The website is Tornadobaseball.com and the company is called Tornado Baseball Training, but I work with softball players as well as baseball players. Some in the softball community believe that the softball swing is different than the baseball swing and softball players need to train and swing differently. I don’t agree with that. Baseball and softball hitters both have similar technique and should swing the bat in a very similar way.
To prove this, first let’s look at some elite baseball and softball hitters. Below is the front view of 2015 NPF 1st overall pick Lauren Chamberlain next to Yankees slugger Aaron Judge. Notice how they both get into a very similar position at contact. They both show the “tilted tornado.” They’re slightly tilted toward the plate with the bat roughly perpendicular to their trunk. Also note the slight bend in the left arm.
From the side view we can also see that elite hitters in baseball and softball have essentially the same swing. Below are swings of Pro Softball Star, Amanda Lorenz and MLB all star, Bryce Harper, right around the point of contact. Take note of the bat and front (right) forearm alignment in the picture. They both show the bat and forearm in a straight line. This indicates that they were able to whip the bat head properly. Also, they both show the back arm (left arm for a left handed hitter) at roughly a 90 degree angle. This indicates that they are not pushing the bat with their arms. They are using the rotation of their torso to create power. The last thing I want you take note of, is their feet. They both have a relatively closed front foot and they are not “squashing the bug” with the back foot. They are up on the toes of the back foot, with not much body weight on that foot.
The above two comparisons show that elite hitters whether male or female are very similar. But what about non elite hitters? What about your average Little League player? In my experience, both male and female youth hitters have the same typical flaws in their swings. Bat-drag is the number one swing fault in youth players regardless of gender. To put it simply, bat-drag is a swing flaw where the hitter uses mostly their arms to swing the bat, rather than their whole body. Softball and baseball both have a bat-drag problem at the youth level. Both the softball hitter on the left and the baseball hitter on the right below, suffer from bat-drag. You can tell bat-drag by the back (right) elbow. In bat-drag swings the back elbow gets ahead of the hands as the arms are incorrectly used to move the bat, rather than the rotation of trunk.
So baseball and softball swings are very similar at the highest levels and also at the lower levels. But why is that? Aren’t men and women different?
When it comes to the muscular and skeletal system, men and women are not much different. The muscles used and mechanics of swinging a bat are essentially the same between male and female. Yes, it’s true that men are typically stronger and more powerful than women, but women can still swing the bat in an efficient way and maximize their ability.
Elite softball hitters swing very similarly to elite baseball players. Youth softball hitters have the same common flaws as baseball players. The human body whether male or female, has basically the same muscular system and skeletal proportions. All of these factors indicate that baseball and softball players must train and swing in the same manner. I even encourage baseball and softball players to train together and help each other. Whether it’s baseball of softball, if your daughter or son needs some help to eliminate swing flaws, get in touch and we can get to work!