THE SWEET SPOT

In this "Five-Minute Friday" episode, JP expands upon the definition of “sweet spot” in an effort to help hitters identify their optimal zone of functioning in myriad areas of performance. 

(Five-Minute Friday episodes are short-form podcasts roughly five to ten minutes in length, intended to provide a quick-hit of inspiration for hitters heading into the weekend.)

Transcript

BACK IN THE DAY SWEET SPOT REFERRED TO ONE THING… THOSE PRECIOUS FEW INCHES OF PRIME REAL ESTATE ON THE BAT… THAT INVISIBLE BULLSEYE ON THE BARREL. THE AREA THAT, WHEN STRUCK, WOULD TRANSFER THE HIGHEST AMOUNT OF ENERGY TO THE BALL. 

NOW WE HAVE “SWEET SPOT” IN HITTING METRICS. THIS TELLS US THAT A BATTED BALL HIT WITH A LAUNCH ANGLE BETWEEN 8 DEGREES AND 32 DEGREES IT IS CONSIDERED THE OPTIMAL RANGE FOR CREATING POTENTIAL HITS AND MAXIMIZING PRODUCTION. 

AND THE TRUTH IS… WE’VE GOT A SWEET SPOT FOR JUST ABOUT EVERY AREA OF OUR PERFORMANCE. 

IT’S CALLED AN OPTIMAL ZONE OF FUNCTION. THE TARGET SPOT WE NEED TO HIT FOR PEAK PERFORMANCE.

AND IT’S IMPORTANT THAT WE IDENTIFY EXACTLY WHAT THAT IS IN EACH RESPECTIVE AREA.

FOR INSTANCE… 

THERE’S A SWEET SPOT FOR OUR SWING EFFORT AND HOW HARD WE ARE SWINGING. IF YOU THINK MAXING OUT YOUR SWING EFFORT —AND GORILLA SWINGING — IS THE BEST WAY TO PERFORM — THINK AGAIN. 

JAZZ CHISHOLM RECENTLY FOUND THIS OUT… THANKS TO THE “70 PERCENT” MINDSET YANKEES ASSISTANT HITTING COACH PAT ROESSLER HELPED HIM ADOPT.

CHISHOLM DITCHED HIS “ALL OR NOTHING” SWING-FROM-THE-HEELS, MAXED-OUT SWING EFFORT FOR A MORE CONTROLLED, EFFORTLESS 70%.

AND THE RESULTS WERE TREMENDOUS, LAUNCHING JAZZ INTO ONE OF THE TOP TEN HITTERS IN THE SPAN SINCE HE HAD RETURNED FROM THE INJURED LIST. 

BUT THE INTERESTING THING HERE IS…

BY FINDING HIS “SWEET SPOT” OF SWING EFFORT… AND ACTUALLY DECREASING IT…

JAZZ ACTUALLY INCREASED HIS AVERAGE EXIT VELOCITY BY 3MPH — AS HE WAS SQUARING UP MORE BALLS AND HITTING THEM HARDER WHEN HE DID…

PRIMARILY BECAUSE HIS BAT SPEED INCREASED NOW THAT HE WASN’T SWINGING AS HARD. 

WAIT, WHAT, JP?

YEP.

JAZZ WAS STUNNED TOO. 

TURNS OUT BY DOWNSHIFTING TO 70% HE WAS ABLE TO SYNC HIS SWING MOVEMENTS, STAY SUPLE, CONTROLLED… AND ON TIME… WHICH ACTUALLY INCREASED HIS OVERALL BAT SPEED. 

HE WOULDN’T BE THE FIRST. 

BUT REGARDLESS OF THAT OBSERVATION… MOST GUYS ARE GOING TO SWING HARD TO HIT HARD. RIGHT? AND IF THAT MAXIMIZES YOUR PRODUCTIVITY — GO FOR IT. 

BUT EVEN IF THAT’S THE CASE… INDEPENDENT AND ORGANIZATIONAL RESEARCH HAS SHOWN THAT PLAYERS HAVE AN “IDEAL” BAT SPEED WHERE THEY CATCH THE MOST BARRELS. WHEN THEIR BAT SPEED INCREASES PAST THAT DEFINED “SWEET SPOT”… THEIR MISSES INCREASE AND PERFORMANCE DECLINES. MOSTLY BECAUSE THEY ARE NO LONGER ABLE TO CONTROL THEIR MECHANICS AND THEY ULTIMATELY LOSE PATH EFFICIENCY.

SO BIG LEAGUE HITTERS KNOW THAT THEY HAVE TO FIND THE “SWEET SPOT” OF THEIR BAT SPEED. THEY NEED TO FIND THAT OPTIMAL ZONE OF FUNCTION. 

AND THEY NEED IT FOR MORE THAN JUST SWING METRICS. 

THERE’S A…

SWEET SPOT… FOR GAME-PLANNING… SOME GUYS WANT BINDERS OF ANALYTICS AND GAME VID, BREAKING DOWN EVERY AREA OF A PITCHER’S ARSENAL AND TENDENCIES THROUGH THE HAWKEYE SYSTEM. WHILE OTHER HITTERS JUST WANT THE CLIFF NOTES, THE BARE MINIMUM, A ROUGH SKETCH OF WHAT AN OPPOSING GUY HAS GOT TO OFFER. 

THERE’S ALSO A SWEET SPOT FOR ENERGY LEVEL… SOME GUYS LIKE TO PLAY WITH PEPPER IN THEIR VINES, TWITCHY AND AMPED UP… WHILE OTHERS LIKE TO FEEL SUPER RELAXED, ALMOST SLEEPY IN THE BOX. 

THERE’S A SWEET SPOT IN A PLAYER’S DIET… JUST THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF PROTEIN… NOT TOO MANY COMPLEX CARBS… ONE CUP OF COFFEE BUT NOT TWO… HYDRATED BUT NOT BLOATED… YOU GET THE DRIFT. 

WE CAN ALSO IDENTIFY A SWEET SPOT IN THE MANNER IN WHICH WE PLAY THE GAME… SOME GUYS NEED TO BE LIGHT-HEARTED AND NOT TOO SERIOUS… WHILE OTHER GUYS NEED TO BE LOCKED-IN WITH A ”BRING IT ON” ATTITUDE FOR AN ENTIRE NINE INNINGS.

WE ALL HAVE A SWEET SPOT IN OUR DOWN TIME TOO… SOME GUYS ARE PROVERBIAL GYM RATS AND PROSPER FROM NEAR-CONSTANT WORK IN THE CAGE… WHILE OTHERS BURN OUT FROM SUCH A SCHEDULE AND PERFORM BEST BY GIVING THEMSELVES AMPLE REST AWAY FROM THE GAME. 

WE HAVE COMMUNICATION SWEET SPOTS WHERE SOME OF US LIKE CONSTANT CHATTER, SHARING STORIES, GETTING FEEDBACK… WHILE OTHERS LIKE SILENCE, MINIMAL CONVERSATION, AND STAYING TO THEMSELVES. 

THERE IS NO ONE-SIZE-FITS ALL IN THE PERFORMANCE WORLD.

DESPITE WHAT MANY WILL HAVE US THINK. 

SWEET SPOTS WILL VARY.

THE REAL QUESTION IS: ARE YOU AWARE OF YOURS?

BECAUSE THESE ARE THE SIMPLE THINGS THAT WE OFTEN ALLOW TO FALL OUTSIDE OUR AWARENESS. WE DON’T PAY ATTENTION. WE DON’T MONITOR THEM. WE DON’T REGULATE THEM.

BUT THAT IS OUR JOB AS PERFORMERS.

TO KNOW OUR SWEET SPOTS… IN ALL AREAS OF OUR LIVES AND PERFORMANCE… AND TO DO OUR BEST DAILY TO EXIST IN THOSE AREAS… AS CONSISTENTLY AS POSSIBLE. 

SO STEP ONE IS WRITING IT DOWN. PUTTING IT ON PAPER. OR TRACKING IT DIGITALLY. MAKE A BASELINE FOR WHERE YOU THINK YOUR SWEET SPOTS ARE IN THE KEY AREAS OF YOUR TRAINING AND PERFORMANCE. THEY MAY FLUCTUATE OR EVOLVE AT SOME POINT… AND THAT IS FINE… BUT LOCK IN A TARGET SPOT TO GUIDE YOU FOR NOW. 

WHEN YOU FEEL YOURSELF HONING IN ON THESE TARGET AREAS — DON’T BE SURPRISED TO SEE YOUR PRODUCTION RISE, AS WELL. 

THIS IS AN EASY PRESCRIPTION FOR IMPROVING PERFORMANCE CONSISTENCY. BY SIMPLY BEING AWARE OF THE PERSONAL SWEET SPOTS IN YOUR GAME. IT INCREASES YOUR CONFIDENCE, YOUR SELF-EFFICACY, YOUR SENSE OF PERSONAL CONTROL, AND GIVES YOU THE KEYS TO UNLOCK THE BEST OF WHAT IS INSIDE YOU.

DAY IN AND DAY OUT. 

AND WHEN YOU HIT ON THEM —

ONE AFTER ANOTHER… TIME AFTER TIME…

YOU WILL FEEL A STEADINESS, A GROUNDING, AND A LACK OF UPS AND DOWNS IN YOUR PERFORMANCE. BECAUSE YOU ARE CUTTING OUT THE HIGHS AND LOWS IN YOUR ZONE OF FUNCTIONING… 

AND YOU ARE NARROWING THINGS DOWN… 

CLOSER AND CLOSER…

TO A DESIRED AREA.

MUCH LIKE THOSE SACRED FEW INCHES ON THE BAT — THAT WE’VE ALL COME TO KNOW AND LOVE. SO I ENCOURAGE YOU NOW TO EXPAND THE IDEA OF THE SWEET SPOT WELL BEYOND THE BASEBALL BAT… INTO ALL AREAS OF YOUR GAME…

THE IMPACT WILL BE NO LESS IMPRESSIVE.

AND THE RESULTS MAY EVEN STUN YOU…

LIKE THEY DID JAZZ CHISHOLM.