Tony Gwynn’s basics of hitting

I was very sad to hear of the passing of Tony Gwynn not too long ago.  Growing up in the game, he was one of my idols.  I watched him every chance I could get and tried to read everything he wrote and said about hitting.  I must have read George Will’s chapter on him in his book Men at work at least 15 times.

I’ve listened to many hitting coaches and instructors in my years and I’ve noticed a trend.  The more experience an instructor or player has, the more basic and simple his instruction tends to be.  Tony Gwynn fit that mold.  You would think a guy who was such an incredible hitter at the major league level would have a lot to say about the ins and outs of hitting and all the intricate parts needed to be a successful hitter.  But that wasn’t the case with Tony Gwynn.  He boiled it all down to two basic things – 1) be balanced and, 2) throw the knob to the baseball.

That’s it.  That’s all he preached.  According to Gwynn, every other problem was solved if a hitter mastered those two things.

I’d write more about it but it’s probably easier just to hear it from him …

Tomorrow’s post: Video tip – Agility rings for baseball