For sometime now, I've been interested in the similarities between the nature of the techniques in golf and baseball. In "How Babe Ruth Influenced Modern Golf" I wrote:
[Sam] Byrd and [Jimmy] Ballard both felt that the golf swing and the baseball swing were very similar, the only difference was that they were on different planes - the baseball swing is on a plane roughly waist high, and the golf swing tilted downward from that. And just as the baseball swing uses a players entire body to swing the bat, so should the golf swing.
Certainly there are differences, particularly in the way players grip their utensils. Other than one hand being next to each other on the bat or club, there isn't a lot of similarities. In baseball, the thumbs wrap around the bat, whereas in golf, the thumbs kind of point down the shaft. Also, in baseball, the bat is held in the palms, in golf, it's more towards the fingertips.
Recently, along with most baseball fans, I've watched Bobby Abreu pretty closely in his recent stretch of great play. And one thing I've noticed is how he holds his bat as he awaits a pitch. The pinky-finger of his top hand overlaps the top finger of the bottom hand -- very similar to the most common golf grip. The similarity is illustrated below...
In each image, the pinky overlaps, slightly more so in the golf side, but Abreu definitely does overlap.
What you can't see too well in the illustration of Abreu is that he also holds the bat very loose as he awaits the pitch. I was curious to see if as he swung through the hitting zone, if the pinky finger would end up on the bat for stability and control. But as the next illustration shows, it appears as if he holds the configuration the same, just as is done in golf.
One last coincidence...Not all golfers hold the club with their pinky overlapping. Some, particularly those with short fingers, will rest all ten fingers on the club. The traditional method is called the Vardon grip (named after Harry Vardon). However, the non-overlapping grip is often called, informally, the baseball-style grip.
So, the next time you are on your local bar-stool and the conversation goes stale, bring up Bobby Abreu and his golf-style baseball grip.
-----------------
This was published via Typepad's "auto-post" feature. Feel free to comment, but the Balls, Sticks, & Stuff Home Office will not be staffed until June 1st. However, more posts are set to publish during that time, so do check back.
