Lesson 2: Coach the Hitter, Not the Picture

Learning Objective

Distinguish fact-based instruction from coaching folklore, and evaluate a move by what it does for the hitter.

About 20 minutes, including the applied work.

Today's Lesson

“Coaches teach what they were taught. Great coaches check if it’s true.”

A lot of hitting instruction is passed down: squish the bug, feet shoulder width, swing down on the ball. Some of it helps. Much of it doesn’t match what elite hitters actually do on video. AHD coaching starts from what the best hitters share, not from phrases.

That doesn’t mean every hitter should look the same. Research on college hitters found no single stride pattern that separated faster swings from the rest. Hitters reach the same positions in different ways. So the question is never “Does it look like mine?” The question is “Does it organize the hitter?” Balance, timing, a usable launch position, an adjustable barrel and a move he can repeat under pressure. Judge the function, not the style.

Softball note: Fastpitch hitters reach good positions in even more ways than baseball hitters: some use a toe-tap, some a small stride, some almost no stride at all to cut down what they have to time. Judge the same things: balance, timing, launch, barrel path and repeatability. A short, quiet move that gets her on time is not a flaw just because it doesn’t look like a baseball swing.

Why It Matters

Forcing every hitter into one look wastes development time and can break what already works. Coaching function lets you keep a hitter’s strengths and fix only what limits him.

Today's Work

• Phrase check (10 minutes): write down five phrases you say most when you coach hitting. For each, find one elite hitter on video and check if he actually does it.
• Function, not form (15 minutes): film two hitters with different strides. Grade each on balance, timing, launch, barrel path and repeatability, not on how the stride looks.

Track It

Which of your favorite phrases did not match what elite hitters do? What will you say instead?

Next: Lesson 3, The AHD Coaching Sequence.