I recently read an article and was talking with a JUCO coach about a hitting style. The article said that now coaches are starting to teach just a weight transfer from front foot to back foot instead of stepping with the front foot. This way if a change up is thrown it will not get the hitter out on his front foot. What would be the pros and cons of not stepping? They said it does not really make a difference since all the power comes from your core area of your body. It just cuts down on the extra movement of the body.

I disagree that power always comes from the core, There are many arm swingers out there. The step diffidently adds power to amateur hitters. The step eases weight shift. I think no step can help with timing of the ball FB or CU. but a no step swing will generally mess up your swing mechanics. Just because Pujos can do it doesnt mean you can. I would only use no step for beginners in little league that have trouble timing the ball. and no one else unless you know what the a real swing is suppose to be like. But doing a no step to find the real swing will screw you up.

I have heard tons of people say that Puljos is a no step hitter but I have seen his swing broken down in a slow mo situation and even he steps with that front foot. I think that step also helps in a lot of young hitters because it helps them gather their weight up.

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I disagree that power always comes from the core, There are many arm swingers out there.

Do you think arm swingers can generate power?

My understanding is that power comes from the lower half: Core and Legs. Arms, wrists and hands are very important also, and not just "along for the ride".

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Originally posted by fanofgame:

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I disagree that power always comes from the core, There are many arm swingers out there.

Do you think arm swingers can generate power?

Thats not my point. There ARE many arm swingers out there. No matter how strong there core is, its not going to help if they are arm swingers.

And yes, arms can generate power, thats why there is the "Power V" postion. Arm power has more potential then core power. reply with saying I am wrong , thank you

Hitting the long ball by generating core power is one method. The other is by generating bat speed.

We should try to avoid confusing the two.

Big guys generate power. Small guys and better hitters generate bat speed.

In the rare occasion that you have a big guy who also generates good bat speed, baseballs should be flying out of the park.

The method mentioned of shifting weight from front to back seems counter intuitive but can be effective. (Especially hitting low pitches)

You probably mean weight transfer from back foot to front foot, not the other way around, correct?

Anyway, Pujols does take a stride, but some MLB hitters just barely lift their foot up and put it back down in the same spot with no stride.

If you cannot transfer weight with lower body how are you going to hit with your torso?

Not saying core is not important. But you need both weight shift and core to work together.


drill

Coach Yosten,

I didn’t read the article but in my opinion, the main power contributor is the hamstrings and if a coach is going to teach no-stride he should go out of his way to make sure the hitter increases the width of his stance (to match the width he would obtain if he had strode).

Also, in my opinion, every hitter should shift his weight from his front foot to back foot but that should happen before the swing ever takes place, when the pitcher separates his hands. I call it the “move back”. In my opinion, the hitter should also seize the opportunity to turn his front knee, hip and shoulder in at this time as well.

Lastly, I am a big fan of extra movement before the swing actually occurs. Why a hitting instructor would want to cut down movement during a player’s stance, move back and stride has always puzzled me.

THop