Hitting expert Jaime Cevallos discusses the PitchView training aid, explaining how it rapidly enhances hitters' pitch recognition and reaction times—perfect for baseball and softball.
Jaime Cevallos Interview (1-hour, 1-min total time for interview)...here are the time-stamps of the audio interview, so you can skip around:
- I asked Jaime, "How do you explain to people what it is you do?" Talks about his interest in movement, and how he got invited to Golf's Safeway Open as a swing coach [about 1-min mark]
- Talked about how Jaime's book Positional Hitting was a fantastic transition for me from when I used to teach Down & Through. Here's the Jaime Cevallos Four Hour Work Week Blog post featuring him titled: How I Did It: From $7 an Hour to Coaching Major League Baseball MVPs [about 3-min mark]
- I asked Jaime, "I understand you started in golf analysis before jumping into the baseball swing...what were your takeaways from golf that made a difference with the baseball swing?" The pain from quitting baseball, made him obsessive about figuring out the swing. Importance of bent back arm impact position of good Golfers - noticed similar thing in baseball. Comparing Ben Hogan to Babe Ruth and how similar their swings were. Learning the "Slot Position" and spotting patterns. [answers about 10-min mark]
- The challenge of teaching amateur hitters to hit the ball as hard and as far as you can, and that only fixing ineffective mechanics - or not. Teaching high level mechanics to youth hitters. Player definitely needs to be curious about hitting, hard work not necessarily needed at a young age. How many young hitters would read Charlie Lau's book at 12yo? If teaching doesn't allow hitter to not be robotic, then most likely it's the coaching cue that's the issue. [about 14:30 mark]
- I asked Jaime, "A question I get asked all the time is, do you believe the baseball and Fast-Pitch Softball swing are two totally different things?" Differences being reaction time and stride timing...no real difference in what you're trying to accomplish with the swing. Understanding cricket and how golfers don't care about Golf "Ball Exit Speed", they care more about precision and accuracy. [about 21-min, 30-sec mark]
- Jaime quote that addresses those coaches that ask, "So how many Big League AB's do you have?" Should we take what MLB hitting instructors say as gospel? Here's Jaime's quote I mentioned in the interview, "MLB hitting coaches are motivated by keeping their job, not developing innovative principles. If they change a franchise player’s swing, and that player gets worse, their name is forever blacklisted. Word will spread that he makes good hitters bad. And regardless of how many hitters he has helped, the one he “ruined” will be the bane of his career. GMs will attach his name with money flying out the window. He can just take a seat next to Jose Canseco in the list of people who will never be offered a contract. Because of this, MLB hitting coaches develop vague hitting methods, appearing to help when the team is doing well, yet standing on no specific method when the team is struggling. It’s common for them to wait until a player on the team gets hot, and associate themselves to that player as much as possible. I’ve seen it time and time again.” We're in a swing instruction revolution. The MLB hitting coaches are catching up. [about 28-min mark]
- If you have something of value you can offer to a professional ball player, then go and seek them out in the winter to work with them. It doesn't matter if you have baseball experience, if you have a passionate curiosity for finding out the swing, then go for it! The fallacy credibility indicator of "30 years of coaching"...it's not the year in your coaching, it's the coaching in your years. The willingness to take chances and experiment with your teaching/coaching young hitters. [about 31-min mark]
- Jaime talks about his new product the PitchView Pitch Recognition Training Aid. Biggest area of opportunity to solve a problem in a sport. Hitting is four different skills: Eye Hand Coordination, Mechanics, Strength & Speed, and Pitch Recognition. Jaime feels eye-hand coordination is pretty much tapped out. How juggling at a young age helped Jaime's eye-hand coordination, however he feels it didn't help him that much in hitting - more so in fielding. What steroid-era taught us about the Strength & Speed category. Swing mechanics is going through a revolution - opportunity here right now. Pitch Recognition is untapped right now. [about 36-min mark]
- The WHY, HOW, and WHAT of the PitchView PR Training Aid. How PR is currently being trained now. Protecting the hitter freeing them up to actively learn how to make their PR better during pitcher's bullpens. Connecting release motion to flight of the ball to hitters movement (timing). Currently working with Berkeley University baseball team as a LIVE case study. Your team record will depend on how effective and efficient your practices are. [about 40-min mark]
- I mentioned Dr. Peter Fadde and his Pitch Recognition software GameSense, CLICK HERE for this written interview I did with him. And CLICK HERE for Perry Husband in this interview about his Effective Velocity program on tracking and timing. [about 45-min mark]
- Jaime mentions the new book he's working on that will be a fantastic compliment to his last book Positional Hitting. This book will talk more about feel to transition the positions of the swing. [about 48-min mark]
- I asked Jaime, "If you could put anything on a ballpark jumbo-tron, in any MLB ballpark, what would you put on it?" Don't give up. What this means to him isn't what you think. Focus on movement - perfect most important movements. [about 51-min mark]
- I asked Jaime, "What advice would you give the beginning Positional Hitting Jaime?" He wouldn't change much, but would tell himself not to swing as much. He's someone who wants to perfect the swing, doesn't necessarily enjoy teaching. Swing motion is pretty hard on the body especially one-sided dominant hitters. Raul Ibanez told Jaime at 35yo to save your swings. Jaime's work on Gymnastics now to take care of his body. You need to start swinging from the other side - your body just needs it, and makes your preferred swing better. GymnasticBodies.com [about 55-min mark]
Where you can find more about Jaime Cevallos online:
