Hitters are not robots. Analyze any player’s swing from youth ball to the big leagues and you’ll see variation because of size, muscle, bone structure, personality tendencies and mental make-up. Yet to be a consistently good, very good or even a great hitter, there are a few physical and mental absolutes of hitting. Guest Gary Long walks us through those absolutes with methods, his philosophy of hitting, tips, drills and examples. In this show the core points Gary covers are: 1) Stance, 2) Load and stride, 3) Staying back, 4) The swing, 5) Two strike hitting, and 6) Mental skills. Expect to hear stories sand lessons about what Gary has learned from Tony Gwynn, Brett Strom (long time scout, currently with the Cardinals) and others.
Gary’s education and baseball experience spans 40+ years including 31 years as a teacher, coach, principal and superintendent. Following his outstanding collegiate years at Blinn College and Texas Tech, Gary played a year of pro ball in the Independent Lone Star League. Gary applies his innovative mind in sports including having developed practical, needed and affordable products such as his “Rope Bat”. Gary continues to coach abroad-most recently in Germany-and the Greater Austin, Texas area. He also is an adjunct professor at Concordia University here in Austin teaching graduate students educational administration.