Good news for the up and coming Gigantes toiling in both the greater SF sandlots as well as those struggling to make the big club like Brett Pill. If I were Pill , I would stick with the traditional approach employed by Buster Posey. It seems as if Pence and Pablo (Sandoval) employ non-traditional, anomalous approaches which ultimately lend themselves to feast or famine results.
from Yahoo Sports:
Pence hits two homers in Giants' win - Yahoo Sports:
"Buster (Posey) usually gives me something, but Hunter will usually just say, 'I just try to kill the ball,' which I don't doubt; he does," Pill said of seeking advice from his elder statesmen. "To do what he's doing right now is pretty unbelievable to watch. I think we're all feeding off it. It's been kind of ridiculous."
"Every time I get a hit he comes up to me and asks me what I'm thinking," Pence said. "All I say is I tried to see the ball and hit it as hard as I could. Really, I feel like if I'm mechanical, I get in my own way. That's the truth, and he gets all mad at me, so when he hit that homer I couldn't wait to ask him what he was thinking.
"Up the middle," Pence said, laughing.'via Blog this'
Pence's approach from a hitting mechanics standpoint is like nothing any self-respecting hitting guru would teach to a young person. But it works for him. See ball, hit ball....you can't think and hit at the same time...that can work. There are some great examples and a critique of Pence's unique approach listed below from McCovey Chronicles. It's a classic.
Pablo Sandoval's approach from a plate discipline standpoint is also like nothing you would teach to a young, developing team, but it works for him. My guess is if he tried to back down his hack-o-meter and tried to swing only at "rule book strikes" it might take away from his aggressiveness and confidence and hurt his average. It lends itself to hot and cold hitting as well, but it does seem amazing that guys like Sandoval, that have this "hack at anything I can reach" approach, seem to hit better in the post-season and clutch situations when pitchers are the most dialed in or have to throw strikes.
Pence's signing virtually assures that future prospects will have a wide variety of hitting approach examples to choose from in the future, if Pablo can come up big next year in his contract year. Five years for $90M is a bit rich, but Pence deserves it based on performance and his leadership by example approach to the game. In that regard he is a textbook example for the kids. So, I guess it all balances out in the end. I'm glad to see the Reverend has found a home.
from McCovey Chronicles:
http://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2013/5/2/4292934/swing-pr0n-hunter-pence-is-the-best-worst-baseball-player-of-all-time
The swing: Like most things Pence, it's confounding example of awkwardness overcome by freakish strength (and probably some sort of alien sorcery). It's an exaggerated leg lift, a sizeable hitch in the hands, a slight step in the bucket (because he doesn't quite get himself squared up from such an open stance), a huuuuge stride, and a front hip that flies open early. Despite all of that nightmare fuel for hitting instructors, Pence manages (post-hitch) to keep his hands back and his bat flat through the zone for long enough to rely on his alien/chimp strength (four-plus times as strong as a human of comparable size) to hit an absolute laser over the right-center field fence. It's no small feat to hit an oppo bomb at Dodger Stadium at night. We make note of this, but ...The mind. It boggles.The velocity off the bat: 106.4 mphThe elevation angle: 20.8˚The verdict: It's fitting that Pence's ability to turn wrong into right was best exhibited in his first home run of the year. For what it's worth, Pence has a baseball academy in Houston where his instructors presumably teach youngsters how to do whatever the hell it is that he does. The curse. It's spreading.
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