I've been saying for a while now he has a beautiful swing! That torque when he unloads!

What an Absolute beast he's been this year.

Hello Matt! I love your channel. It's a gift to young players. As I keep posting, as a former minor league player and All-American (I learned this method from a scout and hit .454 in JUCO and was a 44th pick), I absolutely love how Ohtani throws his hands into the hitting zone and barrells-up without taking a stride; Not unlike his teammate Anthony Randone and former star Paul Molitor. This method helped keep my hands back during pitch recognition and the head and eyes level! And yes, it was uncomfortable because I rotated my hips so much. I was a pull hitter but to prove a point, the scout had me take a private hitting session without a stride and I was shocked by the distance I still generated. I was also a drummer so I was always working on hand strength and driving the ball and banging on old tires mounted on trees!!! Keep it up Sir!

It would be interesting to see a side-by-side comparison with another hitter of a very different style, say, Cody Bellinger.

The sound of the Bat when it hits the Ball. Ball goes flying off his Bat. Sometimes it looks like the Ball is going to land beyond Angel Stadium.

What I like about Ohtani’s swing that was not mentioned is his hands and hips are together. Its not overly rotational like you see in many mlb hitters. Its compact and direct to the ball. When hands and hips are together or linear, a batter can let ball get deeper and makes the timing process much more simpler.

I could watch his swing all day

I think he touches front foot down so early because he's so tall and it maintains his sense balance. Then his front hip rotates inward exceptionally well and at that point his body (minus his right leg below the knee) is compact and torqued really well in his load. Beautiful swing. Good for him knowing his body and how to generate balance and power.

It just looks so smooth, like his load transitions directly into his swing perfectly.

amazingly, when he hit, the ball goes deep to where you don't believe, at least on TV

Japanese great Sadaharu Oh, believes Ohtani has the best swing in baseball. Praise from a baseball legend!

Awesome, I was hoping you would do Shohei! Ohtani's swing encompasses huge horsepower and huge torque! You can see the torque in his hips. I've seen occasions where Ohtani's rear foot is over the place (doesn't appear in control) when he swings. Usually, these are the times he strikes out.

What an amazing breakdown.

Can you also do another pitching one for ohtani?

I remembered Othani used to has a big stride until he first came to MLB because he can't hit the fastball and make a awkward L shape body movement. After that, he put his foot down and become a monster

His front hip swing reminds me of Soto. They angle their front foot so much it allows for more hip swing. He's maximizing the amount of power he gets from his legs. This guy is a physical specimen who prob spends many hours in the gym pumping iron. Amazing line drive home runs exceeding 115mph off the bat.

I’ve been using a similar stride and load method and it feels so good. I get good torque in my hips and it’s much easier to be on time since my foot is already down. That’s really important for me since I’m seeing 90+ pretty regularly

Love the video matt. Different styles! Reminds me of golf!!

Yes! About time for some more Shohei love!! Remember when you were doing the two-way player thing on 'Road". This man is living it in the majors!! Just how long can they keep letting this man pitch?

Matt good job in breaking down his swing . You explain it , very easy to understand.

Hi Mr Antonelli, I would love to hear your breakdown of Ronald Acuna Jr's swing!

I love what you say about the stance. I think most need to remember that what should be coached on a stance is what has you comfortable, relaxed, and balanced/stable. My son wants to stand the way I do, but he has a different level of balance that requires him to stand wider in order to be stable during his load up.

I am as layman as it gets, but what I notice after looking at a few other power hitters is how much more he uses his lower body and how well synchronized everything is. His stride is early because he's setting his front foot to establish a base to load his hips. He then drives off his back foot for forward motion and his forward knee turns in to get his hips loaded further back. This technique means his load is further and is held later than usual. He then rotates the knee around and drives off of it to establish a strong base to release everything at the same time. He generates so much rotational speed with his late hip release. He also seems to reach back a bit with his shoulders before bringing them forward at the same time as everything else. It actually reminds me of Fred Couples, lol. I think that's why he hits as long as Aaron Judge while weighing 70 lbs less and makes it look effortless. Just a lot of flexibility and use of his entire body with perfect timing.

Yeah, I can see the style. But don't do style or ability to hit. It's like pitching wind-up, some look very weird but whatever works for them. Great great break down!!

Awesome content matt

Baseball Asian & MLB Super Star Ace. Amazing~👍👍

The moment I worked through my own weight distribution, initial stance width, and stride, my whole life changed in the batter's box. I wish I would have done that before jr. year in h.s.... I agree with your assertions!

Thank you for another Ohtani breakdown.

When I played, I was awkward at the plate. Decent hitter, not a lot of power. I was wide out, kind of like a Scott Rolen stance. I took a short, quick step in the direction of the pitch, often late, and just punched the ball where it was pitched. I occasionally had gap power, but I was never a home run threat.

The thing im taking from his swing is that extra rotation he does with his hips, like he’s basically pointing his glutes at the pitcher

Love your breakdown vids Matt really helped me

Roger federer, Rory mcilory & shohei are on another level when it comes to their techniques in their respective sports

My favorite about this video is watching the catcher glove snap open and shut like a sad little puppy trying to eat. You should add little emphasis lines from the glove every time it snaps for max comedic effect. Either way, trying to figure out how to train my little leaguers to hit better. Nice video.

Man he gets tons of mechanical stretch like you mention.

He’s getting relatively more torque on that backend load on account of that early stride.

Nice breakdown. I probably missed it in this video, but do you have a video that specifically labels the core principles of the swing?

very cool! Rafa Devers has a cool stance and so does Stanton. I feel like just watching these dudes or any dudes you absorb something! Going to the old school, Williams and DiMaggio! lots of power!

Such a simple and significant observation: If it was the best thing to do, everyone would be doing it!

I love swing breakdowns u should do a swing breakdown on me and see what I do good and what I should try to help my swing

Love the Ohtani content.

The characteristics of Ohtani's swing are similar to an ideal golf swing and it's the same principle that makes it fly farther. He doesn't swing the bat with arm strength and power like other hitters in the majors. His first priority is to hit the sweet spot. And he swings as relaxed as possible, thinking about the most efficient way to increase his body's rotational speed around his body axis so that his torso does not shake. It is completely different from the forceful swings of other home run hitters in the majors. It certainly resembles an ideal golf driver shot. I think the prototype of this hitting method of efficiently rotating the body at high speed without letting the torso dangle is a development of the "meet hitting" method taught in Japanese high school baseball. High school students are often taught to hit the ball to the sweet spot, because their bodies are still incomplete and inefficient. I am sure he is a genius in hitting the ball in motion to the sweet spot, such as with his dynamic vision. His body feel and strong body axis are the result of his practice since he was a student, and perhaps because he is a pitcher, it is a synergistic effect of having trained his body core and axis to throw a fast ball. Perhaps the strength of his torso is the merit of practicing the two-way pitching and hitting. The meet hitting method is essentially a theory for short hitting, but when Otani, whose body is big enough for the majors, performs this Japanese-style hitting method, "the extension of a hit becomes a HR." His swing is different from the American-style swing of major league hitters, which is obvious to anyone who compares the two.

Looks to me that he doesnt rotate the barrel much. More just swings. Maybe he doesnt do it as mich as some players but he still doing it

This year it looks like he switched up a little,I’ve seen where he doesn’t step into the ball at all he just drops that front foot already cocked back n loaded!

Besides style, Ohtani unique because he corkscrews that back hip as well as anyone ever has. He has very little weight shift- he’s weightless- it’s all about that coiled back hip- like Bonds did, and then when he lands the heel, his pullback is elite- just like Griffey

I've heard people comparing his swing to that of Griffey Jr. and Strawberry. I can't see the Griffey comparison because they just don't look the same to me. Strawberry, on the other hand, I'd like to see a side-by-side profile shot of both of their swings, especially since I can't remember what a prime Strawberry's swing use to look like.

You can easily see him transfer all that energy into his back leg a waist. Haven't seen him hit much but I can tell when he connects that ball is going to explode off that bat.

impressive

No detailed breakdown of his upper body, specifically his arms. Notice that his arms are nearly extended through the contact point, and not how they are trying to teach now (and shown by Antonelli in his demonstrations/course at the end of the video).

Ques- do u need fast bat speed to hit it over if the ball is fast?

As a tall person this seems like something to look at frequently

Nice video

I love his swing I want to have a swing

I would like to see Otani and Babe Ruth side-by-side such a difference, but such similar statistics particularly in this season. Thanks!

I think Bonds had the sweetest swing by far. No unnecessary wasted movement.

You can't do what he does because you are not Shohei. He puts his front foot down earlier than other hitters, it gives him an advantage over them. He is ready to hit at anytime. But a player needs good balance to do that. Less athletic players does not have the ability to balance themselves and still deliver a hard hit with such power. The style you are talking about is more like how capable is your body. Otani has the perfect swing, the power it generates is much more than other players. That's why a fly ball can end up becoming a home run.

Yo Matt, will you be in ATL for the 17u WWBA???

Is it me or Ohtani has a lefty version swing from David Wright

Ohtani's first movement is his timing mechanism not his stride. He turns his knee in to load. Heel plant is the equivalent of his stride. After heel plant he is in the hitting position. Not all that unusual.

what all are you used to draw the lines and stuff?

My core playing year were during the Pujols period, and was constantly told ‘No Leg Kick’ and ‘Hands High’. Yet, Barry Bonds was dropping bombs at 40 with a leg kick and a ‘hitch’. That was dismissed as ‘athletic freak + steroids’. For me, a leg kick turned me from a solid hitting prospect to a top 10 rounder. Sports are strange like that.

I don’t know if someone had told you this , but you are the best baseball coach in the whole country , every comment that you make fit perfectly. Wish I can meet you one day

I couldn’t agree with you more on people coaching style instead of the core fundamentals. I relate it to Paris Hilton and her outfits. I’m sure people think she has great style with her shirts, pants and shoes. All I see when I look at her is the little dog in her purse. Coaches focus on the dog in the purse rather than if she is even fully clothed or not.

big quads required for this swing

Kinda reminds me of what Ichiro's swing might look like if he had Ohtani's size

How much of his stride was Pujpls tinkering with him?

Elbow up or down? I can’t stand every little league dad yelling “get your elbow up”.

Reminds me of a golf swing 🤔

Former mlb player? He is current

ミートの瞬間のバットスイングスピードが落ちない。他の選手のバットスイングスピードはボールをミートした瞬間にはボールに押されてバットスイングスピードが落ちる。

Ohtani is incredible and unprecedented. He's the next Babe Ruth

It almost seems like he kinda steps out. Idk what it is but it just seems like it to me.

I see you had 1 home run in the majors. Can you tell us about that? What were you thinking and feeling before, during and after that home run? Did you call your parents and wife after the game to tell them?

Goatani

If someone is hitting at every level they play, THEN NEVER EVER TOUCH THEIR STANCE, STYLE OR SWING

i think we all know and matt of course knows that if he hadn't gotten repeatedly injured he'd have definitely stuck in the majors at least for a time, he definitely would've lasted more than one season because think about it he got not one but 5 different chances to make it, once the padres cut him, 4 other organizations including the yankees still thought he was good enough to sign over and over, yeah only the padres actually promoted him to the majors but 4 others at least thought he was good enough to be one step away and promoted any time if needed so i hope he's never felt bad or had any regrets or seen himself as a bust, ive never gotten that from him that he's felt that way which us good but yeah, def nothing to ever be ashamed of.

No left hander has a better swing then Griffey jr

well, that explains everything. He swung the bat and he hit the ball with style.

Shohei and Nelly Cruz both do the same thing..call it what you want, but all they are doing is getting toe down BEFORE THE PITCH IS THROWN AS OPPOSED TO WHEN IT IS HALFWAY!!!

So much technique is dependent on body type.

Ohtani has a great swing, however, has so many awful swings as well. He also likes to pose, which I have no idea why.

*Shohei gets there ready to unleash the tomahawk quicker by loading up this way, just not enough time to lollygag and step while the pitcher is going through his motion, it's a cheat code that feels like forever on a 97 mph fastball coming at you. Contract negotiation right now at min. 5 yr 340 M and going up daily. The sad story is Artie needs to cherry-pick and go up the 5 Fwy to get a farm system fixed with the better quality front office. WASTED TALENT ask Salmon and Trout.*

Must be them roids....... them hemroids

first

No. You absolutely SHOULD TEACH THIS. It isn't style, comfortability, it's basic physics and kinetics. The "stride" is a tradition that will soon be properly recognized as archaic. Teaching a leg kick is teaching fundamentally flawed and impossible to repeat mechanics. It will cater to the egoistic comforts of your pupils' "style", sure. It will also lead to slumps, frustration, lack of confidence and pervasive inconsistency. What Shohei is doing with his swing, especially in the last 2-3 yeas, is reducing the variables introduced by narrow, unengaged style or big leg kick strides and maintaining a wide, stable base with essentially constant contact with the ground with both feet. It ensures his mechanics are consistent and repeatable. He doesn't have to worry about adjustments, or making sure his lead foot comes down in the right spot. It's a stable base that limits the variables that would cause errors. But what is far more important is this: notice his lead foot. He is on his toes, lightly weighted down on the ball of his foot, with his heel facing forward. As he transfers his load, he simply lets his Heel rotate back into position before SLAMMING it down, which jumpstarts the entire unloading process. Toe to heel, lightly planted toes uncoiling to his heel, which hits the ground hard and transfers the energy up the kinetic chain through a solid and stable wide base and a repeatable, hyperefficient transfer of load. It is very similar to Jeet Kun Do fundamentals. The same basic kinetics Bruce Lee used to teach how to throw a punch. Ball of the foot, plant the heel hard, let the kinetics flow naturally upward to the hips, core and do not tense up your arms until the moment of impact. I know I'm some rando wacko in the comments but it's worth looking into this stuff if you want to teach repeatable and consistent mechanics the can not only teach better, more effective and efficient swings - but also drastically limit the amount of mental stress on hitters while also making it far easier on you, the instructor. Shohei's success isn't just style. It's having the best, prettiest and fundamentally sound swing in the history of baseball, Junior be damned. It is absolutely worth teaching and not teaching it is a disservice. Wait a couple years and what statcast did for pitching will start being applied to swing, and "style" will be tossed in the trash where it belongs.