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The Secret of Hitting the Curve BallRob Ellis  Printer-Friendly Version
Many people think something magical is involved in a batter hitting a curve ball. So few are able to do this consistently, particularly at a young age. The secret is quite simple: the batter must wait long enough to see and judge the break of the curve ball. Waiting long enough to see the curve is the secret. The problem comes from having to wait so long that the hitter now becomes vulnerable to the fastball. So the reasoning follows that if a hitter is good at hitting the slower curve ball, he now can't hit the fastball and vice versa. Fear not, this is what equalizes the duel between the pitcher and the hitter. However, an approach can be developed to allow the hitter to be effective at hitting both. Hank Aaron said it. I heard him say it in person. It went like this: "I can wait on the curve ball because I know the pitcher can't throw the fastball by me." I knew Hank Aaron and his style well. I played with him in 1974 and 1975 with Milwaukee and have studied him for years. What Aaron was saying is this: "I have a very flat swing, a flat swing which is on the same path as the fastball (flat and level). I can look for the curve ball because, if I am wrong, my flat swing is still on the path of the fastball and will take care of it even if I am wrong on looking for the curve ball." This is what allowed Aaron and other great hitters to handle both pitches. This is the secret of hitting the curve ball. My instruction grooves a flat swing for a batter of any age. Follow the instruction to the letter and the hitter develops an Aaron-like swing path that both handles the fastball and will afford the time a hitter needs to wait for the break of the curve. It is the secret of hitting off-speed pitches. Looking, waiting for them, knowing that if the hitter is wrong in his "guessing," the plane of the fastball is tied to the plane of his swing. The slightest uppercut in the swing will not allow the hitter to hit the fastball when he is looking for the curve ball. That is the secret to hitting the curve and other off-speed pitches: the flat swing. Authored by Hank Aaron himself.
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Rob Ellis has played, coached and written about baseball for over 35 years. He became one of only 18 players to advance directly to the Major Leagues without first playing in the minors when he joined the Milwaukee Brewers in 1971 shortly after finishing his college career at Michigan State, where he was named College Baseball Player of the Year.
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