There are many hitting techniques in baseball, but the one I want to talk about today is how to adjust your swing on an off-speed pitch. This technique begins just before the pitch is thrown and is called the trigger mechanism. It is the transfer of weight from the front leg to the back leg and then back to the front leg when you hit the ball.

To see what this technique looks like, I watched a highlight from Milton Bradley of the Seattle Mariners. The replay camera was focused on him, so it was the perfect video.

This is what I saw in the video. Bradley acknowledges the pitch, waits for the ball and gets a big base hit that scores a run. I noticed that his head was down on contactwhich is essential.

Being good at this striking technique means that your hands, shoulders, and hips are locked until your weight has been fully transferred. If you completely commit one of those and let your weight transfer all the way through, then it will be much harder to hit the ball.

If there happens to be an off-speed pitch or a pitch that changes direction or height, you can adjust your swing and slow the process down enough to wait on the ball and still hit it. Just because weight transfer to the front begins doesn’t mean there still isn’t enough weight back to get a good hit.

The same thing happens if the pitch starts to change direction like a curveball or goes from high to low like a splitter. You’ll still have time to adjust. The pitcher may have some tricky pitches, but you can counter those tricks by being patient and adjusting your swing. Bradley does just this in the video.

You can also practice this every time you have batting practice. Have your coach or teammate throw some curveballs or splitters at you near the end. This will help you better recognize it during games.

The trigger mechanism is just one of many baseball batting techniques that will help you get more hits. Your goal should be to outsmart the shooter with each throw. And of course by doing so you will help your team and possibly be the cause of some victories.