Re: 2018 Chicago Cubs
My point is more that he's so dogmatic about it and dismisses it out of hand. It's the inflexibility couched in "savvy new age thinking" that bothers me more than trying to increase the swing count for each player. There are enough slumping players on the team that I feel there's no harm in devoting some additional practice time. Or at least considering it. The way it is now, some players are taking their BP swings in games it seems like anyway. And the results are predictably poor.
When Maddon's teams historically have taken off in the 2nd half, you figure he might know what he's talking about with curtailing practice time and balancing things out, doing things his way. When the team doesn't click, however, then I think it's fair to re-examine those methods.
How else do you fix your swing if not by watching yourself on video, taking to coaching, tweaking, getting in there and practicing until the movements are the most natural things in the world? Visualization is useful, but you can't just play out swings in your mind and hope for any sort of timing or muscle memory. There's something to be said for the "mental side" of hitting and God knows several players could use a fresh approach, but I find Maddon's POV to be frustrating. Then again, I've never managed a baseball team through a 6 month grind so what do I know.
My point is more that he's so dogmatic about it and dismisses it out of hand. It's the inflexibility couched in "savvy new age thinking" that bothers me more than trying to increase the swing count for each player. There are enough slumping players on the team that I feel there's no harm in devoting some additional practice time. Or at least considering it. The way it is now, some players are taking their BP swings in games it seems like anyway. And the results are predictably poor.
When Maddon's teams historically have taken off in the 2nd half, you figure he might know what he's talking about with curtailing practice time and balancing things out, doing things his way. When the team doesn't click, however, then I think it's fair to re-examine those methods.
How else do you fix your swing if not by watching yourself on video, taking to coaching, tweaking, getting in there and practicing until the movements are the most natural things in the world? Visualization is useful, but you can't just play out swings in your mind and hope for any sort of timing or muscle memory. There's something to be said for the "mental side" of hitting and God knows several players could use a fresh approach, but I find Maddon's POV to be frustrating. Then again, I've never managed a baseball team through a 6 month grind so what do I know.
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