ChrisOLeary.com > Projects > Baseball > Hitting > Rethinking Hitting > Essays > Squishing The Bug

Squishing The Bug

12/13/2007

Some people believe that it is important that hitters be on the ball of their feet at the Point Of Contact. This is variously known and taught as "squishing the bug", "squish the bug", "squashing the bug", and "squash the bug". Proponents of this idea includes some people who instruct at the major league level.
Unfortunately, this isn't what the best hitters do.
As the photos below and further down on this page demonstrate, at the Point Of Contact the best hitters are either on the point of their back toes at the Point Of Contact or their back toes are completely off the ground.

Albert Pujols - Home Run

So why do people advocate squishing the bug if it isn't what the best hitters do?
Some people advocate squishing the bug because they don't look at high speed video. If you look at a swing with the naked eye or just look at random still photos, you will see something that looks like squishing the bug.

Albert Pujols

Adrian Beltre

However, if you go through video frame by frame, you will see that this "squishing the bug" happens well after the Point Of Contact and as the result of the hitter's Center Of Mass rebounding off of their front leg.
Others advocate squishing the bug as an interim cue; as a way of introducing the concept of hip rotation. I understand the logic of this, but don't think it's necessary. In my experience, even the youngest hitters can achieve proper hip rotation and don't need to use squishing the bug as an interim step.