Hitting and Hitters Discussion Tips for dipping...

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Anyone have any tips/tricks/drills, etc to get my daughter to stop dipping while swinging???? She dips her right shoulder going right under the ball.

 

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Make her hit off a tee alot... Muscle memory

 

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My dd's problem may be different than yours, however, my dd gets into a dipping "funk" from time to time also. I've watched for "dropping hands" at beginning of swing, dropping the shoulder by leaning backwards (poor weight balance /posture). After correcting those "basics" through RVP with her hitting coach though, she was still swinging "WAY" beneath the ball sometimes and it was not her hands at swing initiation nor weight distribution problems, ... it was her front left foot.

She was opening her toe on her left foot during her step/stride, which allowed her knee to bend slightly forward towards the pitcher during weight shift rather than having a locked front leg to swing "against", which in turn allowed her entire body to sink 2-4 inches occasionally. So, she was either swinging way underneath the ball, or popping up when she adjusted other things to at least make contact. One of her "swing" keys now is to make sure that her left (front) striding foot remains closed, sometimes exaggerating it during on-deck prep.

If it is a weight distribution issue (leaning back), there is a drill that Glenn McCoy used with dd for making sure her weight is moving forward during her swing - good for power as well as eliminating a leaning backwards & dipping the back shoulder problem. It is a step over drill where you hit a ball off a tee while walking towards the tee, with a crossover step just prior to swinging. Not sure how to explain it better than that, but it gets you in the feeling & habit of moving forward aggressively into the ball and getting your weight shifting through he ball during your swing. Hope I didn't butcher that concept too bad Glenn / hitting instructors.

 

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Every kid is different, with different learned habits. Before using a "one size fits all" approach, I'd suggest finding a qualified hitting instructor. Unless you truly know what you're seeing, you may be trying to fix something that isn't broke. The old "keep your elbow up" and "level swing" commands you hear at games usually come from frustrated, well-meaning parents. If you really want to help her become a better hitter, get quality teaching. Don't expect an overnight cure. The best time for improvement is in the winter off-season. After four months of hard work with a good instructor, you should see dramatic improvement. A good instructor will use video to show her what is happening. What you eventually want is HER being able to tell YOU (not the other way around) what she did wrong at a particular at-bat.

 

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It really depends on what type of hitter she wants to be - contact/singles hitter (Linear Hitter) or power/line drive hitter (Rotational Hitter). Dipping the shoulder is required for rotational hitting BUT everything else has to be right for it to work. Tilting back and "sitting on" your rear leg is also part of a proper swing. Pickledad has it right, if you do it wrong it's bad. Not locking that front leg is just like giving 50% of your power away. Check out Mike Epstein's site for a good overview of rotational hitting.

http://www.mikeepsteinhitting.com/extra/bondsanalysis.pdf

 

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Thanks. I am trying to find her a hitting coach but I am not getting much response to my post. I do know one but he isn't available until early fall so it looks like I will need to wait. But I am going to have her hit off a tee in the meantime.

 

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Brand.....where are you located? I have an excellent hitting coach that works out of my barn. She is truly one of the best!

 

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I am in the Poland/Youngstown area. Thank you everyone. I have a few ideas to work with.

 

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If she has a long stride, have her shorten it or eliminate it all together and use a prep step instead. Just a thought.

 

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They were giving hitting lessons at the Mad Dog Complex, which is close to your area. One of his drills is to take a stick behind your back and hit off a tie. If you dip you miss the ball.

 

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I do not care who far you have to drive, we live near Austintown and we use Coach McCoy at Pinnacle Sports. We have tried working with players that where giving lessons, dads that started giving lessons around our area and our coach finally took the entire team to him, he worked with each girl and within 10 or so swings he had a couple of different drills for each girl to help her correct her problem. He has come to our practices and games to watch and look for faults and then gives them the corrections. We drive about an hour and it is worth it! I know he has some players from Toledo and from Cincinnati that have been there waiting to work with him.
We went to him when he was closer and he then moved to Pinnacle about 20 minutes farther away then when he was at Pronios, we stop going to him and only saw him when he worked with our team . My girls liked him and learned so much we figured what was the price for success! We are so sold that our team is traveling to play in the fall league hat they are having and the indoor league in the winter. He uses the Right View Pro and it has helped all the girls on the team to see what they are doing right and wrong. Since my girls have gone to him they have started to really hit for power and have cut their strikeouts down to almost never. Call him you won?t be sorry. Coach Glenn McCoy 330 283-3388

 

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Kelli Metzger at the Billydome in Alliance is an excellent hitting instructor. She is a former MADDOG and Akron Racer.

 

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Yes but Kelli doesn't have any openings right now. A friend who goes to pitching with Bill is waiting to get in with her for hitting.....

 

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we used to place a high-backed chair behind the tee...my dd hated it..if she dipped, she hit the chair and the bat gives a nice little rattle up through the wrist...crude but effective...