11yo swing analysis

[FiveFrameSwing]

WU ... I'll have to break the post up due to the limits of images that can be included in a post.

Part 1 ...

The early dropping of the barrel, the barrel orientation with the lead arm at contact, and the follow through, ... hint that your daughter may not have a mental image of using a “diagonal swing plane”.

Here she is lowering her hands prior to initiating her swing.

Here is a photo of your daughter at contact. I’ve included ‘red’ lines alone the lead upper arm, lead forearm and bat barrel. The intent is to observe the relationship between the alignment of the lead arm and bat barrel at contact.

There is a possibility that your daughter has a mental image of a swing plane more towards a swing that is level to the ground … and we like to clarify early that this shouldn't be the case.

The good news is that your daughter is hitting into an open field or area. The reason this is good is because when she experiments with a more diagonal barrel path, that she’ll be sold on the result … as the ball will be driven further.

So let’s perform a brief review.

 

[FiveFrameSwing]

Part 2 ...

Here’s an example of improper alignment of the lead arm and bat barrel. More of a typical “level to the ground” mentality …, which we don’t want.

Great … so what do we want then?

Here’s the same professional hitter for two different pitch locations …

Here’s another professional hitter for three different pitch locations …

Notice that at contact that the lead upper arm + lead forearm + bat barrel are all roughly aligned. In a sense, the bat barrel can be considered an “extension of the lead arm”. Some refer to this alignment as a “lever” … and the longer the ‘lever’, the greater the leverage and the greater the impact with the ball. As an example, the photo below represents more of a broken lever … since the barrel is not roughly aligned with the lead arm. A broken lever will in a sense deliver less force.

With knowledge of what the lead arm alignment at contact should look like, simply hold the ball at various contact positions and have your daughter swing to contact. Then, with her frozen at contact, highlight to her the alignment of her lead arm and bat barrel … I simply use my hand to trace the alignment starting from the lead shoulder to the tip of the barrel and then give a score from 1-to-10. Keep varying the contact point and promote the alignment we’re looking for. In the same drill I also perform a checkpoint for the Mankin Power-Vee …, which is basically an upright pinched rear forearm-to-bicep at the RVP connection point. For now … concentrate on arriving at contact with a diagonal barrel path that has the lead arm and barrel roughly aligned. Practice that … and then hit that way.

Occasionally I'll get a young hitter that struggles to hit line drives out of the infield … and this one addition will change that.

 

[FiveFrameSwing]

WU ... I had a request to sync up a video clip of Jen-Yee with your daughter's recent swing clip.