Acceleration | Plane | Efficiency | VBA

Unloading is the byproduct of a hitter’s ability to Get Loaded, Stay Loaded, and create an efficient swing path to the baseball — driving Bat Speed, Contact, and Power Production.

The drills in this phase exist to clean up the Disconnections that show up the moment a hitter tries to deliver the barrel — poor early connection, inefficient back elbow slotting, an unstable lead leg, lost posture through rotation, fake bat speed, and a misaligned Vertical Bat Angle. If the Manual taught you what gets in the way of transmitting the energy you stored, this is where you train your way out of it.

Each drill below is built around a specific Connection from the Unloading framework — good early connection, efficient back elbow slotting, maintained posture through rotation, functional bat speed, an aligned VBA, and on-plane efficiency. Train them in the order they appear, focus reps on the Disconnections you recognize in your own swing, and the swing you’ve been building in Phase 1 and Phase 2 finally gets to play.

Trains barrel acceleration and a stopped, on-plane finish at contact.

• Accelerate to the ball
• Focus on covering the baseball with the barrel
• Finish with bat pointing towards pitcher

Reinforces covering the baseball with a high, controlled three-quarter finish.

• Accelerate to the ball
• Focus on covering the baseball with the barrel
• Finish the barrel high at 3/4 of the finish, emphasizing the stopping of the barrel

Trains directional barrel command by “throwing” the ball with the Chuck-It Stick in the intended direction.

• Hold the stick with two hands and get into stance
• “Swing” the Chuck-It Stick like a bat
• Command the flight of the ball directionally

Reinforces swing path and acceleration without the feedback of contact using resistance.

• Get into your stance with towel hanging behind you
• Take a dry swing with emphasis on path and acceleration
• Finish the swing with the towel (barrel) high

Trains the hitter to maintain posture and balance while unloading on an unstable base.

• Place plyo discs for post stride position of both feet
• Stand on plyo discs and find balance
• Focus on loading properly and then unloading while maintaining balance

Reinforces an athletic posture and weight distribution through the swing.

• Split hands from knob to above the grip tape
• Coil and focus on back shoulder working directionally through the middle of the field
• Focus on back shoulder working underneath your chin

Trains the back elbow to stay connected to the torso through rotation.

• Place the Connection Ball between bicep and forearm of back arm
• Squeeze the ball to maintain hand/barrel position
• Take full swing and allow the ball to fall (preferably) behind you

Uses a low-friction handle implement to let the back elbow slot naturally into position.

• Using the implement on the handle, grip the bat and get into stance
• Lack of friction on bat will allow elbow to improve slotting naturally
• Utilize for any training environment

Isolates the back elbow’s movement from the rest of the body to clean up timing.

• Use a 3-Step Process
• When creating hip-shoulder separation focus on back elbow being down
• Feel the elbow work inside your hands and attach to your torso

Trains the top hand’s path and finish in isolation.

• Can be done post stride or with stride
• Focus on elbow leading the hands
• Maintain direction of barrel through contact

Trains a connected lead elbow path with the long-bat overload feedback.

• Place strap around neck
• Back wrist inside strap and grip the long bat normally with bat on the shoulder
• Rotate with your torso and maintain lead elbow bent throughout move

Trains the same lead-elbow path with a short bat for faster reps.

• Place strap around neck
• Back wrist inside strap and grip the short bat normally with bat on the shoulder
• Rotate with your torso and maintain lead elbow bent throughout move

Forces an inside-the-ball lead elbow path to clean up barrel entry.

• Grip the tool with your top hand index finger on the trigger
• Coil and load with control
• Rotate with your torso and maintain lead elbow bent throughout move

Isolates the lead arm to train a connected, on-plane swing.

• Tuck back hand underneath lead arm
• Control barrel position in setup and throughout the move
• Focus on back elbow working towards the pitch

Trains the lead elbow to stay connected through rotation.

• Hold the Connection Ball under lead elbow and chest
• Maintain position of the Connection Ball throughout load
• Honey Hole finish while still holding the Connection Ball

Restricts elbow independence to train both arms working together.

• Place strap around both arms above the elbows
• Remove slack from the band
• Maintain slack removal throughout swing

Helps prevent “arm-bar” of lead arm in swing.

• Place strap around lead elbow and attach to thumb of bottom hand
• Grip bat normally and swing
• Maintain strap on elbow without it sliding off

Forces the hitter to clear the noodle with a connected, on-plane lead elbow.

• Place pool noodle on outer edge of the plate
• Can perform with full load or 3-Step Process
• Focus on clean path to baseball and not hitting the noodle

Trains rotational sequencing from an open stance with feet anchored.

• Open stance to 45 degrees with your back foot close to the plate
• Get Loaded by keeping feet anchored and internally rotating into your back hip
• Unload with direction and using proper sequence

Cycles through four bat sizes to train barrel awareness and adaptive sequencing.

• Select four different size bats (different lengths, barrel size, weight)
• Take two swings with each bat and then switch bats
• Finish with your bat

Trains barrel direction and contact depth across multiple distances.

• Cues coming soon — drill in development

Separates the hands on the bat to expose and clean up hand path.

• Separate hands in setup with three fingers distance between the hands
• Use full swing or 3-Step Process
• Emphasize the quality of contact and maintain grip throughout finish

Trains bat speed with overload/underload feedback in the same tool.

• Start with low tension and take a normal swing
• Accelerate from your sequence leading to proper timing of the barrel slide
• This can be done with baseballs or dry swings

Trains a tighter rotational coil for explosive unload.

• Similar to a Marshall
• Start feet close together and rotate as deep as you can into your gather
• Unload as fast as you can while staying tight to your axis

Reinforces gas pedals and braking system in our sequence to go fast.

• Take a full swing through a baseball
• After contact slam on your brakes
• Whip the bat back in the direction it fired from

Trains pure bat speed with a lighter implement.

• Approximately 20% weight reduction to bat
• Accelerate and move at top speed
• High intent

Trains barrel control and rotational strength with end-weighted feedback.

• Approximately 20% weight increase loaded into the end of the bat
• Accelerate and move at top speed
• High intent

Trains hand-path quickness with handle-weighted feedback.

• Approximately 20% weight increase loaded into the handle of the bat
• Accelerate and move at top speed
• High intent

Trains rotational direction and finish using a lightweight PVC for high-volume reps.

• Same as the regular 45 Degree Open Drill using a PVC
• Lightweight adds to underload training
• Increases awareness for feel of swing

Adds a double-hop rhythm to PVC swings to train sequencing and timing.

• Start with PVC in batting stance
• Step behind with your back foot and hop up twice on your back leg
• Focus on landing in posterior chain and transition to swing