Well, currently, I've been working on a few little things in my swings, and I think, and am pretty confident, that if I can nail them down, I will see a big increase in my power numbers. So, basically, if I can just work on keeping my hips closed during my stride, I think I'll be able to hit the ball harder and further.
I remember, perhaps last year or two years ago, Bobby Abreu lined the ball right off Twins' pitcher Nick Blackburn's face. Abreu then immediately went on what was then (could still be) his longest drought without getting a hit. When discussing it, I think it was decided that he was kind of leaking his hips and pulling off the ball. Now, I don't see how such a small (barely noticable) mechanical problem suddenly causes a hitter to go hitless for 15-some at bats.
When thinking about it a little while, I realized that at the ML level, such a small mechanical problem can really spiral into something very serious. Yea, it'll make you miss the 95mph gas, or miss the exploding slider. Furthermore, when someone from the film department realizes Abreu is pulling off, they immediately adjust their scouting report, and suddenly, everyone knows to pitch away away away.
OK, so that explains a lot. But here's my next question. And this is where my big problem lies, because I spend a lot of time swinging off a tee, taking dry swings and I can't shake the problem unless I think about it. Now I know you can't think about mechanics when you're at the plate, but how does Abreu have one week of working on something and then it becomes second nature.
I'd venture to say he takes a lot more BP than me, and I have no real facility to do that. I'll keep working, but if someone can explain how he can make something second nature so quickly, that would be nice.
When it comes to hitting, the philosophy and physics of putting the stick on the ball and hitting the ball all over the field are gone. What the Seattle designated hitter does in the batter's box can be compared to what Bill Nye does in a science lab.
ReplyDeleteThe man they call "Papa," revered in the stands and beloved in the clubhouse (every team's clubhouse) has made a science of batting while maintaining his ability to hit.
"Edgar knows and understands his swing better than anyone in baseball, maybe as well as anyone ever has," said Jay Buhner, who for years has hit ahead of Martinez or behind him in the lineup. "It's perfect, but he's still trying to get more out of it.
"So he's always tinkering with it, dissecting it, taking it apart and putting it back together. He's like a mechanic in a garage with an engine."
You may think Buhner is talking big picture here, that Martinez now and then will disappear into a batting cage between seasons and come out reinvented. And you're right, there's that, too.
from:
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FCI/is_11_59/ai_66011204/