How do you shorten a baseball swing?
Simple, you make sure you have the right approach.
Have The Right Approach
As a hitter, your approach is to drive the ball back up the middle while attacking the inner-half of the ball.
Often times, when our swing isn't short, we get beat on the fastball and we're out in front on the off-speed.
This means we miss fastballs we should be driving while pulling weak ground balls on pitches we have no business pulling.
Use The Whole Field
When you use the whole field, that means you're letting the ball travel while attacking the inner half of the ball.
The longer you're letting the ball travel, the more time you're giving yourself to see the ball as well as you can.
The better you see the ball, the better your approach will be.
There’s a common assumption about hitting mechanics & peak performance: A good swing = good results.
"Trust me, the pitcher doesn't care if you just spent $50 on a hitting lesson."
If your swing is off, or if you're not seeing the baseball as well as you can...
...it doesn't matter who you had a lesson with, you will underachieve.
Train Your Pitch Recognition
I see this often. The hitter struggles at the plate, and we assume it's the stance, mechanics, bat, or hitting coach.
So we adjust the stance, tweak the mechanics, switch bats, and ask around for another hitting coach.
How often do we even ask...
..."Is the hitter seeing the ball?"
And if they are, how well? Because there are levels to this.
Barry Bonds's pitch recognition skills were different than most, and it showed.
A hitter with a Swing Virus (Bad Habit or Mechanical Flaw) can fix it by adjusting the approach...
...because the right approach, cleans the mechanics.
But when the mechanics are sufficient, it's about establishing superior pitch recognition and competing your tail off.
Don't make this mistake.
Don't assume if you're swing is off, it's your mechanic's fault.
Get your baseball vision right. Slow the game down.
How Do You Shorten a Baseball Swing - Checklist
If your swing feels long, keep this how do you shorten a baseball swing checklist in mind.
- Have the right approach
- Attack the inner-half of the ball
- Use the whole field
- Train Your Pitch Recognition
If you get these principles right, your swing will shorten. Start with the right approach, and the mechanics will follow