Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

Ted Williams is directly cited throughout this eBook and is represented in BOLD print.
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

The slight upswing is best; a slight upstroke matches the trajectory of

the incoming pitch, increasing the area of solid contact (Williams, 61).

It was this quote from Ted Williams’ book, The Science of Hitting, which
changed the course of my coaching career forever. It was one of those
“a-ha” moments in my coaching life that made an imprint so profound
that it inspired me to develop a training system based completely on
The Science of Hitting, written by Ted Williams.

The Rationale
It was never my intention to set out to write instructional training
manuals, create a hitting system, and have a support website dedicated
to teaching and educating coaches on the art of hitting. Needless to
say, that is exactly what I have done. I grew up in the Pacific Northwest
and played baseball throughout my younger days, as did so many of
you, and I remember having very little hitting instruction as a player.
As a matter of fact, I can’t even recall any type of formal hitting
instruction whatsoever, except for an occasional, “let ‘er rip Hoss” that
would come rolling out of the dugout from our Tom Selleck look-alike
legion ball coach. Sometimes, one of my teammate’s dad would tell us
to “keep our elbows up” or “get a good pitch to hit.” Really, it wasn’t
until I started coaching that I ran into any real structure when it came
to hitting instruction.

Where I grew up, the University of Washington (for baseball) and

Pacific Lutheran University (for softball) were two prominent programs
that were the most influential when it came to hitting instruction. Ken
Knutson and Ralph Weekly were two of my early influences, as well as
Charlie Lau (a former major league player and major league hitting
coach for three different teams), and Bruce Carlyle, from the University
of Delaware. I also spent every year at the annual PEMCO Coaches
clinic and gradually began to amass a firm grip on the elements of
coaching. I worked my way up the ladder to the high school and select
ranks of coaching--both boys baseball and girls fastpitch. Five years
into my coaching career, in 1993, my high school team finished third in
the state, my Boys American Legion Ball club won the state title, and to
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

top it all off, my U-18 Girls Fastpitch team won the Big League World
Series Championship. Now that was an amazing year. Strangely, one of
the amazing things that happened, despite this successful year, was
that something still just didn’t sit right with me when it came to hitting
instruction.

After that unbelievable season had come to an end, I remember

distinctly evaluating what I was teaching. Believe it or not, I wasn't
comfortable with the results. I felt my teaching techniques needed an
overhaul. Now, I realize that one would think that after having such
success I would have been comfortable with what I was doing and
confident in the varied aspects of hitting, but the truth is, I wasn't.

The reason I won a Big League World Series Championship was because
I had a total stud on the mound, who went a perfect 3-0 through
Western Regionals, and again went 3-0 in the World Series. Put that
together with an amazingly fast team (top to bottom) that was just as
strong defensively as they were fast, along with a ton of hard work and
a little luck and there you have it, a Big League World Championship.
When it came to hitting, though, we were mediocre at best, which was
something I simply couldn't wrap my mind around. I asked myself why
it was that I could train players in every other aspect of the game and
feel 100% confident that they will perform at a high level, yet when it
came to hitting we were just another typical team producing mediocre
offense.

So, I turned to the very best hitter to ever play the game--Ted Williams.
I remember sitting down and reading The Science Of Hitting, by Ted
Williams, for the first time and being struck by this quote, "hitting a
baseball is the single most difficult thing to do in sports." I could only
think to myself, ’holy cow, if hitting a baseball is the single most difficult
thing to do in sports, then trying to teach hitting has to be a close
second.’ I was right.

So, I dug in and began to decipher the elements in his book, and it
didn't take long to realize there were significant differences from my
previous approach that would change and influence my hitting
instruction forever.
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

The following observations were all retrieved from The Science of

Hitting:

 The way you bring your hip into the swing is directly
proportionate to the power you generate; The hip movement
is a spinning action, with the head as the axis and it must not
be restricted; Fight against lunging, everybody lunges a little -
you have to in order to keep your weight balanced as you
stride.

 Up, up is the way; you hit consistently with authority. For

those purposes I advocate a slight upswing and starting more
vertical with the bat (pointing straight up in the air) increased
the loop in my swing, I could get the ball in the air better.

 Ideal Impact Zone, when the bat and ball meet at a 90 degree
angle; The baseball swing is a hard push-swing and you get
your power not so much from the wrists, arms and shoulders,
but from the rotation of the hips into the ball. Wrist roll after
the ball has left the bat.

Within a few years, I was definitely experiencing far greater success

than at any other time in my coaching tenure. Then I stumbled across
one of Ted Williams’ very own players from his managing days, Mike
Epstein. Epstein had been cited in his book several times and he had
created a teaching system based on his playing days in the big leagues
and labeled it “rotational hitting.” He had a fabulous endorsement from
Ted Williams and a series of drills in DVD format. Needless to say, I
ordered it right on the spot. I began to implement “The Mike Epstein
System of Hitting” and toiled with the drills awhile before I decided to
go and work with him personally. After my trip to Colorado, I continued
to work with the system for some time until it dawned on me one day--
I was doing exactly the same thing I had done over the past decade, I
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

was parroting a system I didn't fully agree with. Key elements were
missing in Mike’s training system, and I simply wasn’t going down that
road again, so I took a step back.

I immediately returned to The Science of Hitting and went through it

from cover-to-cover and back again, and then I did it again until I
memorized every page, word for word. I then studied every video clip I
could get my hands on until I could confidently identify five key
principles that were emerging in every hitter I watched. I matched up
the five key principles directly with what I learned in The Science of
Hitting and developed a series of drills that would drastically change my
coaching career and the production of players I was teaching.

The following pages are a close up, in-depth look at The Science of
Hitting based on my personal interpretation of Ted William’s book. I
will be using direct quotes taken from The Science of Hitting along with
several other sources from high level coaches, including the current
director of scouts for the Colorado Rockies, to draw significant
comparisons on hitting philosophies and techniques that are being
taught. The results may surprise you-- or maybe they won’t-- but either
way, I hope you find this material to be a useful source of information
and I truly wish you the very best.

If you haven’t had a chance to read The Science of Hitting, I strongly

recommend you do so. Even though it does not provide the “how” part
of hitting, it does provide a very clear picture as to “what” Ted Williams
believed to be true about hitting; read it carefully and you will take
away some truly amazing insight from the greatest hitter to ever play
the game.

The Science of Hitting

As I began the process of analyzing the book, I found it very interesting
to see how Ted Williams decided to put his book together and what
was important to him as he laid it out. As you read through this eBook, I
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

will italicize and label page numbers any time I use a direct quote from
Williams.

Early in the book, Williams addresses two key pieces of advice he

received: get a good pitch to hit, and don’t let anyone change your
style. He then talks about his three “rules to hit by,” which were: get a
good ball to hit, proper thinking, and be quick with the bat. It takes
about 33 pages before he even begins to talk about mechanics of the
swing, everything prior to that is addressing the mental approach and
defining what style means.

The Mental Approach

Ted Williams: “hitting a baseball is 50% from the neck up (20).” The
amount of time and energy Williams places on addressing the mental
approach throughout the book is significant, and clearly demonstrates
how strongly he feels about the mental approach to the game. This
was a profound discovery for me and one that I embrace
wholeheartedly. Also, due to the fact that Williams places so much
emphasis on the importance of the mental process involved, I decided
to address them separately so as to keep things simple and clear.

Style
Ted Williams defined style as a matter of applying certain truths of
hitting to a player’s natural make-up, rather than a Williams, Ruth or
DiMaggio method. The style must fit the player, not the other way
around (20). A player’s stance, stride, hitch, load, bat, position in the
box, how he holds the bat, etc… are all dependent on an individual and
his make-up. Show me ten great hitters and I’ll show you ten different
styles (20). William makes it very clear that a player’s style and
mechanics (truths about hitting) are not related and every player has
their own individual style. I formulated this simple analogy, “let players
use whatever comes natural to them as a hitter in regard to “style”, as
long as their “style” is not jeopardizing their mechanics.” So, a player’s
stance, stride, hitch, load, bat, position in the box, how he holds the bat
etc. are all secondary elements in hitting; the primary elements being
the mechanics of the swing.
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

Note: As long as a player can routinely demonstrate strong core

mechanics then their style can be left alone. But, if they are
struggling with their mechanics it is possible that their style is part of
the problem. Here’s an example: Let’s say you have a player who is
having a hard time using his hips. It may be that the player is simply
too long in his stride and he may need to shorten it, thus changing his
style slightly. Or, if a player is trying to swing a tree trunk, or standing
on top of the plate, or anything else that falls into the obviously wrong
category, coaches need to show that player that common sense needs
to be present. Just remember, the more changes implemented on a
player the further a player moves from his natural style, so pick and
choose wisely.

The Truths of Hitting (The Mechanics)

The Cocking of the Hips and the Stride – As a player is set in the box, a
series of linked movements occur, starting with the stride forward and
the cocking of the hips.

Shoulders should at least start level; the head is always still. Much as
in Golf, the head stays put, as level as possible, except as you stride
into the ball, you fight against going forward, against lunging.
Everybody lunges a little – you have to in order to keep your weight
balanced as you stride. You can’t keep your head perfectly still as the
golfer is told to do because your lead foot is moving and the head and
body come with it to maintain balance (35). Your stride is pretty much
square to the pitcher (46).

Cocking hips, so essential in the golf swing but never articulated in

baseball, is at the root of batting power. It occurs in unison with the
beginning of the stride, the lead knee turning in to facilitate rotation
of the hips and shoulders (40).
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

The swing begins with a load (cocking

of the hips) turning them inward along
with a stride forward towards the
pitcher. It is the stride forward that is
significant. (You can’t keep your head
perfectly still as the golfer is told to
do because your lead foot is moving
and the head and body come with it
to maintain balance).

Prior to the launch of the swing there

is a forward movement. You see this
with all great hitters; I refer to this as
weight transfer, the forward
movement prior to the swing.

Note: Ted William’s starts his swing

balanced and his head moves with his
body. Williams had a very short stride
and his movement forward was
limited by the length of his stride, but
nevertheless, forward movement
occurred prior to the hips firing and
the launch of the swing.
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

When you look back at Ted Williams’ video clips you will see exactly
what he was referring to in regard to the movement forward and the
cocking of the hips prior to the swing. You will also notice how short
his stride was and how little his body moved; I believe his style
definitely contributed to his overall success and even though it is
considered individual, I believe it would be greatly beneficial to keep
things as simple as possible when it comes to a player’s “style.”

Here are some great examples of

“style,” and what Ted Williams
believed in regard to bat control:

*The closer the bat is to the

body, the better the bat control.

*The bat is easier to control

when you decrease the arc of the
swing.

*I stayed more vertical, thereby

increasing the loop in the swing.
The Science of Hitting, pg 35
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

Hips
The following remarks were taken directly from The Science of Hitting,
word for word.

*The way you bring your hips into the swing is directly proportionate
to the power you generate.

*Without hip action, you’re strictly an arms and wrists hitter.

*You don’t worry about hips until you actually begin the performance
of the swing. The hips and hands cock as you move your lead foot to
stride, the front knee turning in to help the hips rotate back. You are
cocking your hips as you stride, and it’s so important to get that right.
You go back, and then you come forward. You don’t start back there.
And you don’t “start” your swing with your hips cocked.

* Be careful not to over stride, because then you spread your hips and
prevent a good pivot, diminishing power.

* The hip movement is a spinning action, with the head as the axis,
and it must not be restricted.

* As the hips come around, the hands follow, just as in golf, and the
bat follows the hands, and as they get into the hitting area the speed
is increasing. One naturally follows the other. You can’t get the
proper action without the hips clearing the way.

* The hips set the swing in motion and lead the way. If they are
restricted, if you don’t open them wide enough, the wrists will roll
prematurely. They won’t stay in that good strong position long
enough to make the proper contact. If contact is made as the wrists
roll, chances are the bat will be on top of the ball and a weak ground
ball will result.
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

As you can clearly see based on Ted Williams remarks, the hips are a
major factor when it comes to good hitting mechanics. And for me
personally, the quote that is most intriguing is the following, “the
movement is a spinning action, with the head as the axis and it must
not be restricted.” The last part of the sentence is the most significant
piece of information he discloses in this section - the restriction of the
back hip. This notion of hip restriction is at the center of a major
debate going on in the hitting world and it plays a major role when
teaching players how to hit.

Ted Williams makes it very clear that the hip movement is a spinning
motion and that the head is at the axis. But, in order to fully
understand that concept you have to watch the video clips to see what
he was talking about in regard to restriction of the hips.

Squishing the bug is a

term used to teach
the back hip rotation.
Many coaches teach
this technique and
place a large emphasis
on rotating the
backfoot into the
ground as if you were
squishing a bug into
the ground. The
weight stays back in
the back leg and
rotation actually
occurs on the ball of
the back foot.
The hip action is a combination of push/pull between the front and the
back hip; furthermore, there is no “squishing the bug.”
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

A significant factor of the clips above is how Ted Williams used his hips
in his swing. You’ll notice that the weight comes out off of his back foot
and he is rotating around his front leg with the head as the axis. He
does not sit into his back foot as he is swinging. He strides forward
slightly, cocks his hips as he strides, and swings with his hips leading the
way. There is nothing restricting his hips from rotating around his front
axis. “Squishing the bug would restrict the hips.”

This illustration is an over exaggeration of hip

restriction, but it speaks volumes.

Far too many coaches are teaching their

players to sit back and rotate off their back
foot as they turn and rotate their hips, which
will restrict a player’s hip.

They use terms like “squish the bug” or “kick

the can” to teach hip rotation. But, instead of
teaching good hip rotation, they are merely
teaching hip restriction.

In order for a player to maximize his hip

rotation, a slight forward motion prior to the
swing is necessary and when they engage the
hips into the swing the weight comes out off?
of the back foot and rotates around the front
leg with the head being the axis.
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

Now, here is where things start to get confusing for so many coaches
and most definitely causes a great deal of ambiguity in the coaching
world. The following was taken from a website that posts hitting
instruction from Regional Scout for the Colorado Rockies. Keep in
mind this is someone who is at the highest level of the game, and
scouts future MLB players for a living.

“To rotate the back hip forward, the hitter pivots on the ball of the
back foot. Remember, the stance began with the back foot pointed
slightly in, which allows for a quicker pivot. An analogy may help the
player learn this pivot. Ask the player to pretend that he has stepped
on a bug with the ball of his back foot. The bug is in soft dirt, so he is
undamaged but trapped. Now, if the hitter transfers his weight early
or overstrides, the heel of the back foot will move upward so that
only the toes are touching the ground. The bug can escape if this
happens. The hitter must keep him trapped. The objective is to
squash the bug by pivoting the foot forward with the weight staying
directly over the ball of the foot where the bug is trapped.”

There is more…

 The hip rotation is released by the pivot, or the squash of the bug, on
the ball of the back foot. If the back foot does not rotate, the hitter
will not have good hip rotation or proper balance.
 The hitter retains body balance throughout the rotation. Often the
weight falls toward the plate because of a poor pivot on the back side
or a weight transfer outside the stack.
 The weight transfer is from back to middle. The back foot remains in
solid contact with the ground. The hitter must not let the bug escape
before he squashes it!

That theory simply doesn’t hold water, not 70 years ago – not today.
Just look at the back foot!
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

Great hitters hit off their front leg and do not “Squish The Bug.”
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

Up, Up Is The Way

Another clearly controversial topic is that of the swing path. As you can
see from the illustration above, Ted Williams believed the slight
upswing was the best opportunity for him to be successful at the plate.
He also points out that the upswing is harder for one reason: It’s a
longer stroke with a longer loop to it. It requires more time. When I
say “get on top of the ball,” I don’t mean swing down or chop, but to
get your sights higher and level out your swing more. Nine times out
of ten when you fail to make contact with a pitch you have swung
under it.

Swing level (or what is commonly called

“down”), and the tendency is to bring your
top hand over the ball at impact. The effect is
a tack-hammer stroke, almost a “roll”- and it
is not what you want. You will find that even
without good hip action you can swing in that
manner, and the result is a minimum of
power. I advocate a slight upswing (from level
to about 10 degrees) (62).
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

The ideal swing is not level, and it is not down – Ted Williams

Here is what the Colorado Rockies’ scout has to say:

Obviously, the quickest path between two points is a straight line. In

hitting, the two points are the ball and the barrel of the bat. From
launch position, the barrel must take a straight path to the ball. It
cannot be cast back away from the ball. It cannot go down in a
curved path to the ball. It must go straight to the path of the ball. To
the novice it would seem that this somewhat downward approach to
the ball would result in beating the ball into the ground. All we are
trying to do is reach the path of the ball quickly. Upon reaching that
path, the hitter levels off and follows through, ideally with the bat
touching the top of the front arm. If the follow-through takes the
hands to the front knee, then, yes, the hitter would be beating the
ball in the ground.

Swings that conclude with the hands well above the front shoulder
normally have an upward bat path, again resulting in fly balls. The
hands should finish at the top of the front-side arm. That ending
position indicates a level swing that is in concert with the rotational
forces.
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

In the initial approach to the ball, the barrel of the bat remains
higher than the hands, and the hands remain higher than the front
elbow. Two major problems cause hitters to break this rule:

The back shoulder dips below the level of the front shoulder because
the back knee and hip collapse or because the hitter simply dips the
back shoulder. This causes the plane of the bat arc to become longer
as the hitter casts the bat away from the flight of the ball. The barrel
quickly becomes lower than the hands and the front elbow. The barrel
then moves in an upward arc, which will disrupt the force plane if the
knees and hips have maintained a rotation parallel to the ground. The
longer approach results in an upward swing and fly balls that
generate a low on-base percentage.

The front elbow moves upward. The hitter breaks the rule of
keeping his elbow lower than his hands and the barrel of the bat.
The result is a long, golf- like swing that requires great accuracy in
timing as it reaches the point of contact with the ball. The timing
must be perfect to hit line drives because the bat is not traveling in
the same plane as the ball. In a manner similar to what happens
when the hitter dips the back shoulder, the bat arc is in a
completely different plane from hip rotation. The hitter loses
power. Again, the bat is cast away from the flight of the ball, and
the swing takes longer. This slicing at the ball leaves holes in the
swing areas in the strike zone, usually up and in where the hitter
has a poor chance of making good contact. In addition, the golf-
like swing is extremely difficult to adjust to pitches that have
lateral movement (in or away, not up or down), as most do. “Hall
of Famer Ted Williams once said, “If you choke up on the bat
one inch, you will lose 5 percent of your power, but you will
increase your efficiency 25 percent.”

I found it interesting that the greatest hitter of all-time has provided

us with a wealth of information and insight to hitting, and the only
thing mentioned about Ted Williams is his quote about choking-up
an inch, simply fascinating. He is also clearly against players hitting
fly balls, stating that “resulting in fly balls that generate a lower on-
base percentage. Well, it may be true that fly balls are more likely to
be caught for an out than ground balls. But, players who hit fly balls
might miss out on singles will more than make up for it with power
and slugging percentage.
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

All stats from Fangraphs.com

In 2009, these were the top fly ball hitters in MLB:

1. Carlos Pena, TB 54.1% (.356 OBP, .537 SLG)

2. Ian Kinsler, TEX 54.0% (.327 OBP, .488 SLG)

3. Bengie Molina, SF 52.5% (.285 OBP, 442 SLG)

4. David Ortiz, BOS 50.5% (.332 OBP, .462 SLG)

5. Russell Branyan, SEA 50.0% (.347 OBP, .520 SLG)

6. Curtis Granderson, DET 49.3% (.327 OBP, .453 SLG)

7. Jason Bay, BOS 49.3% (.384 OBP, .537 SLG)

Others in the top 20: Adam Dunn, Chase Utley, Mark Reynolds &
Albert Pujols.

The players who hit the fewest number of fly balls are a less-
accomplished group:

1. Skip Schumaker, STL 17.5% (.364 OBP, .393 SLG)

2. Luis Castillo, NYM 18.7% (.387 OBP, .346 SLG)

3. Michael Bourn, HOU 21.6% (.354 OBP, .384 SLG)

4. Derek Jeter, NYY 22.7% (.406 OBP, .465 SLG)

5. Elvis Andrus, TEX 23.0% (.329 OBPK, .373 SLG)

6. Orlando Hudson, LAD 25.7% (.357 OBP, .417 SLG)

7. Felipe Lopez, ARZ/MIL 25.9% (.383 OBP, .427 SLG)

These players do have higher on base percentages, but lower

slugging. Many are speedsters that can beat out a ground ball for a
hit. Yet, they are still using exactly the same mechanics.
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

What about line drive percentage leaders in 2009?

1. Jason Bartlett, TB 26.0% (.389 OBP, .490 SLG)

2. David Wright, NYM 25.7% (.390 OBP, .447 SLG0

3. Todd Helton, COL 24.7% (.416 OBP, .489 SLG)

4. Kosuke Fukudome, CHC 24.0% (.375 OBP, .421 SLG)

5. Chone Figgins, LAA 23.9% (.395 OBP, .393 SLG)

6. Ryan Sweeney, OAK 23.7% (.348 OBP, .407 SLG)

7. Adam Kennedy, OAK 23.7% (.348 OBP, .410 SLG)

8. Ryan Howard, PHI 22.7% (.360 OBP, .571 SLG)

This is a solid group of players, with better OBPs than either the fly
ball hitters or the ground ball hitters, and in-between both in
slugging for the most part. Ryan Howard is an outlier, with his
tremendous slugging ability. Howard (and David Wright) prove the
point that you can generate line drives with an upward swing.
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

Ideal Impact & Square Wrists

Out of all of the clinics, seminars, DVD’s and instructional
courses I have absorbed, nothing made more sense to me then
William’s explanation of Ideal Impact and square wrists at
contact, nothing.

The Science Of Hitting, Pg 54

Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

Ideal Impact as defined by Ted Williams is when the bat and

ball meet at a 90 degree angle and your wrists are square /
unbroken at contact. He also states that fifteen degrees either
side of 90 degrees from the direction of the pitch is a
reasonable tolerance area (55).

Above is a great illustration demonstrating what Ideal Impact

looks like and gives you a great perspective as to what needs to
happen in order to achieve Ideal Impact. The swing is a
rotational approach to the ball with the large muscles providing
the majority of the force and power in the swing; the arms,
shoulders, and hands act more as a secondary power source
and are responsible for guiding and bracing the bat at contact.

Hands and forearms supply direction. The wrists do not roll.

Action at the point of contact is comparable to that of the
hard, unbroken swing of an ax (41). If you’re right-handed,
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

your chief power source is your right hand, the hand nearer the
club head.

The Ax analogy has been around a long time, but I never really
grasped the concept thoroughly until I put the pieces
altogether. The swing path to the ball, Ideal Impact and square
unbroken wrists are all intertwined together.

Page 58 from The Science of Hitting reads: Try this for yourself.
Get a bat and swing it against a telephone pole. Where is the
wrist position at point of contact? Square and unbroken,
that’s where, just as when you hit a tree with an ax.
Conclusion? The baseball swing is a hard push-swing.
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

Note the position of the hands and the arms at Ideal Impact; the back elbow is at
the rib cage, wrists are square at contact, and there is a bend in the lead elbow.

In order to get to Ideal Impact with square wrists, the front elbow has to work up
and around the body. Players that lead with their knob of the bat will extend the
lead arm and their wrists will roll through contact.
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

Most young hitters and 50% of the big league players I’ve
talked to have never considered that the impact of the bat on
ball is reached not with the wrists rolling, or a “wrist” swing,
but with the wrists square and unbroken, as they would be at
impact when an ax is swung on a tree. The power is always
applied before the wrists roll. Even when you are pulling? Yes,
because the hips bring the bat around, not the wrists (58).
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

One point must be re-emphasized, however: the hips set the swing in
motion and lead the way. If they are restricted, if you don’t open
them wide enough, the wrists will roll prematurely. They won’t stay
in that good strong position long enough to make proper contact. If
contact is made as the wrists roll, chances are the bat will be on top of
the ball and a weak ground ball will result.

The Colorado Rockies Scout:

The front elbow should never be fully extended, but
the back elbow should be close to full extension at
contact with the ball. Before that time, the front
elbow should be flexed so that the lever arm is short
and can be moved more quickly.

If the hitter has rotated the body in proper sequence

and the forward direction of force from the knees to
the hips to the shoulder is in a level plane to the
ground, the bat arc should be in the same plane, that
is, a level swing should occur. If this happens, if all
forces are rotating in the same plane, the hitter has a
good chance to apply his optimum force to the ball.
How he approaches the ball becomes critical at this
point. The following rules concern the approach to
the ball.

The hands always should stay higher than the path

of the ball as the hitter approaches the ball. He must not drop the hands to
the path of the ball as he begins his approach. Doing so takes time, causes fly
balls, and reduces power and quickness.

The hands should stay inside the path of the ball, close to the power stance. A
good rule is simply to take the knob of the bat to the ball and lead the swing
with the hands, not the barrel of the bat. This action will produce a quicker
bat, offer a better chance of reading the pitch before starting the swing, and
allow a proper path to the pitch on the outer half of the plate.
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

Final Thoughts

It’s easy to see that there is a significant difference in hitting philosophy

among coaches all across the country, and I certainly don’t expect you
to simply drop what you are doing and change your teaching
philosophy. But, if you really look closely at what the best players in
the world are doing, and you read carefully what Ted Williams
describes as the truths of hitting, you will be much better for it. Ted
Williams spells it out in The Science Of Hitting and has made a
significant impact on how I teach and view hitting, and for this I am
eternally grateful.

“To take another path when you feel the one you’ve been led down is
wrong takes courage, real courage.”

One wouldn’t think that following Ted Williams advice on hitting would
require much of anything, except for a little desire to learn and maybe
a little reading, but courage? Come on, who in their right mind would
ever think it would take courage to follow the advice of the best hitter
to ever play the game. Do you see the irony here?

The irony is great and the blowback that I have personally experienced
proves my point about courage exactly. For example, when I teach my
players to swing up through the ball, rather than down through it, you
would think I failed coaching 101; next thing you know I’m a voodoo
witch doctor, rather than a coach. The reality is that this reaction is
exactly what has transpired. Fortunately for me, I have really thick skin.

Coaches are teaching and preaching exactly the opposite of what the
best hitters are actually, physically doing. We know this for a fact
because we see it on video. What Ted Williams wrote about almost 40
years ago is evident in the swings of Albert Pujols, David Wright, and
the other top hitters in Major League Baseball today. My approach to
hitting brings these concepts to the swings of players in baseball and
fastpitch.

Personally, I have never been better at coaching and teaching hitting

than I am today. Passing that knowledge on to others is a great
opportunity for me as a coach and for me as someone who loves
baseball and the sound of a well-struck ball heading for the left-
centerfield gap.
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

The Science Of Hitting Recap & A Look At The Pro’s

Hips Lead The Way

The hips set the swing in motion and lead the way. If they are
restricted, if you don’t open them wide enough, the wrists will roll
prematurely. They won’t stay in that good strong position long
enough to make the proper contact. If contact is made as the wrists
roll, chances are the bat will be on top of the ball and a weak ground
ball will result.

The hip movement is a spinning action, with the head as the axis, and
it must not be restricted.
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

Slight Upswing Is Best

Swing level (or what is commonly called “down”), and the tendency is
to bring your top hand over the ball at impact. The effect is a tack-
hammer stroke, almost a “roll”- and it is not what you want. You will
find that even without good hip action you can swing in that manner,
and the result is a minimum of power. I advocate a slight upswing
(from level to about 10 degrees) (62).
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

Ideal Impact and Square Unbroken wrists

Ideal Impact as defined by Ted Williams is when the bat and ball meet
at a 90-degree angle and your wrists are square/unbroken at contact.
He also states that fifteen degrees either side of 90 degrees from the
direction of the pitch is a reasonable tolerance area (55). Hands and
forearms supply direction. The wrists do not roll. Action at the point
of contact is comparable to that of the hard, unbroken swing of an
axe (41). If you’re right-handed, your chief power source is your right
hand, the hand nearer the club head.
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

It’s Not Just happening In Baseball

Hips Lead The Way

The hips set the swing in motion and lead the way. If they are
restricted, if you don’t open them wide enough, the wrists will roll
prematurely. They won’t stay in that good strong position long
enough to make the proper contact. If contact is made as the wrists
roll, chances are the bat will be on top of the ball and a weak ground
ball will result.

The hip movement is a spinning action, with the head as the axis, and
it must not be restricted.
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

Slight Upswing Is Best

Swing level (or what is commonly called “down”), and the tendency is
to bring your top hand over the ball at impact. The effect is a tack-
hammer stroke, almost a “roll”- and it is not what you want. You will
find that even without good hip action you can swing in that manner,
and the result is a minimum of power. I advocate a slight upswing
(from level to about 10 degrees) (62).
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

Ideal Impact and Square Unbroken wrists

Ideal Impact as defined by Ted Williams is when the bat and ball meet
at a 90 degree angle and your wrists are square/unbroken at contact.
He also states that fifteen degrees either side of 90 degrees from the
direction of the pitch is a reasonable tolerance area (55). Hands and
forearms supply direction. The wrists do not roll. Action at the point
of contact is comparable to that of the hard, unbroken swing of an
axe (41). If you’re right-handed, your chief power source is your right
hand, the hand nearer the club head.
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting
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Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

The ParkerTraining System

The ParkerTraining System is a uniquely crafted training system

designed from The Science of Hitting that teaches players how to use
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the world and based on Ted Williams’ belief, a belief that he calls the
Truth about Hitting.

The PTS was designed using a teaching technique called scaffolding that
is a very simple approach to a complicated process. The system breaks
down the swing mechanics into small manageable pieces that allows
the player and coach to progress incrementally from start to finish.
Because each step is broken down into small parts, both player and
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The true beauty of the ParkerTraining System is in its simplicity; taking

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covers it all, giving your players a better chance to be the best they can
be.
Breaking Down The Science Of Hitting

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