For Immediate Release:

Monday, November 9, 2015

http://hittingperformancelab.com This is where Bill Ny the Science Guy meets Babe Ruth. Sun, 08 Nov 2015 17:22:59 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://hittingperformancelab.com/1-biggest-lie-in-hitting/ http://hittingperformancelab.com/1-biggest-lie-in-hitting/#comments Sun, 08 Nov 2015 05:01:07 +0000 http://hittingperformancelab.com/?p=2174 This is Part-3 of a 3-part video series coming straight out of the Catapult Loading System online video mini-course… Sick of struggling with getting your hitters to hit the ball hard with more consistency?  This is a simple 7-module online video mini-course that will help hitters weighing less than 100-pounds, hit the ball consistently over 300-feet in 60 days.  You’ll be...

The post #1 Biggest Lie In Hitting appeared first on Hitting Performance Lab.

]]>This is Part-3 of a 3-part video series coming straight out of the Catapult Loading System online video mini-course…

Sick of struggling with getting your hitters to hit the ball hard with more consistency?  This is a simple 7-module online video mini-course that will help hitters weighing less than 100-pounds, hit the ball consistently over 300-feet in 60 days.  You’ll be able to dramatically increase power without sacrificing swing quality.

To celebrate the launch, I’m doing a $17 Flash Sale that’s for 4-days ONLY.  CLICK the Link below to…

In this video post, we’re going to answer one of my reader’s questions…

“Ways to use your hips to create bat speed?”

Before I get to the #1 Biggest Lie In Hitting, we’ll cover:

• Inward hip turn towards catcher to load?
• Springy ‘X’ Pattern, and
• Landing open with the front foot.

Inward Hip Turn Towards Catcher To Load?

I picked up on this in High School after reading Ted Williams’s book The Science Of Hitting.

But is this really necessary?

After reading Thomas Myers’s book Anatomy Trains, I don’t believe that it is.

To me, ‘Loading the hips’ by turning the pelvis inward towards the catcher creates more challenges, than benefits.

The biggest challenge is that if the timing isn’t right, the hitter will get stuck landing with a closed front leg at landing (front toe less than a 45-degree angle).

CLICK HERE for a Zepp swing experiment I did on landing closed versus open, and the affect on average bat speed.

Olympic Javelin Throwers, Boxers, and Sprinters do just fine without using an inward turn of the pelvis, away from their target, before throwing, punching, or running.

Springy ‘X’ Pattern

I don’t want to beat a dead horse, so here are two great video blog posts I did talking about the Springy ‘X’ Pattern:

Landing Open with the Front Foot

The guys at ZenoLink are awesome!  They find the truth behind human movement science.  This video discusses how the lower body position or stride setup will dictate how well you create and utilized ground reaction force to initiate the swing process and develop power and bat speed.

They found the optimal degree that the stride foot must be open at landing to be around 65-degrees (watch around the 2:00 mark)…

So WHY are we teaching our young hitters to stride closed?!!

To summarize…

‘Loading and exploding the hips’ by inwardly turning the pelvis towards the catcher can cause the hitter to land closed.  If the hitter lands closed, then bat speed WILL go down, according to the results of my Zepp swing experiment, and to the guys at ZenoLink.  As a result of bat speed going down, so will Ball Exit Speed.

‘Firing the hips’ is an over-coached cue, if anything, let’s ‘load and explode the shoulders’, not the hips.  Us hitting coaches MUST shift our focus above the pelvis, into the shoulders by way of the Springy ‘X’ Pattern.

So, what is the #1 Biggest Lie In Hitting?

That we MUST ‘load and explode the hips’.

You see,

We have to get away from learning inside baseball and softball hitting circles.  We must first learn human movement science, then break away, and begin thinking creatively about how to apply these human movement “rules”, that are validated by science, to hitting a ball.

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]]>http://hittingperformancelab.com/1-biggest-lie-in-hitting/feed/ 4 http://hittingperformancelab.com/head-position-at-impact-may-be-causing-you-to-lose-out-on-repeatable-power-the-neck-brace-drill/ http://hittingperformancelab.com/head-position-at-impact-may-be-causing-you-to-lose-out-on-repeatable-power-the-neck-brace-drill/#comments Fri, 06 Nov 2015 21:29:59 +0000 http://hittingperformancelab.com/?p=2172 This is Part-2 of a 3-part video series coming straight out of the Catapult Loading System online video mini-course… Sick of struggling with getting your hitters to hit the ball hard with more consistency?  This is a simple 7-module online video mini-course that will help hitters weighing less than 100-pounds, hit the ball consistently over 300-feet in 60 days.  You’ll be...

The post Head Position At Impact May Be Causing You To Lose Out On Repeatable Power [The Neck Brace Drill] appeared first on Hitting Performance Lab.

]]>This is Part-2 of a 3-part video series coming straight out of the Catapult Loading System online video mini-course…

Sick of struggling with getting your hitters to hit the ball hard with more consistency?  This is a simple 7-module online video mini-course that will help hitters weighing less than 100-pounds, hit the ball consistently over 300-feet in 60 days.  You’ll be able to dramatically increase power without sacrificing swing quality.

To celebrate the launch, I’m doing a $17 Flash Sale that’s for 4-days ONLY.  CLICK the Link below to…

In this video post, I’ll be walking you through the Neck Brace Drill.  We’ll be going over:

• The One-Joint Rule
• Head movement that is okay
• Jace Case Study: BEFORE & AFTER of Neck Brace Drill

The One-Joint Rule

Dr. Kelly Starrett from MobilityWOD.com, gives a perfect explanation of this in the following video (watch at about the 4:00 minute mark):

Head Movement that is Okay

What’s better, and thanks to Dr. Kelly Starrett’s explanation above, we can look at what head movement IS NOT okay through impact:

1. Chin to chest,
2. Head back (like looking at the sky), and
3. Ear into rear shoulder (for a righty, right ear to right shoulder).

Major League example of #1 is Andrew McCutchen (image to the right).  Major League examples of #2 are Bryce Harper and Derek Jeter.

The only head movement that is okay through impact is a slight head turn.  Generally speaking, the head position we want to model is during the follow through.

Jace Case Study: BEFORE & AFTER of Neck Brace Drill

Jace is one of my 10-year-old hitters who is 66-pounds.

Tiny compared to his peers.

However, over the last 6 months of hitting with me, and off a traditional batting tee, he now consistently registers 50-54-mph Ball Exit Speed with a non-wood bat.

In other words, Jace has the ability to hit the ball well over 200-feet, depending on the launch angle of the ball.

Now, we’ve been wrestling with his ‘bobblehead’ position for quite some time, and a big THANK YOU for the tip goes out to Coach Todd Bradley, head softball coach at Campbell University, the difference in one 45-minute session using the Neck Brace Drill can be seen in the image to the right.

Just about the same soft tossed pitch height.

Jace is still not perfect yet, but we’re getting there.

I hope this drill helps your hitters.  Click the following Amazon links to get the same simple foam Youth Neck Brace & Adult Neck Brace that we used with Jace.

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]]>http://hittingperformancelab.com/head-position-at-impact-may-be-causing-you-to-lose-out-on-repeatable-power-the-neck-brace-drill/feed/ 6 http://hittingperformancelab.com/how-to-hit-the-ball-consistently-hard-like-hank-aaron/ http://hittingperformancelab.com/how-to-hit-the-ball-consistently-hard-like-hank-aaron/#comments Fri, 06 Nov 2015 05:55:29 +0000 http://hittingperformancelab.com/?p=2167 his is Part-1 of a 3-part video series coming straight out of the Catapult Loading System online video mini-course… Sick of struggling with getting your hitters to hit the ball hard with more consistency?  This is a simple 7-module online video mini-course that will help hitters weighing less than 100-pounds, hit the ball consistently over 300-feet in 60 days.  You’ll be...

The post How-To Hit The Ball Consistently Hard Like Hank Aaron appeared first on Hitting Performance Lab.

]]>his is Part-1 of a 3-part video series coming straight out of the Catapult Loading System online video mini-course…

Sick of struggling with getting your hitters to hit the ball hard with more consistency?  This is a simple 7-module online video mini-course that will help hitters weighing less than 100-pounds, hit the ball consistently over 300-feet in 60 days.  You’ll be able to dramatically increase power without sacrificing swing quality.

To celebrate the launch, I’m doing a $17 Flash Sale that’s for 4-days ONLY.  CLICK the Link below to…

In this video post, we’re answering the reader question…

“How does a smaller slugger compete with a bigger one?”

We’ll be going over:

• Writing v. Typing speed skills
• Effectiveness – doing the right things v. Efficiency – doing things right
• Better technique v. athleticism – some athletes succeed despite their ineffectiveness, not because of it

Writing v. Typing Speed Skills

Imagine entering a contest to win a million dollars by copying a simple 1,000 word document…

And you had the choice to either write the essay using pen and paper, OR

Type it on a computer keyboard.

If the contest chairperson crowned the new minted millionaire to the fastest produced document, using one of the two aforementioned methods, which would you choose to compete?

What if, to get ready for the contest, you were given 3 weeks to prepare and practice pacing your writing OR typing skills?

Would this practice time make a dramatic difference on the speed of your writing skills?

How about your typing skills?

Which method do you think you’d make a bigger jump to compete with the best of the best?

Remember, there are no separate categories in the contest.  In other words, if you decide to write with pen and paper, you’re still competing with the fastest typers, not ONLY with writers.

Which leads us to…

Effectiveness v. Efficiency

Let’s define terms…

Effectiveness is doing the right things…

While efficiency is doing those things right.

In the case of our Writing v. Typing million dollar contest,

Choosing the right method to win the contest is huge.  The fastest typer in the world can blow away the fastest writer, any day of the week.

So, effectiveness in winning the million dollars would be choosing to compete as a typer.  Then the next step would be to get really efficient at typing during the 3-week practice period.

How does this metaphor relate to hitting and repeatable power?

Smaller sluggers like Hank Aaron (6-foot, 180-pounds) have to be effective with their mechanics, in order to compete with bigger sluggers.

What’s more…

Better Technique v. Athleticism

Bigger sluggers get away with MURDER!

They often succeed despite their ineffective technique, not because of it…

A bent neck position at impact…NOT pre-loading the springy fascia in the body…OR thinking if we ‘load and explode the hips’, then all will take care of itself.

These are REAL examples seen in big slugger swings that young hitters may copy, and get left with ineffective energy transfers, resulting in inferior results.

Then why are we studying big sluggers like Albert Pujols, Bryce Harper, and Big Papi?

Although these big sluggers do A LOT effectively with their mechanics, at least in the eyes of validated human movement science, BUT they get away with energy leaks most young hitters won’t be able to pull off.

Look, let me put Better Technique v. Athleticism another way…

One of the best athletes to ever walk the earth is Michael Jordan.  His short stint in the Minor Leagues never amounted to Major League time.  He complained he couldn’t hit the curveball.  And by the way, Michael Jordan would be considered a bigger slugger today at 6-feet, 6-inches tall.

How about Arnold Schwarzenegger in his heyday using steroids during the 1970’s? Could he beat Jose Bautista or Josh Donaldson in a Major League home-run derby?

Of course NOT!!

It doesn’t matter how big a hitter is, or how athletic they are, or if they take PED’s.  All can achieve repeatable power by using effective hitting mechanics.  It’s a recipe anyone can follow.

Sure, being more athletic is a component, but is not THE method to hitting the ball consistently hard like Hank Aaron.

The post How-To Hit The Ball Consistently Hard Like Hank Aaron appeared first on Hitting Performance Lab.

]]>http://hittingperformancelab.com/how-to-hit-the-ball-consistently-hard-like-hank-aaron/feed/ 2 http://hittingperformancelab.com/baseball-batting-quotes/ http://hittingperformancelab.com/baseball-batting-quotes/#comments Thu, 29 Oct 2015 00:52:06 +0000 http://hittingperformancelab.com/?p=2146 #1 Shocking Mistake Killing Your Mindset (Baseball Batting Quotes) It’s a blessing… And a curse. It empowers people to do GREAT things… While others, it imprisons to mediocrity. One word can offer us a detour… And at the same time can make us feel like we’re at a dead end. How we look at this one word can make suffering feel...

The post Baseball Batting Quotes: Hacking “Failure” With Michael Jordan appeared first on Hitting Performance Lab.

]]>#1 Shocking Mistake Killing Your Mindset (Baseball Batting Quotes)

It’s a blessing…

And a curse.

It empowers people to do GREAT things…

While others, it imprisons to mediocrity.

One word can offer us a detour…

And at the same time can make us feel like we’re at a dead end.

How we look at this one word can make suffering feel like a learning process…

Or can make us want to quit, and never try again.

What’s ‘the word’?

We’ve heard Ted Williams say that “Hitting a baseball is one of the hardest things to do in sports.”  The word, ‘Failure’, has separated Hall Of Famers from players getting just one  cup of coffee in “The Show”.

What follows are SIX of my favorite inspirational quotes on Failure. I wish this was something that was put in front of me when I felt my struggles were insurmountable during my playing days.  So, please share this baseball batting quotes post to your social media, to spread the word, you never know who they’ll help.

What’s more…

Not only are these my favorite quotes on the topic of Failure, but they were the TOP-6 baseball batting quotes when I posted them to my Hitting Performance Lab Facebook fanpage and Twitter page.  “Like” and “Follow” me there (if you haven’t already) because I posting more great hitting content daily.

The baseball batting quotes are arranged from least to most engaged with on my Facebook fanpage.  Let’s start with…

#6:

#5:

#4:

#3:

#2:

And #1!

Here’s what I feel the #1 mistake is…we treat Failure like it’s a terrible thing. When we are conditioned to look at Failure as a bad thing, then we stop trying.  Or at best, become standoffish when  giving it another shot because the pressure begins snowballing.  There’s no release, just build up.

Young hitters NEED to be encouraged to tinker and test.  To make their own adjustments.  To look at Failure as feedback.  To question the status quo.  This is where creativity and problem solving flourish!

Here are FOUR other articles or books that I love, related to the topic of Failure:

• “5 Reasons To Stop Saying “Good Job!” by Alfie Kohn – blog post that the title is self explanatory.  After reading, you’ll see why this can lead kids to the “Failure as a dead end” mindset.
• Golf Flow by Dr. Gio Valiante – sports performance psychologist, Dr. Gio, who works with the top PGA tour players. This book has nothing and everything to do with the baseball.
• The Talent Code by Daniel Coyle – how the body learns, and that greatness isn’t just in our DNA code.
• Brain Rules For Baby by John Medina – John brings up some great research and study, and one in particular says that telling a kid, “You’re so smart!” will handicap them, rather than saying, “You must’ve worked hard for that.”

As Tony Robbins says, “Where focus goes, energy flows.” So focus your attention on Failure as only a feedback mechanism.

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]]>http://hittingperformancelab.com/baseball-batting-quotes/feed/ 4 http://hittingperformancelab.com/baseball-swing-path/ http://hittingperformancelab.com/baseball-swing-path/#comments Thu, 22 Oct 2015 03:25:16 +0000 http://hittingperformancelab.com/?p=2144 How Do You Strikeout 208 Times in 2015 Like Chris Davis? (Is Baseball Swing Path the Issue Here?) Is he taking more of an extreme uppercut on the baseball swing plane? Is he not cutting down on his swing with 2-strikes? Is he using an excessive barrel tilt, before he launches into the turn, much like Josh Donaldson did between...

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]]>How Do You Strikeout 208 Times in 2015 Like Chris Davis? (Is Baseball Swing Path the Issue Here?)

Is he taking more of an extreme uppercut on the baseball swing plane?

Is he not cutting down on his swing with 2-strikes?

Is he using an excessive barrel tilt, before he launches into the turn, much like Josh Donaldson did between the 2013 and 2014 seasons?  CLICK HERE for this Athletics Nation post titled, “Josh Donaldson: Changes in Approach & Mechanics”.

Is he more susceptible to swinging at pitches out of the strike zone than say a Joey Votto?  CLICK HERE for this great “Joey Votto on Hitting” FanGraphs.com article about the changes he made to his baseball swing path in 2013.

Here’s another perspective, from a guy I admire because he will readily admit he was wrong – on national television!!

Check out this short 3-min, 47-sec baseball swing path video of Harold Reynolds offering an explanation to the increase in MLB hitter strikeouts:

This video was done in July of 2012.  Basically, Harold Reynolds traces the high strikeout totals back to how coaches push their hitters to ‘let the ball get deep’.

Look, hitter’s are dealing with hitting a pitch that, beforehand, they DO NOT know what:

• Pitch it is,
• Speed it is, and
• Location it is.

Sure, there are probabilities, but they’re almost NEVER 100% sure (stealing signs and/or a pitcher’s ‘tells’ aside).

Hitters have to build a large margin for error into their swings, if they want to succeed.

Then it got me thinking…

Sometimes we can learn more from what not to do, than what to do.

Coaches & instructors, I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Please ‘Leave a REPLY’ in the comments section below to the following question…

What are the 2 biggest mistakes you think hitters make that lead to higher strikeouts?

The post Baseball Swing Path: How-To Increase A Hitter’s Strikeouts? appeared first on Hitting Performance Lab.

]]>http://hittingperformancelab.com/baseball-swing-path/feed/ 16 http://hittingperformancelab.com/softball-batting-tips-hitbit4/ http://hittingperformancelab.com/softball-batting-tips-hitbit4/#comments Thu, 15 Oct 2015 03:03:13 +0000 http://hittingperformancelab.com/?p=2130 Why ‘Old School’ Softball Batting Tips Fail And Science Succeeds This softball batting tips “Hit-Bit”, or hitting tid-bit, is an answer to questions from my readers when I asked them, “If you could have a private conversation with me, what two questions would you ask?”  The answers are meant to be short, actionable, and tips you can use today. Today’s Hit-Bit...

The post Softball Batting Tips to STOP Flying Open & Get Front Foot Down on Time (Hit-Bit #4) appeared first on Hitting Performance Lab.

]]>Why ‘Old School’ Softball Batting Tips Fail And Science Succeeds

This softball batting tips “Hit-Bit”, or hitting tid-bit, is an answer to questions from my readers when I asked them, “If you could have a private conversation with me, what two questions would you ask?”  The answers are meant to be short, actionable, and tips you can use today.

Today’s Hit-Bit answers the reader questions:

“Drills to help kids not “fly open” with front hip. Drills / Methods on getting front foot down on time”

We’ll address:

• Pre-loading the torso before landing,
• Timing: Varied Reaction LIVE Toss Drill (progressions & regressions), and
• Keep coaching feedback to a minimum.

And yes, these softball batting tips work for baseball too…

Pre-Loading the Torso Before Landing

Look, it’s not the front hip we should be worried about.  Young hitters have been over-coached for the past three decades to ‘load and explode the hips’, and that the ‘hips lead the way’.  Our concern should be, what happens before the hips lead?  Or, what should happen?  In other words, it’s not a “fly open with front hip” issue, it’s a ‘fly open with front shoulder’ issue.

Tony Gwynn knew the importance of keeping that front shoulder in.  CLICK HERE for a video I did on him. The torso MUST be pre-loaded to as close to landing as possible (watch main video above on how to do this).  This is how springy fascia in the torso is charged.

Timing: Varied Reaction LIVE Toss Drill (progressions & regressions)

Another coaching cue that just doesn’t work is, “get the front foot down early”.  This can create a host of other timing issues.  The hitting sequence is a ‘dance’.  You never see the pitcher get their stride foot down early, momentarily pause, and then throw a pitch.

This is my favorite drill for getting the front foot down on time, or at least training the ‘dance’ part of the sequence.  Here are some timing posts I did relating to this:

Keep Coaching Feedback to a Minimum

CLICK HERE for a softball batting tips post I did on giving feedback to hitters.

It has to do with the Goldilocks Golden Rule.  Too much feedback, and you’re micro-managing.  Nothing at all, and the player never knows if they’re on the right track.  But just the right amount, strategically placed, makes a world of difference!

That’s the beauty of the Varied Reaction LIVE Toss Drill…minimum feedback is needed for the drill to work its magic.

The post Softball Batting Tips to STOP Flying Open & Get Front Foot Down on Time (Hit-Bit #4) appeared first on Hitting Performance Lab.

]]>http://hittingperformancelab.com/softball-batting-tips-hitbit4/feed/ 2 http://hittingperformancelab.com/softball-coaching-tips-hitbit3/ http://hittingperformancelab.com/softball-coaching-tips-hitbit3/#comments Thu, 08 Oct 2015 04:52:54 +0000 http://hittingperformancelab.com/?p=2123 Softball Coaching Tips: How-to Use Jedi Mind Tricks on Big Egos This softball coaching tips “Hit-Bit”, or hitting tid-bit, is an answer to questions from my readers when I asked them, “If you could have a private conversation with me, what two questions would you ask?”  The answers are meant to be short, actionable, and tips you can use today....

The post Softball Coaching Tips: How-to Deal With Big Egos (Hit-Bit #3) appeared first on Hitting Performance Lab.

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