One of the most talked about aspects amongst hitting coaches is head positioning through the swing. However, I find it to be a very misunderstood and often incorrectly taught facet of hitting. Today I want to discuss what the head should do throughout the swing and dispel some of the myths surrounding this facet of hitting mechanics.
How it is Taught
Many coaches instill a fear of head movement throughout the swing. There are 2 main fallacies when it comes to head positioning in the swing:
There should be no head movement throughout the swing from stance through extension
2. Once the hitter begins rotating, there should be no head movement
Why are these incorrect? Check out the next section.
What actually happens
So lets take a look at the head positioning and movement of some of the game's best hitters (keep in mind they are also facing guys who are throwing at incredibly high velocities with crazy movement)
So, what do you see? His head moves down from his load position to his launch position and moves even further down as he begins rotating in his swing. Why?
Moving down and towards the pitcher from load to launch helps hitters get into the most powerful launch position possible. Moving down helps hitters hinge to stretch the posterior chain and moving forward helps the hitter use the ground to help great power.
Once a hitter lands in their launch position, the amount of head movement during the actual swing (rotation) portion of the swing will depend greatly on the pitch location. On high pitches, a hitters head will generally stay pretty still. However, as pitches get into the middle of the zone and lower in the zone, most high. level hitters will have some degree of downward head movement. This is what allows the to get the barrel of the bat on plane with these pitch locations.
Check out this week's YouTube video for more information on this topic
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