University of Minnesota Baseball
CATEGORY: STANCE OR SET-UP
1. Balanced set-up
2. Feet spread - length of bat
3. Grip - knocking knuckles lined up
4. Elbows down, approximately 90 degrees in front elbow
5. Toes pointed straight ahead
6. Hands at top of strike zone
7. Back arm biceps & forearm touching
8. Chin tucked on front shoulder
9. Eyes both look at pitcher
10. Farther elbows and knees are apart - slower the bat will be
11. Slight knee bend
12. Parallel stance
13. Bat held in fingers
14. Knob of bat points to opposite batter's box
CATEGORY: STRIDE
1. Short, controlled stride
2. Front foot goes forward, hands cock back
3. Keeping hands and weight back enables hitter to swing the same on pitches that have different speeds and location
4. Stride to hit rather stride and hit
5. Front foot is down before ball is released
6. Head still
7. Front foot closed after stride
8. Do not wrap bat around head
CATEGORY: PIVOT - TRIGGER
1. Back knee and back elbow trigger at same time
2. Rear foot cleats should face the catcher
3. Belt buckle turns to point of contact
4. Barrel of bat stays close to ear - no casting
5. On hip turn, front foot opens to 45 degrees
6. Rotation of hips with limited head movement building balance
7. Backside trigger and pivot creates a strong power base
8. Stay inside the ball with the barrel and hands
9. Be able to "hold the angle" on breaking ball away
10. Keep barrel above hands and hands above ball as long as possible
CATEGORY: RELEASE TO SWING
1. Maximize batspeed at point of contact
2. Swing with hands, not shoulders or feet
3. Palm up and palm down at point of contact
4. Let ball come to you - trust your batspeed to make a late decision
5. Sequential unlocking of body parts maximizes batspeed at point of contact
6. Form the "power triangle" at contact point
7. Stay on plane through the ball
8. Proper plane on the swing creates slight backspin and lift on the ball
CATEGORY: GENERAL PHILOSOPHY
1. Avoid "paralysis by analysis"
2. Strive to hit the ball hard - keep well-hit average
3. Be aggressive early in the count
4. Evaluate hitting advice by "easier - tougher" rather than "good -bad"
5. Strive for a high OB% - more walks than K's
6. We want to try to score in at least 4 innings each game
7. 80% of line drives are hits; 37% of ground balls are hits; 18% of fly balls are hits
8. Make the pitcher work hard to get you out
9. 65-70% of pitches in a game are fastballs; hitters swing at off-speed pitches because they are set-up or fooled
10. Toughest pitchers to defeat are guys who throw 3 pitches for strikes. Easiest - 1 pitch for a strike
11. The ability to hit the ball on the ground the opposite way sustains big innings
12. Look to middle of plate and adjust
13. Hitting defined: talent, technique, time
14. Characteristics of good hitters:
a. hands go back before they go forward
b. weight stays between the knees
c. shoulders level and head still
d. back foot pivot
e. quick bat because of snapping joints
