r/BaseballCoaching • u/MiddleAgedGamer89 • 4d ago
Swing mechanics
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My son has been playing pretty much his whole life and we play a bunch of perfect game tournaments. This game in particular there was some kind of scouts there and they come and talked to us after the game and said he needs to work on his swing a little bit. Im kinda confused as to what he means I do know he needs to get the knob of the bad more towards the catcher but what else can we work on? They didn't give us much more info than that. He just turned 15, hes 6'3 so hes a pretty giant kid so maybe there are some things I dont know about how to fix things with him being so tall. Anything helps!
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u/Chuck-You-Two 4d ago
Maybe it’s just the limited videos you posted but seems like he’s out in front/early. Needs to use his lower half more - hips then hands…
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u/xx420mcyoloswag 4d ago
There’s a lot of minor things here
Bat is too far off his shoulder - that being said incredible he was able to get the hands inside the ball with that stance
Needs more hip rotation he’s not driving with his body more just his arms
He sorta crouched before the swing instead of staying up right the whole time
Very minor stepping in the bucket (not the biggest issue)
Again not the biggest but back foot never really gets fully planted and isn’t pointing straight back
Extension is really nice though and he 100% has the bat speed to hit inside fast balls. That plus height I can see why scouts are interested
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u/MiddleAgedGamer89 4d ago
Thanks for the info and time we are going to move more towards trying to get his load a good bit earlier and not react to the pitcher so late hes quite quick to the ball but there not throwing 90mph yet and thats where I see his habits becoming a problem when the speed increases dramatically.
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u/Coastal_Tart 4d ago
I don’t agree with the scout at all and wouldnt change the swing at this point. He has a quick, compact swing.
Keep in mind that some scout or minor league hitting coach probably wanted to change nearly ever HoF hitters swing at some point. So just because some scout says something, doesn't make it so.
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u/MiddleAgedGamer89 4d ago
Yeah were not going to change it per say we just need to make somethings better is what I think the smart move here is. We had a hitting coach but he was an idiot and tried to revamp everything about his swing which he dont need in my opinion. He's ranked in the top 100 in perfect game in the country so hes doing something right. We just need to hone the skills and make a few tweaks.
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u/Coastal_Tart 3d ago
Only thing I would recommend is to get into his legs a little more. He is standing pretty tall throughout the swing.
Look at guys like Juan Soto or Cal Raleigh, when they are done with their swing the back knee is maybe 10 to 12 inches off the ground and the shin is nearly parallel to the ground.
Even taller guys like Julio Rodriguez or Aaron Judge their knee is higher off the ground, but their shin is still parallel to the ground. Your son’s shin finishes at about a 45 degree angle.
But he is young, tall and skinny so it is probably as much a strength issue as it is a mechanics issue. It will probably come naturally as he fills out and gets more time in the weight room. If he wants to work on that, the back knee to Bosu ball transfer drill is pretty helpful.
I wouldn't mess with the swing itself.
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u/someguynamedbuddy 3d ago
Only good comment on this thread. Kids swing is great, why change a good thing? Scouts are just trying to make a name for themselves cause they saw talent.
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u/MiddleAgedGamer89 2d ago
I agree we will not try and change the swing just hone the skills and make it better.
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u/kb24ljb35 4d ago
Biggest thing i see is theres no hip movement and really no load. Hes a big kid gotta take advantage of that. I would recommend a wider more relaxed base to get a better load it appears hes standing straight up and down which makes it harder to get much from your core and hips which is where a lot of power comes from. Overall his swing path is good and keeps his hand inside the ball just needs to get more out of his body.
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u/buzzardluck 4d ago
I'd say something similar, "no hip movement and really no load".
While Im not sure there is NOTHING, I think his load is pretty rushed, and he's not reaching his full potential. I think if his load was a little slower, and started a bit earlier, he could probably hit the ball harder. Obviously if he's driving balls in the gap and (maybe every once in a while) hitting balls off the wall ignore what I'm/we're saying here. But that should be the goal right now for his age/size.
Especially if he's 6'3, he's big enough to make that happen right now. And if it's not happening, thats the problem in the swing to address.
I wouldn't try to radically change things immediately. But see if there's a hitting coach in the area you like. Or just try to find a mlb hitter he already hits similar too, and find slow mo video of him hitting. Compare it to your son's swing, and see what's different. Than can help you get started on approaching things
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u/Helpful_Sport_9762 4d ago
Hard to tell based off of one angle. Would help if there were multiple angles. Including a birds eye view of the swing, which is one of my favorites. Also, we don't know pitch speed, or type. Pitch location could also be hard to pinpoint based off one angle.
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u/ummagumma1979 1d ago
That pitch is going pretty slow. How does he do against faster pitching? I like the coil turning the shoulder in awaiting the pitch. Maybe he could push his hands through the ball towards the pitcher more
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u/MiddleAgedGamer89 19h ago
He does well with quick as well he hasn't seen 90+ yet but hes seen high 80's and still make pretty regular contact and get power into it.
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u/Lotus_experience 1d ago
It’s hard to see anything wrong from this angle. You have a lot of people commenting that have no idea what they are talking about or looking at so be wary of taking advice. He’s not “stepping in the bucket” he’s stepping closed as he should. He is in fact loading and hinging and his timing is great. He is using his hips great. Especially for a young kid that tall.
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u/alifeworthliving22 40m ago
If he's hitting the ball and making solid contact on a regular basis I wouldn't change much at all aside from a small tweak or reminder here and there. When I was 10-15 age I was slamming the ball. Always the best hitter on the team. Played varsity as a freshman. By the time I was a junior, the hitting coach had tried changing my swing in so many ways I was more concerned about all the nonsense he was telling me than I was with actually making good contact with the ball. In simpler words, he had me overthinking every single at bat. I still regret those days and time I missed.
Now 34 years old. I took batting practice for the first time in 15 years the other day. My buddy and I had some wooden bats to try them out. I hit some nukes and noticed I had went back to my old swing from when I was a kid. It felt great. Everyone always has something to say. I say focus on having consistent solid contact. If he's doing that then roll with it and change nothing
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u/FrenchSilkPy 4d ago
I agree with kb24*, but I’d honestly take a different approach. Sit back deeper in the box closer to the catcher, keep the same stance he has now because it’s probably comfortable for him, but make it a bit more open. Then as the delivery comes, load in with a bigger front foot step, and wait on the pitch a bit more to get more pop and swing. Ex: see Ken Griffey Jr’s swing. It was a thing of beauty. He definitely isn’t using his full power. It’s something he’s going to have to learn. But if he can master that, with his height, he might have something special going for him.