Why are wood bats so commonly used by high school guys in bp?
 
Before the days of BBCOR it was a great way to make sure hitters are “delivering” the barrel to the baseball through proper mechanics. Previously in the BESR days, you just had to get the barrel there, it didn’t matter how, and you’d see a favorable result. Now that gap has closed a lot through BBCOR, so it’s not such a dramatic difference. But who doesn’t like the sound of wood? A lot better than the annoying “ping” of metal.
 
 
How would you instruct a youth hitter when he has sound mechanics (and particularly bat path) on the tee but then reverts to a downhill plane when facing live pitching?
 
That’s a common issue in the teaching/learning progression. The player has to translate the swing as difficulty is added. Difficulty is added through increase in speed and distance. So the player has to get it right on the tee first, then short toss, then gradually moving it back to overhand.
 
Also, when you add this distance, players initially tend to drift forward. Doing this dramatically can lead to steepness in the swing.
 
I hear alot of hitting coaches talk about being quick with the bat and not having a long swing. Some of the drills they use are one handed short bat drills. Are these drills you endorse or do you use other drills?
 
I’m guilty of doing them in my life – yes. But one hand drills make you really good at one-hand drills and have little to no carry-over or relevance to a correct game swing, so they are a waste of time.
 
 
Best way to get Recrutied as a freshman?
 
I know its happened once in our own program, but when I say this is a rarity – it’s like sasquatch rare. Freshmen need to worry about getting better. A few national, blue chip recruits will start getting “followed” on lists, but that’s about it.
 
As always you can send your questions to me here

Tags: Ask.FM, Justin Stone