Hit Line Drives Instead Of Ground Balls, Why Squishing Bug Is Bad, & Keep Head Still While Batting: Justin Turner Baseball & Softball Swing Analysis
Discover how to hit more line drives instead of ground balls, why squishing the bug is bad, and learn how to keep the head still while batting in this Justin Turner baseball and softball swing breakdown.
The Anatomy Of A Game Winning Justin Turner Walk Off Homerun
To be honest with you…
I MISSED watching the Justin Turner walk off homerun LIVE!!
My excuse…?
For those of you who can remember when your kids were 2-5 years old, you might recall the Disney channel being on almost constantly in your household.
When I turn on baseball, I get “Why are we watching this…?” from my 5yo. And not after 30-mins of it being on…no…RIGHT AWAY!
He could be drawing, watching a kid’s show on his Kindle, or playing with his NERF gun, and he knows when the channel is changed. It’s like he knows it’s going to happen before it does. That’s another talk for another day.
But I digress…
I did get to see the replay of the game winning dinger via Twitter…
And, I DO know this, Justin Turner’s walk off homerun was a thing of beauty.
As many of you know, I get a lot of Fixed Mindset knuckleheads claiming this system doesn’t work at the higher level on the socials…in baseball and softball circles.
I blame the lenses they look at hitting through, which – let me tell you – are far less effective than picking up a bar fly with “beer goggles”.
Seriously though, here’s some context to put the dinger in perspective, before getting to the info in the video above…
- Game 2 of 2017 NLCS,
- Walk off 3-Run homerun,
- 92-mph 2-seam FB middle down, and
- 103.1-mph Ball Exit Speed, 25.6* Launch Angle, & ball traveled 419-feet.
In this Justin Turn walk off homerun swing analysis, we’ll go over…
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What’s he IS NOT Doing
- Squishing bugs,
- Short to ball/swinging down,
- Keeping head still,
- Keeping shoulders level,
- Staying tall, and
- Keeping neutral spine.
I know, shocker for a select few out there. I do define some of the above terms in the video, so make sure you watch that before commenting. I know some of the cues can be used with the right framing of it.
So let’s see…
What he IS Doing
- Catapult Loading System principles: globally flexed spine, hiding hands, showing numbers, and
- Pitch Plane Domination: knee action, back foot skip, early barrel on pitch plane, barrel stays on plane for long time, great spine angle at impact.
The Catapult Loading System Kindle eBook Giveaway
Just FYI, on this Friday, October 20th, I’m giving away free Kindle versions of my new book The Catapult Loading System: How To Teach 100-Pound Hitters To Consistently Drive The Ball 300-Feet…but here’s the catch, this giveaway is for 5-days ONLY! Last time I did this, over 1,300 coaches and parents downloaded the ebook. And you don’t have to have a Kindle to read the book, just download the Kindle app on your mobile device. If you’ve already downloaded it, then I’d appreciate it if you could let a friend know. Literally hundreds of coaches across the States are getting the same results – if not better – with their hitters (literally THOUSANDS of them!!) using this system, than I am with mine. I’ll make the announcement over email and Facebook, so please look out for that in a couple days…
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Joey,
Timely and very relevant video! Don’t forget the linear/ rotational debate. Turner utilizes both linear and rotational mechanics and efficiently transitions from his linear fall forward to rotational momentum, thus converting forward momentum into the angular velocity needed to hit that homer over the 409 foot sign in CF. What he is NOT is either linear or rotational – he’s both. Yet there are people out there who are proponents of linear OR rotational mechanics.
Viewers should notice the position/shape of his rear leg as he falls forward. It is virtually straight in the fall before hinging and taking on its L shape.
Yet to be addressed is whether Turner, creates more ground reaction force at foot plant since gravity gets to work longer on the lifted leg – the gravitational pull is longer. What is the effect of using a high leg lift like Turner and Donaldson and is there a correlation between the high leg lift and ball exit speed and batted ball distance?
Great points Joe! Yes, linear-rotational-linear. Good question about the stride type leg lift versus slide step and does either give a hitter more BES. At some point, I’ll get a swing experiment done to attempt at settling that debate.
Hi, Joey. This video illustrates a lot of what makes hitting, essentially a simple process, into a very complicated task that often takes many more years to hone than really need be. Turner is doing a lot of things correct and of course, he crushed a game winner…but there is a lot that he ISN’T doing that he could be and these are things that yourself and many others recommend. He isn’t tipping his bat , he is barely hiding his hands and thus, barely scap loading. Furthermore, I’m not sure about keeping the head still until landing anyhow because I don’t see how you could make a swing otherwise, but that’s not’s my point with this video. Turner isn’t short in the way that you mention the conventional notion is (swinging down to the ball) but he is “short to the ball” no less. Apparently, in addition to his physicality and size, Turner is able to drive the ball due to a good sturdy plant, the ability to square the ball up with seamless timing and a hearty follow with his right forearm….. Maybe it’s just the smaller guys who need to use the more extreme bat tips and scap loads….
What do you think, Joey?
Mike, totally on point. Justin Turner is, by my standards, a smaller hitter…Baseball-Reference.com lists him at 5’11”, 205-lbs. He isn’t doing everything he could, and scary to imagine the bump his numbers would benefit from if he did. When the big guys check off all the things we talk about, they have years like Judge and Stanton.
He squished the bug with his front foot.
Haha, that is true Bill! 😀
Joey, he really can’t tip the bat because the momentum would destroy his swing unless he adjusted his stance… Said another way, he can’t use the ADDITIONAL benefits that integrating more momentum ( i.e., energy) into his swing because in order to include said additional energy the batter must be in the right position to use it…
I’m just clarifying your statement about tipping… The ones who know how to control it use it while all others just can’t maximize all the potential energy that our bodies produce…
Said another way, if you knew how to control it… you would…It’s not debatable… It’s a fact..,
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Great video but no point in commenting on the 99 percent we agree on…
Also let’s just use our own terms…
I dont use “stride” anymore …I just say forward fall…There’s a bunch I just don’t use…
And your right… we dont swing down to the ball… we swing down behind you but I don’t even use that phrase… I cant tell you what cue I would use as this cue ALWAYS lets you control your directional force… Seriously… Always… Always across your face in any direction… It’s just how it works…Obviously it’s in the hands but more importantly you have to image something that is invisible… I have mentioned it but I was never asked about it… There are two swings Joey ?
I appreciate your thoughts Djura. I agree there’s a cause and effect. Here’s a comment I received on YouTube under this video:
“Justin Turner is the most linear hitter in baseball and nobody is talking about it. Why isn’t anyone talking about it? The hitting coach who gets credit for reconstructing Turner’s swing is Doug Latta. Latta teaches a linear swing and the reason I know this is because he’s also my son’s hitting coach. If you use the word rotate or any other form of the word around Latta, he will kick you out of his cage. Latta teaches hitters to take all their energy straight through the pitcher and middle of the field. At no time, will Latta allow his hitters to move back or load up. Pick up your foot and take your hands and body straight to the baseball. No hand load, no lower body load, no scap load and definitely no catapult loading system.”
Have fun with that one 😉
Joey… The eyes lie if we let them… He has rotation power built in… Anything in an arc has more than one force… I get the whole “you go linear” but its misleading or better yet as a que than the reality…And Turner is leaving out a move that gives him extra power… The only thing is “in the baseball swing”, forced may go in as one and come out as another… Looking at Turners posture… OF COURSE… he shouldn’t be pounding his “hands” ( notice the quotes) like Bonds or Aaron and may other awesome hitters… Turners not set up for it…
I guess I should look into Turners stats before I go on…
My view is there are 3 key points in the swing… But let me end in this last FACT… OF COURSE there is rotational power!!!! Fact… Which IS not debatable… So it’s not fun debating facts Joey… I’m hoping we can get beyond the facts to theory…
By the way…. You don’t take your energy to the pitcher… Again a fact if you believe in hitting across your face… If you go to the pitcher than your swing up the middle… if you want to hit across your face on the inside or outside pitch than you can’t direct your energy towards the pitch since that’s up the middle…
I think we can clearly figure out why people don’t bring him up…. I can shoot and make free throws with my back to the hoop… it doesn’t mean it’s the right way to do it….
Joey…. Stay away from this!!!!
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Joey… he’s talking about building it in… One of my comments in one of your newer articles or videos I asked you to try something… It basically builds in some of your thoughts… Check it out… Arron pretty much fell forward but had “hand ” action… notice the quotes…
~DM
Joey… to be honest… let’s just stay away from the rotational…. linear…. rotational…. linear… blah… blah… blah… shit…
To start… it’s 3- dimensional….
But your right it’s human movements… Let the idiots talk about the other crap… I think sticking to human movements is always best….
Seriously… if we use rotational he’ll kick us out of the cage… What an asshole!!!!
That’s the shit that pisses me off…
~DM
Haha, I know. With all do respect to him, there are holes in his thinking. Holes validated by science.
79 HR’s in over 2500 at bats while batting less than 290….
He can have more power but than that’s 2 fold… you need to learn how to generate more power… than you have to know how to control it…
BY the way… I don’t think Bonds and Aaron pounds there hands… that’s why I always put hands in quotes ?
~DM
Amazing… Turner is over 200 pounds and really doesn’t hit for power…Come on!!!!
Nonesense…
Look… we want to look at the smaller players who hit for power… we especially never look at bigger players who don’t have power…
Joey… 205 is not small… what’s next jumbo shrimp….
He’s 205….anything over 190 could and should do some REAL damage…
Alright I’m out as I don’t really like bashing anyone… It’s not why im here…
Hope all is well…
~DM
Don’t worry, I understand. However two hundred and five pounds is nothing compared to GianCarlo Stanton’s TWO HUNDRED AND SIXTY POUNDS or Aaron Judge’s TWO HUNDRED AND NINETY POUNDS!! 😛
Your so right… But Turner is a monster if your comparing him to Hammering Hank and Mantle… Remember little people are weeded out because coaches, parents, players themselves think they can’t and big people have the issue of I’m doing it right because I hit a few homeruns… So the little player and the bigger player are gone because the appreciation of the mechanics and body movements are not there…
I think we can and do appreciate the complexity and beauty of hitting… As such, Turner SHOULD be a big time power hitter… but to be honest if I were him I would just continue doing what he’s doing… He’s making millions…. But now the other issue pops in….
Thanks for taking the time to read my comments Joey… Hope all is well and happy thanksgiving…
~DM
Re-watching this today. Got a few questions. How does he adjust to the location of the pitch? Is it shoulder tilt? More or less tilt of the core at the waist depending on location? Bending of the knees? All of the above?
Bill, yes adjustments to depth or pitch height can come in the form of shoulder tilt, hip hinging, more bend in the knees, and/or more ‘float’ or ‘ride’ before the stride.