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Coach Peavy & his Hitting Philosophy
Hitting Philosophy: an Evolution
I am going to try & outline my unique philosophy simply because
it is just that....unique....specifically because of my
different, widely varied experiences & influences.....& I absolutely
refuse to be mistreated by those who wish to try & call my
philosophy their own just because I support a single fundamental
element or style that they believe in & try to lay claim
to.....I have my own philosophy about hitting which is well
founded in good physics & biomechanical understanding.....& I am certain
that it will change & grow in the future, because I ALWAYS
continue learning.....because a Hitting Philosophy is an
Evolution....
I study constantly to be the best
coach & instructor in my sport. I have been exposed
in person & through books, television, video & more to
the greats of the game....I do NOT agree with all of
their philosophies, as much as I
may admire them, because my philosophy is my individual
evolution & my unique background
gives me a different perspective!
Baseball has no great secrets.......Baseball
has been played in the open in front of millions for all to see
since it's inception.....As a coach, I do not attempt to adhere
to any one, single philosophy that others espouse nor will
I..........The weight shift guys want to claim superiority to
the rotational guys & vice versa......Stride Vs no
stride......Linear or not.......Frankly, the argument over who
is right or wrong is ludicrous, because my job as a coach is to
establish a philosophy which can be effective for hitters of all
styles to maximize their unique talents.....
What may set me apart is my ability
to analyze & break down the swing accurately.....My
very unique background in computers
has given me an interesting perspective......the amazing advent
of computerized motion analysis
has allowed me to view the hitting motion as never before
& to analyze the philosophies & approaches of the greatest
coaches & players in history.....In my varied life, I
have designed & built high performance computing systems for use
in aircraft, including input &
storage of high performance video in all kinds of light
spectrums..... Using that skill, I have been able to
build computerized, high performance video acquisition &
analysis systems to dissect the
swing to a level of accuracy previously not affordably achieved
because of these technology breakthroughs & I have come to the
conclusion that the greatest players in history are yet to come,
because the game will always be evolving as we continue to
learn..
I am convinced that most hitting coaches today are
missing the important point that there are linear AND rotational
aspects to the hands AND body that must be harnessed and
SEQUENCED & TIMED CORRECTLY in complete synchronization.
When I learn something
from my hitting motion analysis work, first I apply good science
& physics to the theory, then I prove its validity by more study
with my students & myself......yes, I still swing a pretty good
bat....but,
the best proof is whether my students of all ages can
understand & accomplish the techniques I espouse with
improvements....& they can with
consistent improvement in averages & power numbers!
I am constantly amazed at
those in baseball who think they can lay claim to an element or
two of a swing & try to call it their own......that's
ridiculous.........For well over 100 years, baseball players
have been swinging a round bat at a round ball with the goal of
hitting it squarely.....a clearly impossible task, but they do
it.........In my mind the only person that can lay claim to that
style of swing is the unique individual who is swinging the
bat........because, even though the next individual may see an
element of that swing & emulate it or add it to his repertoire,
he still will perform the task of swinging in his own, unique,
inimitable way to which he has evolved with countless
instruction & hundreds of thousands of repetitions........
To that end, here is some background on My Hitting
Philosophy......
I have been a lifelong student
of the game of baseball.... I have studied virtually every
approach or style of hitting with an open mind, from Ty Cobb &
his wide, separated grip & slashing style to Alex Rodriguez with
his smooth, powerful efficiency.
My first book of baseball study was "How to Play Winning
Baseball" by Arthur Mann....Copyright 1953.....with a forward by
Ford C. Frick, former Commissioner of Baseball (did anybody know
that Frick was a ghostwriter of "Babe Ruth's Own Book of
Baseball"?).......It was written before I was born, but I
studied it's pages with hand drawn images without missing a word
or diagram............And I have never stopped studying this
dynamic sport.....from the time I first began playing in 1961 in
Little League into Men's Senior League Baseball in the 90's or when I
began Coaching baseball athletes in 1975 through today & tomorrow,
I have studied this game with a true love & appreciation for
it's simplicity but incredible degree of difficulty & skill
required.....
I have been exposed to & learned
from the philosophies
of those of the dead ball era & those of the modern era....Honus
Wagner, Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, Mark
McGwire & now A-rod......I have read constantly to improve,
reading all that I could on or by Ted Williams, Tony Oliva, Harry the Hat
Walker, Charley Lau, Mike Schmidt, Tony Gwynn, Dusty Baker & many, many
more.....I still have my old, faded 1967 First Printing copy of
Mickey Mantles book, "The Education of a Baseball Player" which
I refer to from time to time.........I am grateful to countless
Little League, Pony League, Senior League, Babe Ruth League & more coaches who
gave unselfishly of their time to teach me to the best of their
abilities this difficult sport......I study with former & active
pro players constantly to improve my skills.
I NEVER stop learning & improving.
The point of this is NOT
to impress you with my study....IT IS to impress you with
the fact that baseball
philosophy, & in my case baseball hitting philosophy,
is an evolution.
Baseball is replete with statistics.....it is the most
highly detailed sport in history..........a mathematics &
physics professors dream & a coaches occasional nightmare!
Each of the players &
coaches I studied has left an impact on me.....ALL
have made me think...
However, my philosophy is consistent...I
do NOT believe that any of the rotational theorists or the
linear gurus, the weight shift or not teachers who teach a singular
approach have it right all by themselves & I so far
do not subscribe in totality to any one theory of hitting as
espoused by others....but I DO have an open mind & appreciate
everyone's approach & contributions.
My computerized video motion analysis studies of players at all
levels indicate clearly to me that a quality swing has
components of all of the above approaches......When properly
timed & sequenced, the result is explosive power with high
averages as we see in many modern hitters....
- My fundamental goals for my hitters are:
1) Longest Decision Making Time for
2) Accurate Pitch Recognition &
3) Quickest, Most Efficient Bat Acceleration &
4) Longest Relative Length in Hitting Zone in a
5) Quality Ball/Bat Impact Configuration at
6) Highest Batspeed with Fine Bat-tip Control
7) In the Consistent Plane of the Pitched Ball with
8) Maximum Strike Zone Coverage &
9) Maximum Power to All Fields
The above should result in a high average with maximum power &
efficiency.
We establish the above goals by working back from optimum
ball/bat impact to achieve OBJECTIVES.
Again, I am convinced that most hitting coaches today are
missing the important point that there are linear AND
rotational aspects to the hands AND body that must be
harnessed and SEQUENCED & TIMED CORRECTLY in synchronization.
You establish your goals by:
- Establishing your OBJECTIVE (the optimum ball/bat collision
with maximum frequency for highest batting average with power)
- Understand what is required of yourself biomechanically to
achieve your OBJECTIVE in the highest percentage of
circumstances
- Establish specific DRILLS required to achieve your
INDIVIDUAL OBJECTIVES most frequently, utilizing your
INDIVIDUAL STYLE
- PRACTICE those DRILLS over & over to establish automatic
MUSCLE MEMORY in all possible anticipated, variable
circumstances
- APPLY those drills & the resultant muscle
memory through MORE PRACTICE against live pitching to
establish TIMING for the APPLICATION
- ABOVE ALL, what we are asking the
athlete to accomplish MUST BE DOABLE within our biomechanical
& mental capabilities!
REMEMBER:
There is no point in asking an athlete to perform an
IMPOSSIBLE MECHANICAL TASK that he CANNOT DO BIOMECHANICALLY
OR MENTALLY!
Hence, for those that have been asking about
my philosophy.........I endeavor to learn continually to apply
any and all styles & approaches that make the INDIVIDUAL ATHLETE
SUCCESSFUL within his capabilities & which work in harmony with
the laws of GOOD PHYSICS as well as being able to be
ACCOMPLISHED BIOMECHANICALLY by the individual...
Believe me.....that just scratches the surface.....
Read my other Baseball Hitting Articles & more at
www.peavynet.com
Click Here to Contact Coach Peavy by
E-mail
to discuss the most efficient program for all of your athletes
or Call Coach Peavy at 404-402-5843 |
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 General
Information & Instruction Tips
ALWAYS have an OBJECTIVE, in each at bat,
practice or drill.
In Hitting Instruction,
Coach Peavy will teach Coaches, Parents or Team the necessary
DRILLS with defined OBJECTIVES, to show the everyone
his Step by Step Method to Assemble a Pro Swing.
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START with
the Ball Bat Collision
