Ted Williams' Secret

Ted Williams' nickname was The Splendid Splinter.

If you Google around for pictures of Ted Williams, especially during the early days of his career, you will see that that nickname was well-deserved.

How did a base player, with the well-deserved nickname of The Splendid Splinter, hit for power?

The steroids era has tainted our view of what it takes to hit for power. People focus on the bloated, ridiculous physique of late-career Barry Bonds and assume that bloat was his key to hitting the ball hard.

In truth, Ted Williams' key was more about being efficient than strong.

Given that most of the hitters I work with tend to be smaller than average, I have spent a considerable amount of time studying Ted Williams' swing and understanding...