jumping at the ball

[aggie06]

when i stay back and let the ball travel, i usally smash line drives up the middle or to the right side. But lately I can't seem to stay back, i jump at the ball and clip the top half of the ball and hit little dinkers. Is there any ques or drills i can do to help me sit back? Thanks.

[hellborn]

I am certainly not a batting expert, but I have recently corrected a serious flaw in my swing. I was trying to help power the ball by really pushing forward hard in my stride, and it was robbing me of power. I found that by working on just picking up my front foot and putting it down in a very easy, tension-free way, my power returned. I lost some feeling in my right (push off) leg after a serious attack of sciatica a few years ago, and I think that I started pushing off of it harder as a form of compensation for not having the best feedback from it as far as exactly what it was doing. After I found the flaw, I remembered that I didn't hit that way before my injury. I wasn't doing this on every swing, but when I would think too hard about my mechanics I would definitely do it. The resulting slumps and hot streaks were mysterious to me until I found my problem.
I helped diagnose and worked on the flaw by just taking dry cuts and feeling my impression of bat speed change as I changed my stride. The proof was in my streak of XBH once I got to try out my fix in games. Basically, I was trying to do work with a push off my right leg that really needed to be done by the turning of the hips and torso. It was also very difficult to pull the ball effectively because my body wasn't turning very much.
Your issue may be totally different, but I hope that this might help you. Good luck! Don't give up!!

[Ursa Major]

Here's a trick: Is there a mirror you can practice your swing in front of, facing the mirror, so the imaginary pitcher is off to the side? (You can use a giftwrap roll for safety reasons). Mark where you'll put your feet. Start your swing and stop at instant of front heel plant; look at the mirror and see if you're centered -- i.e., head over belly button over the middle of your feet. Then, have a friend put a piece of masking tape on the mirror right at the top of the image of your head in the mirror from your vantage point.

Now, go through your swing, making sure that the tape remains at the same spot all the way from your heel plant to your follow through (but make sure that you are "rotating" into your front leg and not just spinning in place). (This also helps hitters who are head bobbers.) Another mental trick often shared is to pretend that your front foot at first is just testing thin ice, then you can heel plant.

Do this about 600 times. Hopefully you'll get the muscle memory to keep your front leg firm.