It is very easy to get into the habit of pulling off the
ball. This is especially true for power hitters. Have you ever seen a power
hitter hit a home run and thereafter, he can't couch the ball? What happened?
The home run took him out of himself. So as he pivots, he is also pivoting his
head.
First
of all, hitters should never take a 100% stroke. Doing this invites pulling off
the ball. For efficiency, the stroke should be no more than 95%, saving 5% for
command. As coaches, we sometimes go too far in the other direction by telling
them to "just meet the ball." And now they start to aim the bat,
which is not good either.
Hitting
is a controlled explosion. Continue to be aggressive, with a 95% stroke. So
what do we advise? The hitter is pulling off because he's rotating his complete
body when he hits. He must focus on his head rotating in the opposite direction
to the hips. As the hips rotate to the pitcher, the head should rotate to the
ball.
Here
are three baseball hitting drills for this:
DRILL
#1
Place
a pile-on or glove across from the hitter just outside the batter's box in
front of home plate (45% angle). After the hitter makes contact, he looks into
the pile-on area. This keeps the head inside.
DRILL
#2 (with pitching machine or live pitcher)
Hitter
assumes his stance, with no bat. To simulate holding a bat, his top hand grabs
the thumb of his bottom hand. Coach stands in back of the hitter and holds his
head on both sides . The hitter takes batless strokes at the pitched ball, while coach restricts
the head to keep it on the ball as it enters the hit zone.
DRILL
#3 (Full Take)
The
hitter will coil, stride, and read the pitch to the catcher. This keeps the
head independent and disciplines it to stay with the ball. Note: This head
discipline should carry over to his regular hitting, in the "full
take", a pitch that is an obvious ball.
Coaching Points. The hitter should not go to the point where his head is
pushing against the back shoulder. This locks up the back shoulder and
restricts his extension. The head swivels. It should never tilt while reading
the pitch. This causes the body to tilt also and the eyes to look on a vertical
plane. Eyes must stay basically horizontal for best vision and body control.
Former
Tulane Hall of Fame Baseball Coach, Joe Brockhoff,
fully explains his baseball hitting drills with the Super 8 Hitting System,
completely demonstrated with videos and hitting drills to help you hit with
more power and raise your batting average. http://www.LearnBaseballHitting.com/lcp.