Ryan Braun showing the same separation and basic mechanics as Barry Bonds.

Hands move the bat reward and the rotation of the body moves them forward.

Barry Bonds hitting.  The part of the swing I want to focus on is the separation of the upper and lower.  Notice how Barry’s hands come down as his toe taps but as his lead foot begins to move forward the hands move back.  This is separation, and it allows the hitter to achieve balance along with getting the hands in the proper position to allow the hips to pull them through the zone. 

The job of the hands is to move the bat reward and into the launch position.  If a hitter achieves the launch position with the hands at heel plant, then the lower half will continue the rotation it has started before heel plant and allow the body to pull the hands through the zone on the proper path to the baseball.

Note: If the hands do not get back in time or at all, the hitter will have “slack” in his swing and his power will be zapped.  Hitters who have slack, launch the lower half while the hands are in front of the back shoulder (as compared to the pitcher).  Get the hands back to the proper position before heel plant and let the body move the hands.

Authority and Credibility affect each other in a continuous fashion.  It is my belief that you cannot truly have authority without credibility, and likewise credibility can give you an authoritative role even if you are not seeking that position.  In a case where you are a manager and in an authoritative role as described by your title, your lack of credibility will greatly reduce peoples’ trust in you.  When trust is compromised, authority is compromised as well.  Losing authority and credibility greatly reduces your ability to communicate with employees on any topic related to the field in which you work.  In the article “Abuse of Authority and Hierarchical communication” Friebel and Raith argue “if managers and their subordinates have the same basic qualifications, then organizations can benefit from replacing unproductive superiors with more productive subordinates”. (Friebel and Raith 2001) An employee who has the qualification to be the manager will not listen to or respect the manager for any length of time.   This lack of respect directly affects authority. 

One key component to maintaining authority and credibility is your expertise.  Expertise in a given field will gain an individual credibility.  If enough people are willing to listen to an individual they have gained an authoritative role and will be able to clearly communicate with the people they are trying to reach.  On the other side of that coin are people who only have general knowledge of their field, “there are leaders who lack credibility because they only have a superficial knowledge base with no depth”. (Zust n.d.) A person can only get away with having superficial knowledge for so long before they are exposed and lose all credibility, in turn losing authority. 

As described by Zust, people who communicate with credibility align consistent verbal and non verbal communication, are good listeners, make realistic promises and keep them, speak from the heart, have expertise, are honest, and proactive. (Zust n.d.) During my time as a business owner and now as a coach I realize all of these to be true factors in achieving and maintaining credibility.  My background of playing college and professional baseball as well as winning a conference title as a coach at Central Michigan University gave me instant credibility when I arrived at Davenport University.  Now that I am here it is imperative to gain and maintain the trust of the players by proving I actually possess the knowledge my resume states.  Players come to me on a regular basis with very detailed questions, and if I do not have the answers they are looking for or can only give them a partial answer they will begin looking other places for the answers.  To make matters worse they will begin to question my credibility amongst each other.  Also, when a player has an issue outside of baseball and they come to me I must listen.  If they feel I am somebody they can come to with ideas or simply to talk to when things are going bad they show they trust me.  Trust goes a long way in effective communication as a leader.  People who trust in you are more likely to help you out and stick up for you when others are not so happy. 

It is my firm belief that authority is not gained through a title, authority is gained through trust, credibility, and caring.  If people can trust you and trust the information you are giving them, along with knowing you care for them they will be more apt to look up to you as an authority figure and work hard for you.  If you gain this trust from people they will do whatever you ask of them to the best of their ability because they truly believe you would never ask them to do anything that was not for their own good.  This is a responsibility you cannot take lightly because you have gained the trust of the people working or playing for you, and it is much easier to lose this trust than it is to gain it.  That is why as a leader you must constantly work on your credibility.  You must as Zust said “be proactive” (Zust n.d) in order to maintain your credibility.  You do this by making sure you are up to date on the newest ideas and making sure you communicate clearly with the people who are working or playing for you on a regular basis.  The biggest mistake people in authoritative roles make is assuming their title gives them credibility, instead of understanding credibility creates authority. 

References:

Zust, Christine W., (n.d.) Communicating with Credibility, Retrieved October 28, 2010 from www.emergingleader.com/article15.shtml

Friebel and Raith 2001, Abuse of Authority and Hierarchical communication, Retrieved October 28, 2010, From http://idei.fr/doc/by/friebel/friebelraith.pdf

Below is a link to the report by the NCAA regarding the new bats introduced for the 2011 season.  I think the traditionalist will like the numbers.

http://www.ncaa.org/wps/wcm/connect/public/NCAA/Resources/Latest+News/2011/April/Baseballs+power+surge+drops+after+introduction+of+new+bats

Hanley Ramirez using absolutely beautiful swing mechanics.

Some people see his front foot land and thing he is lunging, but the thing to note is how once his heel hits the lower half rotation takes over and the hands again look like Pujols’ did rotating behind the back shoulder and with the body. 

Again the hitter is not pushing his hands forward, Hanley allows the body to launch the hands. 

Also, note how when he lands he has a soft front knee.  This will allow Hanley to make adjustments to off speed pitches, if he recognizes the pitch that is.  The best hitters land with their front knee slightly bent and the rotation of the body firms it up as the swing progresses if the hitter is allowing the lower half to be the engine of the swing. 

Note that extension happens after contact.

Also Note the front foot is not completely closed off, but instead is open to about 45 degrees or less technical point somewhat towards the second basemen.  The open foot allows the hitter to create torque because the hips will begin to open and the shoulder will stay closed until the hip rotation moves the shoulder.  Great examples of Torque (Griffey and Chipper). 

What you would see if you could draw lines on the screen for a Left Handed Hitter is an X formed where the front hip will be pointing toward the right side of the field and the Shoulders will be pointing up the middle or to the right side of the field. 

This video shows how the lower half initiates the swing and how the hands simply rotate with the body.  Albert is not throwing the hands here, he is using rotational mechanics to propel the bat into the hitting zone.  The rotation of the body throws the hands into the zone, but the hands do not move by themselves.  Notice how the bat rotates behind the back shoulder.  When a hitter pulls his hands in front of the back shoulder without rotating the body the hitter loses power and will have trouble getting the bat on plane with the ball.

One thing to notice is how the barrel of the bat becomes square to the ball when the front shoulder begins to move back.  Now it is key to note the shoulder is not moving itself, the lower half is the engine behind this movement, but it clearly shows you do not want to stay closed throughout the swing.  You have to let the body rotate you just have to let it rotate properly. 

Other things to note:

Shoulder tilt (back shoulder actually drops) This is a proper mechanic to get the bat on plane

Power L at Contact: This happens because Albert uses Rotational mechanics.  Hitters who have active hands in the swing and throw or push the hands into full extension.  Power L is where you want to make contact. 

Power V: Also known as extension.  Notice how this happens after contact in a proper swing.  Extension is a result of the hands getting thrown away from the body due to the front leg stopping the hip rotation.  Extension at contact is bad.  Also teaching a hitter to reach out after contact is bad, because reaching out indicates the hands are actually moving the bat and is not a rotational mechanic. 

I was having a conversation with Jeff Opalewski who is the Pitching coach and Recruiting Coordinator at Central Michigan University.  This happened while I was coaching with Jeff at CMU.  One evening we got together and our wives had the pleasure of joining us this evening for an endless conversation of what else but Baseball. 

For those of you not familiar with the situation it usually goes like this, a group of coaches get together and their wives or girlfriends join them for what turns out to be a table that looks like a 3rd grade lunch room with the boys on one side and the girls on the other. 

Anyway, as Jeff and I talked about baseball we used terms we know very well but I learned on the car ride home my wife was having trouble breaking our code.  Here is some of the code we used:

He is a dude: This means a kid who is really good right now

He is going to be a dude: This means we project this kid to be really good

He is a Guy: The same as a dude, I guess it just depends on our mood

He is a Fringe guy: Depending on what we are talking about (Tools, Player Make Up, Grades) if you are fringie or a fringe guy you are on the bubble and need some improving.  Fringe Make up is a no no, but coaches like guys with fringe tools and plus make up.

I want to Like him: We use this term when we see a really athletic kid who is usually missing something but we see such an upside we keep trying to find reason to like the kid. 

The kid has a hose: Throws really hard (also, cannon, gun, rocket)

He can pick it up: This means a player is really good defensively (almost exclusively used in conversations about infielders)

Pop Time: Time it takes the catcher to catch and throw the ball to second base.  Basically it is glove to glove meaning from the catchers glove to the second baseman’s or shortstop’s glove. Under 2.0 is great.

Gamer: Not someone who like to play video or computer games all night long.  A gamer is a kid who plays the game hard and is really fun to watch.  Gamers are a coaches dream.

He is a baseball guy: This comes up when talking about other coaches, and it means he is someone we will like because we will be able to sit and talk with them all night about players who are dudes, or will be dudes, guys who can pick it up, and player we like and really want to like.

So now you know, and for all you baseball wives or girlfriends out there you can now jump in the conversation and ask if the player your husband/boyfriend is recruiting is a dude, what is his pop time, or say something along the lines of, “I know you like him, but is he a gamer, and does he have plus make up”.

And if you really want to impress drop this line: 

“He may not be a guy now, but in a year he will be a dude for sure.  The kid can pick it and he has a hose so if you don’t like him in the infield just throw him behind the dish (home plate, meaning turn him into a catcher) because he consistently has a sub 2 pop time, and not to mention the kid is a flat out gamer”. 

If you are looking for a ring or just a second date, drop this line as it is sure to make the right impression as long as your man is a baseball guy.

For all you coaches out there reading this post please let me know of some terms or phrases you use.

You know the situation, bottom of the ninth, two outs, bases loaded, down by three, full count…..it is just another At Bat unless you make it more than that.

Some people fail in these situations because they allow the moment to overwhelm them.  They take the at bat and put it into context of the situation instead of just understanding there is a pitcher, infielders, outfielder, catcher, and some umps.  The pitcher is going to throw the ball and I am going to hit it.  Instead they let the moment take them to a different place, a place where failure is for some reason more prominent in their thought process, a place where the game is on the line, a place for some reason they have never been before….

Now step back and realize you are standing in a batters box, with a home plate right there, and a pitcher sixty feet six inches away on a mound.  You have been here hundreds, or thousands of times (depending on age or years played), the fact is it is a situation you are familiar with, it is called an At Bat and unless you are pinch hitting you have already had 3 or 4 of these in this game. 

Take the context out of the moment and watch how much easier it is to perform in what people call clutch situations.  The guys who do it the best understand it is a situation they have been in before.  They do not move the mound closer, shrink the ball, or give the defense an extra man, there is absolutely nothing different about this AB then any other except the context you give it.  You have been here before, so relax and remove all context from the at bat.  If you can do this you will find yourself more able to perform in what some people call pressure situations, but remember pressure is perceived.

4-Corner bunt drill is a drill I learned while coaching at Central Michigan University and is exactly what it says it is.  The idea is to set up four station of bunts (surprised) then at each station you designate the bunt you want to work on. 

For example yesterday at practice I put in Sac/Drag/Push/Squeeze stations.  Feel free to set up Sac 1st, Sac 3rd, etc.  Now at this point you can change what you want to.

For us we practice on a gym floor therefore dropping the bat is a no no so we have it set up that the guy bunting lays down the bunt passes off the bat as he is sprinting to the next station. 

If you are outside or in a turf area you may want to have a runner reading a bunt then heading to the next station after a few steps toward the next base.  In the squeeze station you would have a guy on 3rd read the squeeze, score, then bunt.  This allows you to work on base running and bunting all in one, or as my friend Domingo Ayala says “kill two stones with one bird”.

You can add pitchers to the equation and have them pitch and field bunts and make the throw to 1st or home.  There are many different variations you can add depending on your situation or amount of space you have to work with.

For us it is more about getting a bunt down and getting in some conditioning at the same time.  We feel like we need to be able to bunt so we work on it and work hard.  Also, whoever is throwing needs to throw strikes and needs to throw pretty hard.  I do not like practicing bunts with soft throws because it gives players a false confidence about their ability to actually bunt.  It is harder to bunt faster pitches so make sure you convey that message to your coaches or players that are pitching. 

At the end of the session I will call out 4 or 5 players to get a bunt down right on the spot.  We start with 10 sprints if we have 5 guys and for each guy who gets it down we erase two sprints.  A little competition makes it fun, plus we do not really need to run extra sprints after doing this drill for 15-20 minutes depending on our time frame, but competition is good. 

One thing about practice is that it is, well practice.  One thing you have to do at all levels is make time for something fun.  Depending on what level you are at there can be serious time limitations due to NCAA or NAIA regulations at the college level and even family regulations at the youth level.  That being said there is a lot to cover but working efficiently (see post on making practice plans) can help you get all you need to get done in a short time, while allowing players to have fun. 

Get what you need to get done and have fun all in a short time.  You can mix all the fun into your drills without wasting time or even doing something unproductive. 

Here are a few examples of things I like to mix into practice.  If you have any please share them on the comment board.

#1) When working with infielders make time for practicing slow rollers (a very tough play) then make time for bare hand slow rollers.  Kids love making barehanded plays, so let them.  As a coach you can have rules about when they can use their bare hand but you can at least open up and have fun a little and who knows when your player saves you a run by making a great bare hand play on a speedy runner.

#2) When you are working on double play turns with middle infielders you can make time for glove flips and bare hand turns.  Our players love the couple of minutes we do this drill.  This is not a play you plan on happening in a game but giving your players a minute or two to work on them will give them the chance to call on it and it might get you a win but more importantly it will keep your players into practice.

#3) When you are working with outfielders you can make time for robbing home runs.  Again, not a play that happens all the time but let them have fun.  You can mix this in with your fence communication drills (and if you do not have fence communication drills you should) and allow your players the opportunity to make the highlight reel play.  Simply have a coach throwing the ball and have the players find the fence and work on going up and over.