Chris O'Leary's
Hitting and Pitching DVDs
Frequently-Asked Questions (FAQ)

On occasion, I get questions about my hitting and pitching DVDs. Here are some of the more common ones and my answers to them.

$50 is a lot of money for a DVD. How can you justify charging that much?

While $50 is a fair bit of money, most people spend far more than that on hitting or pitching lessons. By buying my DVDs, and getting access to the information on my client site, you will ensure that you do not waste the money that you spend on lessons. In fact, and if you are so inclined, my DVDs will enable you to become your child's hitting and/or pitching coach. The odds are that you will end up doing a better job than any of the instructors that your child's teammates are being sent to.

Some people sell Rotational Hitting DVDs for far less than $50. Why shouldn't I buy one of those DVDs?

I have looked at some of those DVDs. Some do not teach everything that is necessary to develop a high-level swing. Others are full of drills and cues that will create a linear swing, not a rotational swing. In contrast, my experience with Andres Torres should make it clear that I know how to develop a high-level swing.

We're in 2011, but your DVDs were produced back in 2008 and 2009. Have you done an update since?

While I update my DVDs every few years, I also use my private client site to push the latest, updated information out to my clients. I usually update my hitting and pitching websites weekly, if not daily. I am also looking at ways of putting the video clips from my DVDs on my client site.

How many "flipbook pitch analysis" do you have and how many "HD video clips" you also, is there a list?

I currently have approximately 50 hitting flipbooks and 25 pitching flipbooks. I usually add new flipbooks every month or so. In terms of video clips, I have hundreds of clips in my video library and make them available to my clients.

I am considering ordering your rotational hitting DVD for my daughter. She is looking to develop more power. I am concerned with one aspect, which is the "uppercut swing" that goes along with the rotational hitting. I understand & agree 100% with the idea of the slight (10-15 degree) uppercut with regard to baseball..and you state it very well on your site: "...since every pitch crosses the plate on a slight downward angle, the way to hit pitches squarely is to swing with a slight uppercut". However, in softball, due to the flat pitchers mound and the underhand delivery, the pitches typically cross the plate flat or on a slight upward angle. So my question is how is it beneficial to swing with a slight uppercut in this scenario? It would seem this is directly contrary to the baseball scenario.

I have studied this in depth and have yet to find a fast pitch softball pitch that actually rises through the Point Of Contact. Most pitches are descending or are at most level to the ground, and when good hitters put good swings on these level pitches, they swing with a slight uppercut. That is why the baseball and fast pitch softball swings are essentially identical.

Comparison of the Swings of
Albert Pujols and Megan Bush

The thing to notice is how, while they load and get to front heel plant position differently, once their front heels plant their swings are basically identical through the extension position.
     The baseball swing and the fast pitch softball swing are the same for a very simple reason; while men and women typically have significantly different levels of upper body strength, all able-bodied people, regardless of their sex, have roughly proportional levels of core strength (because it's the key to walking and running). Because Rotational Hitting lets you tap into the large muscles of the core, it is very efficient and as a result tends to be the predominant swing pattern at the highest levels of both baseball and fast pitch softball.

Do you have special video clips of Daisuke Matsuzaka and Jonathan Papelbon? I really appreciate their mechanics and I'd like to analyze more.

I have clips of Papelbon but not Matsuzaka. In general, I do take requests and will try to get videos of players that people are interested in.

I live in France. I hope that shipping will not cost a lot more.

I don't have a problem shipping internationally using first class mail. It takes a bit longer due to customs, but most of the time the DVD will arrive within a week or two. I also created my client web site so that my international clients can immediately access my information and avoid the hassles of customs delays.

There are so many DVD available about Pitching and Hitting, with a lot of good comments, why should I bought your DVD and not one of the bestseller on Amazon?

My DVDs contain the latest, best, easiest to understand information. My information has also been proven to work at the major league level by clients like Andres Torres of the San Francisco Giants.

Your website looks very cheap! Why?

I have chosen to focus on making my website easy to read not flashy (and thus harder to read). I have also spent the bulk of my time and money on acquiring as many high-quality video clips of the best hitters and pitchers as possible.