Is The Stride In The Batting Swing Extinct? …these two videos provide insight on the answer

It can be argued that Baseball, more than any other sport, resists letting go of long-held traditions.  Throughout its history, dating back to the mid 1800’s, coaches taught batters to stride in preparation for their swing.  However, over the past couple of decades, we see fewer and fewer batters who stride.  Are we living in a time that has the stride teetering on extinction?

Observe today’s elite batters. Notice that the majority Do Not stride.

Timing

Striding is primarily a timing mechanism.  An athlete’s use of timing in their actions is unique to the individual.  It is strongly encouraged to not instruct a youth baseball or softball player to stride.  There are kids who instinctively incorporate a stride into their swing preparation.  Keep in mind that each individual is unique, we don’t necessarily want to stop a player from striding, especially a player we recognize as being very talented. 

Highly Skilled Athletes

Some highly skilled athletes have something internal that guides them to incorporate components into their actions that, while may not be exactly ‘by the book’, work for them.  One unfortunate coaching mistake that is made with highly-talented kids in all sports is a coach not giving them some leash in how they approach their actions.  It is not uncommon for a coach to put restriction on this small percentage of athletes that retards their development and ability to maximize their athleticism.  Please note, this is a reference to a small percentage of kids that are highly athletic.

It is OK to allow a kid to stride if we recognize it is a natural action for a particular batter.  As best we can, we want to determine if a player who strides is doing so naturally, versus them copying a pro or having been told by a well-meaning coach, parent, or family member. 

The easiest way to do figure this out is to ask them, “Hey Mary-Sue, where did you learn to do that thing (stride) with your foot/leg?”  If the player looks at you weird with a ‘what do you mean?’ expression, they are likely doing it naturally.  In most cases however, their response will be, “I watched a pro/college player doing it” or “My uncle told me to.”

Rare Exceptions

Occasionally we will have a player who is striding (or using a leg kick) and it does not negatively impact their swing.  Most batters who successfully use a stride in their swing are elite, strong, full-grown pro/college players.  Using a stride to prepare the swing, for most kids, results in them getting off balance, not utilizing their legs, throwing off their timing, or simply contributing to a cruddy swing. 

The simplest way to help a player eliminate a stride that is detrimental to their swing, is to spread their feet a few inches wider apart in their stance and instruct them to use a ‘Turn Back’ action to load their legs to power their swing. 

It is important to understand that the wider apart the feet, the greater leg strength required to feel comfortable.  Be prepared for push back initially.  If we stay on a kid for a week or two, while educating them on the fact their body will adjust And they will be more balanced and stronger, they will become eventually get comfortable with this new foot position in their stance.

I encourage young batters to work without a stride.  Striding is an extra movement that a batter must learn to control and master; the more movement, the more chance of having flaws in the swing.

Generating Power

A misconception about the stride is that it adds power to the swing.  The stride is a precursor to the swing.  Professional hitters and coaches will tell you that the role of the stride is timing; not power generation.  Incorporating a stride or a leg kick into the swing, as a timing mechanism, can benefit some athletes.  For a few, this action enhances the rhythm in their actions for maximizing power generation. 

Young kids, however, are still learning to establish the fundamental aspects of the swing.  When kids hit puberty and develop greater overall body strength, a coach or private instructor with a deep understanding of the swing might have a player toy with a stride or leg kick in their swing in an effort to improve their overall timing an power generation.  The number of kids age 12 or younger where such tinkering could provide a significant benefit are few and far between.

Video is a Great Teacher

Canada v Italy   -   1 min 57 sec

These two videos are highlights of games played during the 2017 World Baseball Classic involving Major League and elite international players. 

Watch each batter’s front foot. While there is some movement, but it is inconsequential other than for timing, None make an aggressive or long forward action with their front foot (stride) in their swing preparation.

A few pick up their front foot and set it back down; an action called a ‘Step’ or ‘Toe Tap’ (timing mechanisms like a stride, but with less movement). 

USA v Puerto Rico   -   Watch:  0:05  |  0:50  |  1:12  |  1:40  |  1:55  |  2:45  |  3:18  |  3:48   

When we see a full-grown, elite batter use any action involving the lifting of the front foot off the ground in their swing preparation, it is critical that we recognize we are not looking at a 100lb kid.  These actions require quite a bit of leg strength, which players gain in their teen years.  Younger kids are fine by simply 'Turning Back', an action also used by a majority of Major League and elite batters.

These videos are not only good for gaining a better understanding that most successful batters do not stride; they are also fun to watch.  The Canada v Italy video is about two minutes long; the USA v Puerto Rico video has time markers in the caption, which help you get right to the swings.  The time required to go through that video is also approximately two minutes.