Tip #1 - Mechanics and power
Hitting a home run is a combination of proper mechanics and natural power. It's a case of timing
and making sure you're hitting and your contact point is in the proper spot.
Tip #2 - Generating power
In the game of softball, power is primarily generated from your lower body, meaning legs, hips,
abdominals, and back because of the twisting motion. It's definitely a lower body type of skill.
Tip #3 - You can't have one without the other
It's a combination of power and skill. If you don't have a good mechanical swing, then strength
doesn't do a whole lot. And you can have a great mechanical swing with no strength and you don't
have any home run power. It's definitely a combination of the two and a lot of practice, to be able to
perfect your swing, and a lot of time spent in the weight room to get strong.
Tip #4 - Using the sweet spot
For myself, I'm blessed with good power. I can hit the ball a little off the sweet spot and put one out
of the park. For the most part, the towering shot, like in baseball, they all hit off the sweet spot. You
have to hit all of it, and in order to "hit all of it," it's a case of hitting it on the sweet spot, finishing
your swing all the way through, and letting your body strength take over and help hit it out of the
park.
Tip #5 - Batting Stance
For me, I start with my feet a little wider than shoulder width. I have a little bit of knee bend to be
comfortable and balanced. I kind of keep my hands relatively high in my stance and then when I
take my stride I have tester for me, if I'm striding too long or to short, is about the length of my bat.
So if I were to take a swing and hold my follow through, I should be able to put my bat down
between my feet and that's how I know if I'm over-striding or under-striding. The key word in my
stance is balance. I like to feel comfortable and I like to have a little bit of a rhythm with my hands so
that I'm constantly in motion. As they say, a body in motion is quicker and stronger than if you're
completely static. So for me, I like to have a little bit of motion in my hands to develop a rhythm so
I'll be humming a song in my head to keep me comfortable, relaxed, and balanced before I take my
swing.
Tip #6 - Stay loose and make solid contact
My mantra is to always go for good solid contact. Like I've said, I've been blessed with natural
strength and abilities and for me, when I'm swinging nice and easy and I'm really relaxed and I'm not
swinging for the fences, that's when my home runs sort of happen. The times when you get up
there thinking long ball and home run, you pop-up, you ground out, or you strikeout. When you're
trying to do something, it never happens, when you're staying relaxed and loose, that's when the
ball takes off your bats and the home runs and slugging percentage take care of themselves.
Tip #7 - Knowing if the hit will be a home run
It definitely depends on the home run. I mean, sometimes, where literally off the bat, I don't even
watch it. I can tell the way it felt. And just watching about a half a second of its trajectory, I know it's
going out. Other times, you have to get on your horse, thinking that it might be off the fence and it
sneaks over the top. It just depends. Sometimes, you know when you hit it all and there's no
question the ball is going out. And other times, you have to run it out a little bit and once it goes
out, you can slow down into your home run trot and have some fun with it.
