our times bashing others. Perhaps this started with Mike Epstein, who based a lot of his philosophy on trying to prove others wrong. I'm not sure. But it is pervasive within baseball coaching circles, more so than other sports. It is also frustrating when coaches try to apply major league mechanics to youth league players. In a lot of respects, we are comparing apples to oranges. When was the last time you heard of a youth basketball coach trying to get his 10 year old to match the jump shot release point of a NBA player? Yet we do this with baseball, which again I think sets the sport back.

[@johnjohnson3471]

In all due respect, because I do appreciate what you're doing to help the little ones. Mike Epstein once said; "do we teach what we really see?" Point one, knocking knucles grip is silly. No mlb player in the history of the game uses that grip, not even the man you mentioned yourself;Ted Williams. The bat handle lays across the caluses, where the fingers meet the hand. (comfort is key.) Secondly, the back elbow DOES get to a relatively high position in order to properly load the bat. C'mon.

[@treyphipps3609]

Just wanted to add that I used the finger pointing method today with one of my kids that I do private lessons for. It was amazing how well he understood being 10 years of age. I also could not stop him from over striding, then I saw your ball between the legs drill and it worked like a charm. You guys are breaking barriers for small time trainers everywhere. Please continue the great tips. Also, how much do you emphasize on muscle memory when you are coaching youth? Thanks

[@andrewpohl3324]

Thanks for your comments, Trey. Glad our videos are making a positive impact for you. In terms of muscle memory - yes, we do emphasize. Key for us is the adoption of the deliberate practice model - very intensive practice sessions with instant feedback and the focus on one or perhaps two highly specific movements at a time in order to build that muscle memory.

[@mbmurph100]

The Phase is " your hips should be fully rotated at the point of contact" The exception may be a pitch on the outside corner you let get deeper before you come through.

[@michaeldoesfunstuff4992]

I like the young coach. I agree with him on everything!

[@erickirwan3810]

I coach an 8u machine pitch team and agree with your instruction. You guys have a very good understanding of the swing and the difference between an 8 year old and a major leaguer. I have a couple of players with their back elbow up bc that’s what dad teaches. As a coach, how do I deal with this? Kid has coach telling him the right thing, dad telling him something different, and kid doesn’t know what to do. Probably the biggest problem with elbow up for an 8 year old is they can’t line their knuckles up.

[@dnasportsonline]

If the parent is around, you should set them straight in an appropriate manner. Explain why the back elbow is wrong and most importantly, help the child and parent understand that coaches want coachable players.

[@stevensanders9178]

Hey could you guys put up some videos using this technique to hit would love to see the results I have tried to keep it simple for the kids because they resist when you try to coach them up because mom and dad are coaching them at home the mom and dad hit when they were kids. I like the way you make the point that the elbow is going to come down anyways to keep the swing level. Thanks keep it up.

[@ginardidom406]

I love this video because its true I was hitting 140 average the next year. I went to the US baseball clinic they taught the same thing less movement the better you see the baseball. Thanks for making this video if you do. Also I batted 440 hitting this way.

[@dnasportsonline]

Exactly - as indicated, even great hitters get jammed. Nobody wants to thrown inside anymore - everyone works away. That's why we are advocating this approach.

[@rickfranklin1935]

"The more you move the more you can mess up. " NO STRIDE! Foot up, foot down. Also, have the kids hold the bat by the barrel to avoid swinging it in the dugout and killing someone. Back elbow up is BUNK! Great video. Thank you!

[@dnasportsonline]

rick franklin Thanks Rick. We are always learning, and we make sure that we can explain and justify everything we teach (i.e - won't teach a skill a certain way just because we were taught that way, or we won't try to copy these guys on TV with superhuman talent and say that because a MLB guy does it, it must be right for a youth player)

[@dnasportsonline]

Yes, clearly anyone can keep their back elbow up and fingers pointed in the right direction. What we are saying is that ONE cause of an unnatural high back elbow can be an incorrect grip, most notably holding the bat too deep in the palm of the right hand, rather than the fingers. If this is the case, fixing the grip will correct the back elbow position. With that said, hitters can still have the right grip but a high elbow. We never said this wasn't possible.

[@xXEndLessKaosXx]

No problem, i think ill do just that once i get home from our road trip

[@dnasportsonline]

Thanks for the feedback EndLessKaos. Please check out our website and our Facebook Page for more training materials. We also have more training videos posted on KZbin. If you want, feel free to post a video of you hitting. We would be happy to analyze it for you and give you more individualized feedback. In addition, feel free to reach to us personally for more instruction. We are here to assist!

[@dnasportsonline]

We can agree to disagree on this point, but you can't teach everyone to hit the same way. While certian principles apply, you have to take into account a hitter's age, size, strength, maturity, predispositions, etc. If you've ever experienced working with high school hitters who are not strong enough to handle a minus 3 bat, or a youth league player in a wood bat league, you will understand our perspective on how teaching hitting at the youth level is different than the MLB/College Level.

[@johnjohnson3471]

You're making my point with your comments. Hunter Pence - would you teach his over stride? Would you teach to bail the front shoulder like Ichiro? Would you teach to arm bar like Michael Young. Those are all rhetorical questions. But, I'll play along. Of course we would not "teach" per se, any of those things, the same way that,(tell me if i'm wrong) the guys you mentioned weren't taught those things either.

[@kalenklippel6118]

How do you guys explain Baseball Rebellion and Epstein Academy? Their drills teach a batter to hit a baseball like a major league player. Their methodology produces more bat speed than anyone. When I slow-mo great hitters... their elbows keep a consistent distance. I changed and now hit the ball harder. The shoulders/torso can always hit a ball harder than arms.

[@richardlovell7316]

What DNA doesn't understand is that Epstein especially teach the swing, not the style. I noticed the jab about MLB players and super talent in comment below. For Rick and DNA; Epstein teaches a Stride and No-Stride approach to the swing. Epstein teaches what the MLB players do from Launch (front heel plant, when the swing really begins) to Power-V (at full extension)...everything before and after is merely a players style and it differs from player to player. Even the little guys have different styles. Many of the MLB players don't necessarily have superhuman talent, they have super human dedication and have worked very hard to get the technique they have because they figured it out. Epstein teaches what he learned he did from Ted Williams...who learned from Joe Jackson, etc, through emulation...which takes years. Guys that don't understand HOW to teach the swing seem to always say that you can't teach young players to swing like MLB players. Well, I do all the time thanks to Mike and Jake Epstein. It works because we identify swing flaws through video analysis software, have specific drills for specific swing flaws and teach the player hoot get in the correct positions by repeating this process. It's hard to argue video, Ted Williams knowledge of hitting and success. Oh, and back elbow up or down? Think of it as the back elbow controlling the from shoulder...it's a physics thing...it isn't bunk, but that doesn't mean straight up in the air.

[@dnasportsonline]

Furthermore, while we may never agree John, you cannot teach hitting the same way to every player you work with. There are too many variables. That's the problem I have with instructors who only subscribe to one theory of hitting. While you may think we don't know what we are doing, I think our players who we've worked with over the past 30 years would beg to differ. They will also tell you that we have evolved our theories and practices over time - always adapting and looking for new info.

[@STRIKER8814]

Joe Morgan did that to do the opposite. To keep his elbow up not down... Smh

[@dnasportsonline]

Not exactly. Here is direct quote from Morgan: "My elbow, the way I used it was to remind me to get my elbow away from my body. If you're a golfer, you keep your elbow in to get the ball in the air. When I was batting, if I got the ball in the air, I would remind myself to keep the elbow away."

[@johnjohnson3471]

Teach the kids NOW, when they're young, the proper mechanics. Hitting with your elbows DOWN??? Oh, man.

[@dnasportsonline]

After a 12+ hour day of helping real kids, I can’t believe I am even taking the time to respond to your arrogance. I am usually professional with my responses, but a nerve has been touched, so here it goes. I absolutely detest baseball people like yourself who reads a book or watches a training video (in this instance Mike Epstein) and arrogantly preaches it like it’s the gospel. Bottom Line - YOU CAN'T TEACH EVERY HITTER THE SAME.

[@jordan7172]

Why can't you guys teach your younger players to do the things major leaguers do? Horrible instruction on your part. You do not have the data to support your opinions. Probably should choose a different profession