Hitting coaches and swing coaches aren’t the identical factor.
I heard these actual phrases, or variations thereof, numerous instances this season whereas speaking to coaches. Extra usually that not, the phrases had been accompanied by an opinion that too many hitters — particularly younger hitters — are overly centered on honing an ideal swing, whereas what they need to primarily be specializing in is… nicely, truly hitting the baseball. That’s to not low cost the significance of fine swings — each hitting coach understands their worth — however far more goes into squaring up pitches inside a recreation setting. As San Diego Padres particular assistant Mark Loretta put it in yesterday’s Talks Hitting interview, “Clearly, it’s a must to swing to hit the ball, however swinging isn’t hitting.”
Here’s what three MLB normal managers needed to say on the topic, primarily because it pertains to participant growth.
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Ross Fenstermaker, Texas Rangers GM
The Texas Rangers named a brand new normal supervisor on November 4, selling Ross Fenstermaker from assistant GM/participant growth and worldwide scouting, a job he’d held since October 2021. A College of California Davis graduate, Fenstermaker has been with the group since 2010, initially approaching board as a baseball operations intern.
Given his PD expertise — and with swings in thoughts — I requested Fenstermaker in regards to the developments the Rangers made in that space over latest seasons.
“Greater than something, we’ve systematized quite a lot of our processes, issues that we’re in the end making an attempt to have our gamers obtain,” Fenstermaker advised me at this month’s GM Conferences in San Antonio. “We’ve altered a few of our key efficiency indicators and reoriented our gamers towards issues that we worth, issues we all know are main indicators of future main league success. I feel we’re consistently evolving our processes.”
“At instances there have been pursuits of bat velocity and bat velocity growth packages,” he continued. “There have additionally been suggestions loops associated to swing choices and high quality of strategy. In the end, we’re emphasizing the issues that we need to worth. On the finish of the day it’s about run creation, so we’re all the time stress testing what we’re emphasizing — whether or not or not it’s resulting in the supposed objectives, which is to create runs and create main league gamers.”
Which introduced us to the query I had in thoughts, not only for Fenstermaker, however for different GMs as nicely:
How do you steadiness hitting coaches vis-a-vis swing coaches — usually two utterly completely different animals — inside participant growth?
“That’s an incredible query,” he replied.” I feel quite a lot of coaches can do both, and lots of can do each, nevertheless it’s difficult. You’ve received swing technicians that may actually break down the mechanics of the swing, the way in which the physique works, the way in which the physique strikes. Then there are extra of the hitting coaches, which I might say are perhaps a bit bit extra psychological in nature. They’re strategy oriented, recreation prep, ensuring that the participant is able to not solely swing at their optimum skills, but in addition carry out when the time comes, be capable to fight that pitcher that night.”
His response having served extra as a synopsis of the variations than the kind of reply I used to be on the lookout for, so I adopted up:
How a lot would you like that balanced — hitting coaches versus swing technicians — all through the system? Furthermore, does it range between ranges, from Rookie Ball as much as Triple-A?
“I feel you need to mix,” Fenstermaker mentioned. “Every participant is completely different. They’re in all probability going to wish a bit bit completely different strategy, and we’ve got very particular, individualized participant plans. On the foundational stage, you need to actually refine gamers’ approaches as greatest as potential, realizing that swing modifications, or swing enhancements, alongside the way in which are going to occur, whether or not that’s simply pure bodily maturation and growth or if it’s one thing extra hands-on. It is likely to be one thing bigger scale that you might want to undertake. However yeah, I feel it’s a mix, and in the end it depends upon the person — high, backside, backside to high.”
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Ben Cherington, Pittsburgh Pirates GM
“We’re making an attempt to do each,” Cherington mentioned of the hitting coach/swing coach steadiness. “We have now people who find themselves centered on each of these issues. We have now people who find themselves centered on assessing the motion and designing the coaching setting that we expect will assist enhance the way in which that guys are transferring, in addition to connecting the work within the weight room to the cage. Then we’ve got different people who find themselves centered extra on, ‘How will we prepare for the sport and the way are we going to beat this pitcher?’
“The secret is that these persons are linked and collaborating with one another, as a result of they do intersect. There’s a relationship between the alternatives you make — the swing choices and the strategy — and the way you’re transferring, and the place your swing is. You may’t work on one in isolation. You must speak to one another.”
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Buster Posey, San Francisco Giants GM
“I feel it’s essential to have route, general, for the group,” Posey advised me. “We need to have an identification of who we need to be, and what our strategy is. A few of that can play out 12 months to 12 months, based mostly on who’s within the lineup. However yeah, that’s an attention-grabbing query about hitting coach or a swing coach. I personally assume, from my expertise, that this can be very essential for a hitting coach to be that man who’s all the time transferring up with the power they’re bringing every day. It’s such an extended season. To have the ability to are available after a troublesome stretch and hold the fellows motivated and sticking to the plan is essential.”
As with Fenstermaker, a followup for Posey was so as. I requested the All-Star-catcher-turned-executive if gamers arising by a minor league system can typically over-focus on their swings, and never sufficient on being “a hitter.”
“I feel thats’ a chance,” Posey replied. “That will be true now [and] it will be true 15 years in the past once I was arising. It might be true in all probability way back to you need to go. One of many messages I would like our gamers to know is that try to be your individual greatest coach. There’s accountability that comes with that. We have now so many alternative voices giving route, and it’s a very good factor, however typically there’s a tendency to let these voices be crutches. It’s essential make it identified, ‘Hey, you might want to be accountable for what you’re doing.’ All these coaches. and voices, are a useful resource for you — they’re completely different opinions and you may take it in and filter it — however in the end you might want to be liable for your individual profession. That’s to not decrease the significance of coaches. I perceive that coaches are essential.”
