Hank Aaron was my favorite player as a kid and I saw him play many times. His swing always looked so effortless and his wrists were strong and quick as the turned on the ball. I'd get to the game early and watch him hit during batting practice and was in awe. RIP Hammerin Hank, you died too soon.
I'm incredibly jealous and simultaneously in awe of your story. amazing that you got to see him play. The stories I've been told are that he used to do exercises with a sledgehammer. He'd hold it out to the side with one hand and slowly, using just his wrist, lift it up to touch his shoulder, then back down. He'd repeat this drill on both sides with each hand/wrist and do 3 sets of 10. That would account for how effortless his swing was and how he seemed to mainly use his forearms, hands, and wrist to hit. Absolutely mythical figure. Great ballplayer, great man.
I am 5'11" 228lbs 58yo and I am just learning to hit the ball. I hit occasional home runs and lots of line drives up the middle and right but, never consistently. Your videos have enabled me to see what others are doing and what I need to do. Thank you.
@@bobobingus3155 I started playing again because I can run, catch and throw really well. I also needed a hobby and comraderie in my new town of Albuquerque, NM.
Aaron was the best ever, notice until he pulls the bat to position to swing it stays parallel to his spine, no wasted movement, the wrists are where Henry's execution came from but the power was transferred from his buttock muscles, his eyes were perfect, he could spot a quarter on top of a fence post from 60 feet. Aaron went through a lot his first 3 years in the majors, the pitchers would throw at him due to his race, one of the worst was Don Drysdale. They literally would give him nothing to hit, chin music and outside of the box. It finally got straightened out when Frank Sinatra went to a Dodgers game with front row seats, a famous writer told of Sinatra throwing his hat down and screaming, "Damn. let the guy hit! What are you scared of?" legend has it that shortly there after some of Sinatra's Mafia buddies paid Drysdale a visit. The next game in Milwalkee, Henry Aaron went 5 for 5 with a homer, two doubles and two singles, with 2 stolen bases thrown in. I saw Aaron play several times, I grew up in Atlanta, there was only one Hammer, and no one was better.
Thanks for posting this video, Matt. A few observations. Look at Hank's back foot....it comes off the ground, completely. Anybody who claims a rear legged launch is the key to consistent hitting, apparently didn't analyze the best contact hitter in the history of the game.....hits, doubles, RBI's, and of course, home runs. This cannot be overstated. And before the naysayers say he couldn't hit in today's game, I would kindly remind them he hit about .320 lifetime against Nolan Ryan.....perhaps the most dominant MLB pitcher, ever. Hank, like many great hitters weren't rear foot or front foot....rather, they were weight balanced over the contact zone. Also....a fairly upright stance allows him to see the ball with both eyes. I'm seeing more an more teaching instruction showing "falling" to the plate, as some kind of preferred movement. How can looking at the ball out of one eye (at a sideways angle) be preferable? Lastly, I've also heard how the arms are the enemy, in a swing. I disagree. I think two large levers, with bat lag and top hand pronation at the end, are huge keys to barrel acceleration. And if you have a good load and are athletic to guide your hands to the ball, your swing plane can be very consistent and produce great contact. All great hitters, at the end of their swing, generally have the arms aligned with the bat barrel. And when I say hands to the ball, I don't mean high hands, dropping down from your shoulder level (chopping down). I mean hands dropping to adjust to multiple ball locations. Hank, just like Babe Ruth and Ted Williams dropped their hands to attack pitch location. Barrel dump and snap movements that claim to get the bat up to speed faster should really watch this video as it attests to how you can be fast (and adjust) without herky jerky or barrel dump movements. Hank was extremely smooth and his kinetic chain is one of the best. You even mentioned that Hank could stop his swing and lay off if necessary. Absolutely, true. When you see a guy like Hank strike out 1 in 14 times vs. 1 in 4 for Judge, it leads me to believe we should pay much closer attention his swing mechanics to understand what Hank is doing differently. He certainly isn't focusing on launch angle. He's focusing on making sure his bat barrel trajectory is matching the ball trajectory. Hard hit balls, all day long.
Great videos. I agree. Super quick wrists at contact, and dont forget his hips...watch him rotate his hips before contact. A lot of power generated from that hip turn.
@@jeremyboaz4964Well, his hips start facing the back left corner of the plate then rotate to finish facing the pitcher. That's a 90 degree turn. Not sure how much more a hitter can turn their hips during a swing. With him, it happens so quickly that you can miss it.
Hey Matt could you make a video about the Top 3 no-goes and goes at tryouts? Since you are a coach and probably see lot of crazy stuff during practice and tryouts! Thanks
I have a few videos on tryouts already up on our playlist if you check them out. I'll try to make another video also! Thanks for watching and commenting!
Enjoy all of your videos and expert advice. Could you maybe comment on the last bit of the swing as it seems to be level with the wrist rolling over.I help coach 11-year-olds including my own children and have greatly improved their swing with your videos. Keep up the great work!
Matt On this one - Aaron's back foot does not come off the ground compared to some other slow motion Aaron swings. It looks like his stride here is not long on this swing compared to some other swings . It appeared to me that the ones where he takes a very long stride seems to have his back foot in the air on the follow thru. I know he had that he made adjustments in his swing.
I got to see him live a few times back in the early seventies against my Padres at San Diego Stadium when I was a kid. What I noticed is how he would go out after the ball and attack. You hear people saying you have to stay back, put Aaron didn’t. He went forward after the ball. Also, it looks like he has his top hand wrapped and doesn’t have his small knuckles aligned like they tell you to do like with a golf grip. Unconventional but he’s the best pure hitter of all time, so go figure.
Hank Aaron was average size and strength (5'10" and 180 pounds) throughout his career. The "secret" was Hank Aaron's wrists. He had limber, quick wrists, which allowed him to achieve amazing bat speed, which equates to power. Kevin McReynolds had the same, as did George Hendricks. I once played golf with long time umpire Doug Harvey, and he talked about these players and their wrist action being the key to power for an average guy who isn't especially strong.
He would always say that most of his home runs landed in the first row. Not an unusually talented or powerful athlete by any stretch, just a player who understood hitting extremely well and had a knack for finding the barrel.
notice his scisoring back foot too. he was a rotator more than a linear even though he got out on that front foot early. turned the barrel around his hands(awesome move). he’s arguably the best. 1 great season from 4000 hits and the homerun king.
I like how he always finish the swing with 2 hands, I believe if you alwayd finish the same way you will have consistent strike zone so after years he could produce consistent long hits
He gets hell of torque with his hips, it’s like a violent twist , seems to help his bat get through the zone faster. I felt that was an important element.
Hank hit off his front door, that's old school, his bass core is strong at impact. How old are you? You could still try this on a comeback, and probably make it work well for you. Your still young bro. God bless
Hey Matt do both hands swing the bat or does the top hand/back arm dominate the swing? Also when u pull back in the load is both hands working back or just the top hand/back elbow scap loading.
I know this is an older video you put up, but did you notice his knuckles? So many people harp on lining up your knuckles, but it looks like he is wrapped around. But wow, he does generate a lot of speed by flipping that bat around his shoulder from his back.
@@AntonelliBaseball Could you post a link to one of those? Lining up my knuckles is a habit I've got into, mainly because that's the way I was first taught to hold a bat and it stuck, but if there's another grip that might be better for me I'd be interested to learn (low-level amateur though I am).
Once the Bat gets to the side of the shoulder you notice the amount of torque the rotation creates before the bat opens to zone. Bat lag at rotation will increase bat speed though zone. The pump generates a feel to capture the bat head weight and will give an effortless feel of getting weight into orbit. Kinda like a rock on a string effect.
Generating that early bat speed appears to be the key to power. Only issue I have is this means the batter must start earlier to meet the ball at the impact spot. I think Bautista figured that out and really started crushing balls.
I agree! If you get the bat working back you can make contact deeper in hitting zone because your bat will enter early and deep. This will allow more time. If your bat goes more forward you will have to hit the ball out front more which means less time. Easier to show than explain on here lol.
Antonelli Baseball this makes perfect sense. Reminds of the video with pujols where you talk about how his timing is always on because he is in the hitting plane very early. So greater bat speed and on plane very early sounds the the recipe for a pretty good hitter.
Antonelli Baseball nice video... it’s this the difference of driving ( I.e., striking) than slapping (I.e., throwing)...Also, I heard Aaron say in an interview that depending on the speed or look of the pitcher he will coil more or less... So I think and I may be wrong that the amount of tipping depends on if his coil is tighter than usual which was a strategy of his...
If I’ve said it once I’ve said it a million times: Hank Aaron is the greatest baseball player to ever live. Sure Ruth was more impactful and Bonds has ridiculous (and pumped up) numbers but how can a careful consideration of the facts lead you to any other conclusion? Pull up the numbers right now.
I know the conversation was around turning the bat but I'm seeing a bit of that sissor movement with his feet. A bit like Altuve or Miguel. I like it but it seems way out reach for the youth I coach.
HENRY Aaron it could be argued (as it was in The Wall Street Journal not too long ago) was the greatest hitter ever. His dignity, sense of justice and the way he rose above the incredible abuse he took chasing Ruth is what adds to his legend as far as I am concerned. Absolutely my favorite player. I could go on and on about him. The stories about him include some funny ones. I wish I could remember the retired ump’s name who called strike three on a pitcher’s pitch. Unfortunately, Aaron hit it out of the park. This story of course demonstrates how Aaron could wait on a pitch before unleashing his snap swing. The catcher turned to the ump and said what the hell was he doing. The ump just smiled and said “I was just practicing.” Henry (“Hank” was a bullshit PR man’s idea of making him more “approachable” to white fans for some damn reason) is also as far as I know the only man who was ever called out in the batter’s box after hitting a home run. Great story there.
What you can't see in this video is that Hank posted up hard on his front leg like a golfer. Clemente had the same weight shift. You don't see hitters today coming off their back foot like Aaron and clemente did
Elbow more down compared to todays game prepitch.... I was taught this way growing up, i had strong wrists and quick hands only 5'8. It helped me tremendously. Notice how he tucks it like a boxer getting ready to punch almost. Also very little weight on back foot not even on ground during contact??? Incredible totally different from now
You mean Hank had launch angle before launch angle was cool? It kills me that people teaching kids to hit think this launch angle thing is something new. It's not! If you stay inside and take you hands to the ball , using your lower half to create the hand speed and power, the barrel will naturally follow this path.
Hank Aaron was my favorite player as a kid and I saw him play many times. His swing always looked so effortless and his wrists were strong and quick as the turned on the ball. I'd get to the game early and watch him hit during batting practice and was in awe. RIP Hammerin Hank, you died too soon.
I'm incredibly jealous and simultaneously in awe of your story. amazing that you got to see him play. The stories I've been told are that he used to do exercises with a sledgehammer. He'd hold it out to the side with one hand and slowly, using just his wrist, lift it up to touch his shoulder, then back down. He'd repeat this drill on both sides with each hand/wrist and do 3 sets of 10. That would account for how effortless his swing was and how he seemed to mainly use his forearms, hands, and wrist to hit. Absolutely mythical figure. Great ballplayer, great man.
@@stevemeters3090 I never saw Aaron use a sledgehammer but I wouldn't be surprised given his power. Hank Aaron is the best hitter I ever saw.
I am 5'11" 228lbs 58yo and I am just learning to hit the ball. I hit occasional home runs and lots of line drives up the middle and right but, never consistently. Your videos have enabled me to see what others are doing and what I need to do. Thank you.
What made you start to play again
@@bobobingus3155 I started playing again because I can run, catch and throw really well. I also needed a hobby and comraderie in my new town of Albuquerque, NM.
Aaron was the best ever, notice until he pulls the bat to position to swing it stays parallel to his spine, no wasted movement, the wrists are where Henry's execution came from but the power was transferred from his buttock muscles, his eyes were perfect, he could spot a quarter on top of a fence post from 60 feet. Aaron went through a lot his first 3 years in the majors, the pitchers would throw at him due to his race, one of the worst was Don Drysdale. They literally would give him nothing to hit, chin music and outside of the box. It finally got straightened out when Frank Sinatra went to a Dodgers game with front row seats, a famous writer told of Sinatra throwing his hat down and screaming, "Damn. let the guy hit! What are you scared of?" legend has it that shortly there after some of Sinatra's Mafia buddies paid Drysdale a visit. The next game in Milwalkee, Henry Aaron went 5 for 5 with a homer, two doubles and two singles, with 2 stolen bases thrown in.
I saw Aaron play several times, I grew up in Atlanta, there was only one Hammer, and no one was better.
Thanks for posting this video, Matt. A few observations. Look at Hank's back foot....it comes off the ground, completely. Anybody who claims a rear legged launch is the key to consistent hitting, apparently didn't analyze the best contact hitter in the history of the game.....hits, doubles, RBI's, and of course, home runs. This cannot be overstated. And before the naysayers say he couldn't hit in today's game, I would kindly remind them he hit about .320 lifetime against Nolan Ryan.....perhaps the most dominant MLB pitcher, ever. Hank, like many great hitters weren't rear foot or front foot....rather, they were weight balanced over the contact zone.
Also....a fairly upright stance allows him to see the ball with both eyes. I'm seeing more an more teaching instruction showing "falling" to the plate, as some kind of preferred movement. How can looking at the ball out of one eye (at a sideways angle) be preferable?
Lastly, I've also heard how the arms are the enemy, in a swing. I disagree. I think two large levers, with bat lag and top hand pronation at the end, are huge keys to barrel acceleration. And if you have a good load and are athletic to guide your hands to the ball, your swing plane can be very consistent and produce great contact. All great hitters, at the end of their swing, generally have the arms aligned with the bat barrel. And when I say hands to the ball, I don't mean high hands, dropping down from your shoulder level (chopping down). I mean hands dropping to adjust to multiple ball locations. Hank, just like Babe Ruth and Ted Williams dropped their hands to attack pitch location. Barrel dump and snap movements that claim to get the bat up to speed faster should really watch this video as it attests to how you can be fast (and adjust) without herky jerky or barrel dump movements. Hank was extremely smooth and his kinetic chain is one of the best. You even mentioned that Hank could stop his swing and lay off if necessary. Absolutely, true.
When you see a guy like Hank strike out 1 in 14 times vs. 1 in 4 for Judge, it leads me to believe we should pay much closer attention his swing mechanics to understand what Hank is doing differently. He certainly isn't focusing on launch angle. He's focusing on making sure his bat barrel trajectory is matching the ball trajectory. Hard hit balls, all day long.
R.I.P HANK KING AARON
Shouldn't have taken that jab.
Notice he doesn’t stay palm up with his back hand on the follow through. Resulting in fewer pop ups more line drives and a higher average.
Great videos.
I agree. Super quick wrists at contact, and dont forget his hips...watch him rotate his hips before contact. A lot of power generated from that hip turn.
He had little to no hip movement
@@jeremyboaz4964Well, his hips start facing the back left corner of the plate then rotate to finish facing the pitcher. That's a 90 degree turn. Not sure how much more a hitter can turn their hips during a swing. With him, it happens so quickly that you can miss it.
Hey Matt could you make a video about the Top 3 no-goes and goes at tryouts? Since you are a coach and probably see lot of crazy stuff during practice and tryouts! Thanks
I have a few videos on tryouts already up on our playlist if you check them out. I'll try to make another video also! Thanks for watching and commenting!
Enjoy all of your videos and expert advice. Could you maybe comment on the last bit of the swing as it seems to be level with the wrist rolling over.I help coach 11-year-olds including my own children and have greatly improved their swing with your videos. Keep up the great work!
Matt
On this one - Aaron's back foot does not come off the ground compared to some other slow motion Aaron swings.
It looks like his stride here is not long on this swing compared to some other swings .
It appeared to me that the ones where he takes a very long stride seems to have his back foot in the air on the follow thru.
I know he had that he made adjustments in his swing.
I got to see him live a few times back in the early seventies against my Padres at San Diego Stadium when I was a kid. What I noticed is how he would go out after the ball and attack. You hear people saying you have to stay back, put Aaron didn’t. He went forward after the ball. Also, it looks like he has his top hand wrapped and doesn’t have his small knuckles aligned like they tell you to do like with a golf grip. Unconventional but he’s the best pure hitter of all time, so go figure.
Hank Aaron was average size and strength (5'10" and 180 pounds) throughout his career. The "secret" was Hank Aaron's wrists. He had limber, quick wrists, which allowed him to achieve amazing bat speed, which equates to power. Kevin McReynolds had the same, as did George Hendricks. I once played golf with long time umpire Doug Harvey, and he talked about these players and their wrist action being the key to power for an average guy who isn't especially strong.
He would always say that most of his home runs landed in the first row. Not an unusually talented or powerful athlete by any stretch, just a player who understood hitting extremely well and had a knack for finding the barrel.
notice his scisoring back foot too. he was a rotator more than a linear even though he got out on that front foot early. turned the barrel around his hands(awesome move). he’s arguably the best. 1 great season from 4000 hits and the homerun king.
Turning the barrel early creates so much speed. He did this. Ted williams did it. Griffey Jr. Bonds.
I never realized how similar his swing is to Gary Shefield.
I like how talk about his bat path.
Thanks! Thanks for watching and commenting!
I like how he always finish the swing with 2 hands, I believe if you alwayd finish the same way you will have consistent strike zone so after years he could produce consistent long hits
He gets hell of torque with his hips, it’s like a violent twist , seems to help his bat get through the zone faster. I felt that was an important element.
For sure! Thank you for watching!!
Great stuff buddy! Please do Albert Belle, doesn’t get enough love....
Thanks will do!!!
Hank hit off his front door, that's old school, his bass core is strong at impact. How old are you? You could still try this on a comeback, and probably make it work well for you. Your still young bro. God bless
Clemente had a similar motion with the bat!
Hey Matt do both hands swing the bat or does the top hand/back arm dominate the swing? Also when u pull back in the load is both hands working back or just the top hand/back elbow scap loading.
More top arm in pullback. And I'd say both hands are turning the barrel.
I know this is an older video you put up, but did you notice his knuckles? So many people harp on lining up your knuckles, but it looks like he is wrapped around. But wow, he does generate a lot of speed by flipping that bat around his shoulder from his back.
Yes most MLB players do not line up their knocking knuckles. I have a few videos on our channel talking about it. Thanks for watching and commenting!!
@@AntonelliBaseball Could you post a link to one of those? Lining up my knuckles is a habit I've got into, mainly because that's the way I was first taught to hold a bat and it stuck, but if there's another grip that might be better for me I'd be interested to learn (low-level amateur though I am).
Thanks for taking time to do this.... Video tip... FIRST show the whole swing once or twice........ THEN do a segment by segment breakdown.
Thanks!
What I've learned is that everyone is a baseball swing mechanic expert. We're all experts.
Show the complete swing first
Incredible how little he uses his upper arms. It seems like he's just hitting with his hands and wrists.
The snap/torque he generates is incredible.
Once the Bat gets to the side of the shoulder you notice the amount of torque the rotation creates before the bat opens to zone. Bat lag at rotation will increase bat speed though zone.
The pump generates a feel to capture the bat head weight and will give an effortless feel of getting weight into orbit. Kinda like a rock on a string effect.
Good points! Thanks for watching and commenting!
Generating that early bat speed appears to be the key to power. Only issue I have is this means the batter must start earlier to meet the ball at the impact spot. I think Bautista figured that out and really started crushing balls.
I agree! If you get the bat working back you can make contact deeper in hitting zone because your bat will enter early and deep. This will allow more time. If your bat goes more forward you will have to hit the ball out front more which means less time. Easier to show than explain on here lol.
Antonelli Baseball this makes perfect sense. Reminds of the video with pujols where you talk about how his timing is always on because he is in the hitting plane very early. So greater bat speed and on plane very early sounds the the recipe for a pretty good hitter.
Antonelli Baseball nice video... it’s this the difference of driving ( I.e., striking) than slapping (I.e., throwing)...Also, I heard Aaron say in an interview that depending on the speed or look of the pitcher he will coil more or less... So I think and I may be wrong that the amount of tipping depends on if his coil is tighter than usual which was a strategy of his...
If I’ve said it once I’ve said it a million times: Hank Aaron is the greatest baseball player to ever live. Sure Ruth was more impactful and Bonds has ridiculous (and pumped up) numbers but how can a careful consideration of the facts lead you to any other conclusion? Pull up the numbers right now.
I know the conversation was around turning the bat but I'm seeing a bit of that sissor movement with his feet. A bit like Altuve or Miguel. I like it but it seems way out reach for the youth I coach.
Yes he did. I don't believe in teaching that action to hitters though. Thanks for watching and commenting!
It’s actually ‘scissors’
Similar to G. Sheffield, very flat through the zone etc.
HENRY Aaron it could be argued (as it was in The Wall Street Journal not too long ago) was the greatest hitter ever. His dignity, sense of justice and the way he rose above the incredible abuse he took chasing Ruth is what adds to his legend as far as I am concerned. Absolutely my favorite player. I could go on and on about him. The stories about him include some funny ones. I wish I could remember the retired ump’s name who called strike three on a pitcher’s pitch. Unfortunately, Aaron hit it out of the park. This story of course demonstrates how Aaron could wait on a pitch before unleashing his snap swing. The catcher turned to the ump and said what the hell was he doing. The ump just smiled and said “I was just practicing.” Henry (“Hank” was a bullshit PR man’s idea of making him more “approachable” to white fans for some damn reason) is also as far as I know the only man who was ever called out in the batter’s box after hitting a home run. Great story there.
RIP Hank Aaron
The left video the ball is coming in faster so less bat pump to be on time.
Im out. Let me see the swing! Stop teasing it!
What you can't see in this video is that Hank posted up hard on his front leg like a golfer. Clemente had the same weight shift. You don't see hitters today coming off their back foot like Aaron and clemente did
Elbow more down compared to todays game prepitch.... I was taught this way growing up, i had strong wrists and quick hands only 5'8. It helped me tremendously. Notice how he tucks it like a boxer getting ready to punch almost. Also very little weight on back foot not even on ground during contact??? Incredible totally different from now
But best all time? Makes me think why players dont try it more now a days
This is called Neutral Wrist hitting.
You mean Hank had launch angle before launch angle was cool? It kills me that people teaching kids to hit think this launch angle thing is something new. It's not! If you stay inside and take you hands to the ball , using your lower half to create the hand speed and power, the barrel will naturally follow this path.
Good analysis but it takes so long to get anywhere
Just let me see the swing in slow mo. Fuckin please
Definitely not a knob to the ball approach
Back when Black Americans could actually realistically pursue a professional baseball career.