Posted by: Jack Mankin (MrBatspeed@aol.com) on Mon Dec 17 15:36:13 2007

Hi All

Over next the few weeks, I will post video clips that address many of the topics of our latest discussions. The first clip will address the assumption that pitching and batting mechanics are so similar that the principles that apply to one are also true for the other. Below are exerpts from our discussion and a video clip that illustrates our differences.

##
(George)
hitting is just like throwing.. the mechanics are pretty much the same. when you throw a pitch, you use the rubber to push off your power or back leg...imagine pitchers who just stood there with no forward stride & just slung the ball up there... shouldn't you do the same thing when you hit?.. yes! bend your knee & push off your back toe... DO NOT STAND FLATFOOTED! REMEMBER MASS X SPEED = ENERGY. so just like throwing a pitch, push off your back leg & get your body mass going forward.. the faster, the greater the energy you are generating toward the ball..to stand stock still with no forward motion means you are generating NO energy whatsoever!!! HELLO?!?!?!
##

(Jack Mankin)
This illustrates just one of the problems of equating the mechanics of pitching a ball to that of swinging a bat. To say that since the development of forward momentum is required in pitching, it must also be true for hitting is misleading. Keep in mind that in hitting, forward movement of the body ceases at foot-plant and the batter rotates about a stationary axis. Whereas, in pitching, the upper-body continues to move forward after foot-plant and the pitcher rotates about a forward tilting axis.

Many of the posts I have read appear to claim that the mechanics of pitching and hitting are basically the same and therefore what is true for one is also true for the other. I have always had trouble with comparing principles found in pitching a ball to the mechanics of the baseball swing. It seems to me that the dynamics of throwing a 5-ounce baseball with one hand would demand very different body and limb trajectories than those required to swing a 33-ounce bat with two hands.

Look at the clip and draw your own conclusions:

Pitching vs hitting mechanics


Jack Mankin