Posted by: The Hitting Guru (hitman3527@aol.com) on Tue Apr 25 16:57:41 2006

> The problem is what is "too light of a bat?" The hitter needs to feel
> the weight and balance of a solid bat to groove the swing. Swinging with too light bat doesn't give feedback and you may revert to poor mechanics. I think a lot of kids gave up because the superlight bats
> they used- didn't help them learn to swing a regular weighted bat.


Point taken and this is also why the strength/conditioning factor is so important in addition to proper and or effective mechanics. A player who has effecient mechanics but who uses a bat that is too light is comparable to a player who does not have the strength necessary to maintain his mechanics under above average pitching.

Many hitters cannot adjust quickly enough from the aluminum bat to the wood bat which is unfortunate. And since hitters who have been glorified as the best have been found to have used steroids, it stands to reason that strength is at least equally important as technique. Players like Hideki Matsui and Ichiro are hitting at the top of the league year after year because they have found a way to make consistent hard contact which is the key to STAYING in the big leagues.