Fresno, CA - Albert Pujols is on a tear this year hitting 17 homers in only 239 plate appearances (PA) according to FanGraphs.com. Which is one homer in 14 PA's.
In 2014, he hit 28 dingers in 695 PA's, which is one homer almost every 25 plate appearances. So what's changed?
Albert Pujols turned 35 years old in January of this year. He's been regarded as the model for the "wide no-stride" hitter amongst baseball/softball coaches and instructors. According to Joey Myers of the HItting Performance Lab:
"Most coaches in the past, have used Albert Pujols as a model to young hitters to stand with their feet wide, and then have a minimal to no stride before the swing."
The reason why is because coaches think they have to minimize head movement before the stride foot hits the ground. But the time to minimize head movement is whent he hitter has committed to swinging the bat. Myers says:
"Because of proprioception, there's going to be head movement with a moving body in motion. But the question is, do you want head movement before or during the hitter's turn?"
Mind you, Albert Pujols stands at 6-foot, 3-inches, and 230-pounds according to FanGraphs.com.
Myers continues...
"It's harder to lift a 30-pound bucket standing still, than it is to take a step then lift. I can lift that bucket a lot faster when I get a 'head start'. And the same goes for hitting a ball."
It's easier for a younger bigger hitter like Pujols to get away with a wide no-stride approach because of how big he is. But as he ages, not so much. Albert Pujols has injected more forward momentum into his swing. He has to in order to compete now at this level.
And compete is what he's doing. And another thing...
A big part of why Pujols has been so consistent with his power, before his injury shortened session in 2013, is because of his head position throughout the swing.
Joey Myers from the Hitting Performance Lab says,
"Albert Pujols doesn't break the 'One-Joint' Rule. Which means you don't see his chin go into his chest like Andrew McCutchen, or his right ear go into his right shoulder during contact like Bryce Harper. It's like his head and spine move as one unit throughout his whole swing"
What McCutchen and Harper do, Myers says, causes an energy transfer leak. Like having a water leak in your sprinkler system. You won't have the water pressure that you'd have without it.
My name is Joey Myers and I'm the founder of HittingPerformanceLab.com.
I'm a member of the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA), the International Youth & Conditioning Association (IYCA), and Society for American Baseball Research (SABR). I'm also partnered with the Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA).
I played four years of Division-1 college baseball at Fresno State, I've spent the last decade in corrective fitness, and have a passionate curiosity to help baseball and softball players dramatically improve performance through the science of human movement.
It's NOT how you study, but what you study that counts. We apply proven human movement science to hitting a ball.