Every hitter has a flaw. The difference between good hitters and struggling ones is whether they know what their flaw is — and whether they have a drill to fix it.
Here are the five most common swing problems coaches see in the cage, what causes each one, and exactly how to fix it.
Flaw 1: Casting the Hands
Casting is when a hitter extends their arms away from the body early in the swing — the hands loop out toward the pitcher instead of staying tight to the body. The result is a long, weak swing that misses inside pitches and pops up everything outside.
The cause: Hitters cast because they try to hit the ball with their arms instead of rotating their hips first. The arms fire independently and swing wide.
The fix: Place a tee just inside and slightly in front of your front hip. Your job is to hit that ball without your knob clearing your belt. Keep the hands close, let the hips lead, and the hands follow naturally. Do 20 reps with intent. When you can hit that inside tee consistently with authority, casting is gone.
Flaw 2: Dropping the Back Shoulder
A dropped back shoulder sends the barrel on an uphill path through the zone, turning line drives into pop-ups and ground balls into weak rollers. It looks like uppercut but it comes from the shoulder angle, not the hands.
The cause: Usually a mechanical cue misfired — someone told the hitter to swing up or hit backspin without giving them a proper framework, and they tilted their whole upper body instead of just rotating.
The fix: Set up with your back elbow high and level at the start. Work tee drills with a focus on keeping the back shoulder level on the swing — not dipping. Film yourself from the catcher angle. Your shoulders should rotate, not tilt.
Flaw 3: Stepping in the Bucket
Stepping in the bucket means the front foot lands open — angled toward first base for righties, toward third for lefties. The hips open early, power drains out of the swing, and the hitter struggles with anything on the outer half.
The cause: Fear of inside pitches. Unconsciously the body wants to bail out away from an incoming ball. This often starts young and never gets corrected.
The fix: Draw a line in the batter box perpendicular to the plate. Your stride foot must land on or toward that line — never past it. Use tape on the floor of the cage. Take 30 tee swings focusing solely on where your front foot lands. Once your foot hits the right spot consistently, your hips will stay closed longer and your power will jump.
Flaw 4: Hitching
A hitch is any extra movement in the hands or arms during the load phase — looping down before coming up, bouncing the hands, or pumping before launching. Hitches add time to the swing and destroy timing against faster pitching.
The cause: Comfort. Hitters develop hitches because at some point the movement felt natural. But comfort does not equal efficiency.
The fix: Film your swing from the side. Find exactly where the hitch is. Then work slow-motion dry swings removing that movement until the path from load to contact is clean and direct. When it is repeatable slowly, take it to the tee. When it holds on the tee, take it to front toss. Do not rush the process — hitches take weeks to unlearn.
Flaw 5: No Hip Rotation
The biggest power leak in amateur hitters is not using the hips. These hitters swing entirely with their arms and generate maybe 40% of the power they are capable of. The ball goes where they aim it, but it never has authority.
The cause: No one ever taught them to rotate. Or they were taught to stay back so long they froze the hips entirely.
The fix: Flamingo drill — stand on your back foot only, no stride. Take full swings. The only way to hit the ball well in this position is to rotate your hips aggressively. Do 20 reps this way, then go back to full stance. Your hips will fire differently. Combine this with a resistance band drill — attach a band to something behind you and wrap it around your front hip — and swing against the resistance to feel what hip rotation actually demands.
A Note on Video
You cannot fix what you cannot see. Every serious hitter should be filming their cage sessions — even on a phone propped on a bat bag. Film from the side and from the front (catcher angle). Watch at 0.25x speed. What you feel and what you do are usually different things.
Private cages give you the space and time to work on mechanics without pressure. Find one near you on CageList.
Search batting cages near youFrequently Asked Questions
How long does it take to fix a swing flaw?
Most mechanical fixes take 3–6 weeks of deliberate practice to stick. A new motor pattern needs hundreds of correct reps before it becomes automatic under pressure.
Should I fix multiple swing flaws at once?
No. Fix one flaw at a time. Working on two simultaneously confuses your body and slows both corrections. Prioritize the flaw that costs you the most runs.
How do I know if my fix is working?
Your contact quality will improve before your results do. Look for harder contact, better spray chart, and less mis-hits. Results in games often lag behind mechanical improvement by a few weeks.