The third installment to the Hitting Backwards: 4 Common Mistakes Hitters Make video series, stars 8-time All-Star & 2-Time AL MVP Miguel Cabrera. I’ll show you how hitting instructors get torque timing wrong, causing reciprocal inhibition to occur in reverse.
In this Miguel Cabrera video, we’ll look at:
Why walking mechanics hold the key to repeatable power,
Whether we should land front foot closed or open? And
Why the timing of torque is important.
Thanks to Bob Hall from Canada for the subject of this video blog article.
SCIENCE-BASED TRAINING:
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The following “compression signal” sequence is according to Dr. Serge Gracovetsky’s spine engine mechanics:
Left front leg heel strike – compression signal travels up the leg into the pelvis telling it to open to the right,
The signal continues up the spine into the shoulders, telling them to counter-rotate (left), and
This is why your opposite arm and leg come forward at the same time.
Photo courtesy: WalkezStore.com
Land Front Foot Closed OR Open?
Photo courtesy: OnMilwaukee.com
Big guys like Barry Bonds and Miguel Cabrera land closed (less than 45-degrees). Small guys such as Ryan Braun and Jose Bautista tend to land open (more than 45-degrees). Which way is the right way?
4 reasons to keep the front toe open (minimum of 45-degree angle):
Joint Connection – Toe closed? So is knee and pelvis. The compression signal travels fast after heel strike, so pelvis must be in neutral (or parallel to the plate) in order to open without friction,
NO Separation – If toe, knee, and pelvis are closed after compression signal, then front shoulder has to compensate by flying open the same time as the pelvis. This doesn’t engage our elastic energy systems.
Compensation is Inevitable – We find the closed toe in hitters like Barry Bonds and Miguel Cabrera just end up peeling or jumping open anyway at or shortly after contact. So why not get the toe out of the way to begin with?
Pitchers Land Open – And also if you look at Olympic Throwers and Shot Putters, they all land open before they throw or “put” their objects.
Why the Timing of Torque is IMPORTANT
Photo courtesy: OttawaLife.com
Torque timing in the swing, also known as shoulder-pelvis separation, is often cued wrong. Instructors often yell, “Fire the Hips!” In high level swing mechanics, we find the hips (or pelvis) does fire first. But, the timing coaches cue on is all wrong. Shoulder-pelvis separation occurs before the front heel touches down, NOT after.
If you missed the following parts to the Hitting Backwards: 4 Common Mistakes Hitters Make video series:
CLICK HERE for Common Mistake #1 featuring Ryan Braun
CLICK HERE for Common Mistake #2 featuring Adrian Gonzalez
Stay tuned for Common Mistake #4, where we debunk whether the friction-free swing is pushing or pulling the backside through…
'Add 40-Feet' To Batted Ball Distance
Swing Study reveals how tens of thousands of hitters are adding 40-feet to batted ball distance by using one simple strategy.
Click the button below to access the FREE video that's been downloaded over 30K times!!
https://hittingperformancelab.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Miguel-Cabrera-Hitting-Breakdown-Increase-Baseball-Softball-Bat-Speed-Ball-Exit-Velocity-Power.png423800Joey Myershttps://hittingperformancelab.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/hitting-performance-labs_c90c0362088ef1d3d528f3078f4f8ac1-300x75.pngJoey Myers2022-09-18 09:00:412024-06-21 16:41:32Increase Baseball Softball Bat Speed, Improve Ball Exit Velocity, Whip, & Power | Miguel Cabrera Hitting Breakdown: Teach Little League 8 Year Old Kid To Swing Faster
“Staying Closed” for Fastpitch Softball & Baseball (NOT What You Think)…
In this article, we’ll compare the swings of Oakland Athletic’s (now Yankees) Josh Donaldson and quasi retired Jose Bautista. In the video, we’ll discuss:
Donaldson v. Bautista metrics,
What “staying closed” means to spine engine mechanics, and
Where Josh Donaldson might be leaking force at impact.
Josh Donaldson v. Jose Bautista Metrics
This section is split up as follows:
Physical
Swing analysis
Key offensive stats
Physical
Tale of the tape (according to Baseball-Reference.com):
Josh Donaldson – 6’0″, 220lbs
Jose Bautista – 6’0″ 205lbs
SCIENCE-BASED TRAINING:
Improve your hitting strategy dramatically by applying human movement principles.
Learn not only how and what to train but also the science behind the methods.
So why does Jose Bautista come out on top even though he’s outweighed by 15lbs? Consider this…
Josh Donaldson: CLICK HERE to see a scatter graph of his dinger disbursement in 2013 (according to ESPN Stats & Information Group). In the 158 games he played in 2013 (24 homers) his…
Average true distance was 391.3 feet, and
Average speed off the bat was 103.7 mph.
Jose Bautista: CLICK HERE to see a scatter graph of his home-run disbursement in 2013 (according to ESPN Stats & Information Group). In the 118 games played (hand/wrist injury) in 2013 (28 homers) his…
Average true distance was 400.3 feet, and
Average speed off the bat was 104.8 mph.
The bottom line?
Joey Bats played 40 less games in 2013, but still outhit Josh Donaldson. So let’s answer the question of how Bautista hit each homer, on average, 9 feet further, and drove the ball 1.1 mph faster off the bat.
Let’s begin building a case as to where Josh Donaldson may be bleeding force at impact…
'Add 40-Feet' To Batted Ball Distance
Swing Study reveals how tens of thousands of hitters are adding 40-feet to batted ball distance by using one simple strategy.
Click the button below to access the FREE video that's been downloaded over 30K times!!
What “Staying Closed” Means to Spine Engine Mechanics
Most confuse the meaning of the coaching cue “staying closed”. The hitter DOES NOT “stay closed” with the bottom half. For maximum energy transfer, the pelvis should open when the body weights the front foot after striding. Both hitters seem to prematurely open their pelvis before the heel hits the ground. This isn’t efficient! We’ll talk about:
The truth about staying closed,
The importance of heel strike to locomotion, and
Swinging in sand: effortless power or powerless effort?
The Truth About Staying Closed
In the video, we apply two of three coupled motion of the spine actions, according to Dr. Serge Gracovetsky’s book The Spinal Engine:
Side bending (evidenced by a down shoulder angle), and
Axial rotation (hitter shows numbers to pitcher, while pelvis stays parallel to the plate)
In the video, we clearly see both hitters do this. Donaldson more than Bautista. I mentioned both hitters prematurely open their pelvis before heel strike. Let’s look at the gravity (pun intended) of doing or not doing this…
The Importance of Heel Strike to Locomotion
In the book, Gracovetsky offers one of several meanings for maintaining a healthy spine using spinal engine mechanics (p. 168):
“…the compressive pulse generated at heel-strike is essential to the locomotion process. The shape of this pulse must be very specific if maximum energy is to be transferred from the earth’s gravitational field to the rotating pelvis.”
Both hitters “stand tall” before falling forward and “getting shorter” into the turn. This lifting of the torso is like running versus walking. When running, our heel hits the ground creating a compressive force that is equaled to NINE-times our body weight, Dr. Gracovetsky says. Gravity pulls our body down (Un-Weighting Principal), and at heel strike, the ground pushes back in a compressive force. The greater the force, the faster the pelvis opens.
The following is where I foreshadow the problem with Donaldson…
Swinging in Sand: Effortless Power or Powerless Effort?
Dr. Serge Gracovetsky offers this example in the book (pgs. 168-169),
“Running or walking on soft sand is not easy and is very tiring, In this particular case, the energy leaks into the sand, the impact force is reduced, and the compressive pulse through the spine is attenuated [disabled] as the total energy recovered is reduced.”
The compressive force is softened by the sand, which doesn’t allow the pelvis to turn using efficient spine engine mechanics. To maneuver, the brain has to recruit big muscles to do the work. This is why you get a workout walking on sand…it’s powerless effort, rather than effortless power.
Donaldson is basically turning his pelvis using muscle mass (like walking in the sand). Whereas Bautista looks more effortless because he’s using efficient spine engine mechanics, gravity, and gravitational reaction forces…
Where Josh Donaldson May Be Leaking Force at Impact
In the video, you’ll see Donaldson start opening his pelvis five frames before he weights his front foot. His front foot looks like it almost “hovers” over the ground for 3-4 frames. Opening the pelvis without a true compressive force (gravity and gravitational reaction forces) would be like hitting a baseball while standing on sand!
Bautista starts opening his pelvis only two frames ahead of weighting his front foot. Joey Bats experiences a higher compressive force at landing than Donaldson does. This is why “staying closed” with the upper half, and committing the body to landing on the front foot is crucial to an average increase of:
9 feet to batted ball distance, and
1.1 mph to ball exit speeds.
Post UPDATE: after Josh Donaldson was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays in 2015, this post was picked up by the Canadian National Post(Just above the Jose Bautista image). Also, there was an “upgrade” to his hitting mechanics since this post was first published in 2014. CLICK HERE for a link to an Athletics Nation article talking about a difference in J.D.’s 2013 & 2014 swing mechanics. In 2015, Josh Donaldson reverted back to his minimalist “barrel tilt” 2013 hitting mechanics.
'Add 40-Feet' To Batted Ball Distance
Swing Study reveals how tens of thousands of hitters are adding 40-feet to batted ball distance by using one simple strategy.
Click the button below to access the FREE video that's been downloaded over 30K times!!
https://hittingperformancelab.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Josh-Donaldson-Baseball-Softball-Swing-Advice-Front-Side-Flying-Open-Spinning-Off-Hitting-Drills-2.png423800Joey Myershttps://hittingperformancelab.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/hitting-performance-labs_c90c0362088ef1d3d528f3078f4f8ac1-300x75.pngJoey Myers2022-08-22 09:00:522022-08-28 21:44:41FIX Pulling Head Off, Front Side Flying Open, Over Rotation Spinning Off Baseball Or Softball Hitting Drills | Josh Donaldson Vs Jose Bautista “Keep Front Shoulder In” Common Flaw Swing Advice & Batting Stats
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