The 5-Category Swing Checklist Joey Uses for Every New Baseball Hitter
Foundation. Body health. Pitcher-exploitable patterns. Power and contact issues. Game readiness. This is the exact evaluation sequence — with the drills and fixes for each category.
Get the 5-Category Swing Checklist — Free PDF
By Joey Myers — Creator of the Catapult Loading System · 100,000+ baseball & softball players trained
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What's in the PDF
Each of the five flaws is on its own page — what it looks like in the swing, why it develops, what most coaches get wrong about it, and the specific drill that addresses the root cause.
Foundation: Top Hand Three-Finger Pressure
The first thing Joey checks with every new hitter — youth through seasoned. The bottom three fingers of the top hand (pinky, ring, middle) connect the bat to the body's rotational engine via the forearm flexors. Without this, every other fix is built on a disconnected foundation. Once established, every other drill works better.
Body Health: Head Position + Low Back Check
Head yaw (turning too early), pitch (tilting up or down), and roll (tilting side to side) all disrupt pitch tracking and make contact a guess. Low back arching during the rotational turn creates cumulative injury risk and kills rotational efficiency. These are the swing patterns most likely to cause long-term physical damage — addressed before anything mechanical.
Pitcher-Exploitable Patterns
Head pull, stepping out, dropping the hands, and wrapping the bat are the four patterns pitchers learn to attack. A scout doesn't need video — a few ABs is enough to identify these and build a game plan around them. Fix these and the pitch mix thrown at your hitter changes, because those attack points are gone.
The Three Power/Contact Buckets
No power (CLS rotational principle flaws), high strikeout/flyball/groundball rate (barrel path and contact point), and timing issues — each bucket has a different mechanical root cause and a different fix. Joey diagnoses which bucket the hitter is in before prescribing drills, so the drill matches the actual problem instead of working around it.
Game Readiness: Pitch Recognition + Swing Adjustments
The final piece bridges from tee work to real at-bats. Pitch pattern recognition (arm angle, release point, pitch shape, count), reading pitcher tendencies, and making in-game mechanical adjustments without overthinking. This is where mechanical work translates into results — and where most hitting programs stop too early.
Who this PDF is for
From players and coaches who've worked with HPL
"Our team batting average hit .414, slugging .563, OBP .546. Alex leads with 16 RBIs and 3 home runs. Every player on our team has scored no less than 5 runs in 9 games. Your work with HPL has made an impact on our team for the better."
Justin Karr — Head Coach, Bakersfield Sliders
"Isaiah had a monster hitting weekend — went 4 for 5 in one game, only needing a home run for the cycle. Your teaching has helped him drive the ball like the bigger kids in his age group."
The Ortiz Family — Bakersfield, CA | Son Isaiah, age 11
"Mikey had a good first game. 1st AB vs. a kid who pitches for Tenaya — 2-strike liner over 3rd for a single. 3rd AB vs. a 12-year-old — lined a 2-hop shot to the fence in left-center for a double."
Dr. Mitchell Fung — Fresno, CA | Son Michael, age 10
Questions about the PDF and the program
Is this only for baseball, or does it apply to softball?
All five flaws apply equally to softball. Flaws 1–3 (casting, bat drag, separation) are identical. The fastpitch rise ball creates an additional barrel path consideration addressed in the softball drill section — but the root causes are the same swing problems.
What do I need to use the drills in the PDF?
A batting tee and a bucket of balls. Most of the corrective drills work best off the tee because live pitching introduces timing variables that make it hard to isolate the specific mechanical fix. Two of the five flaw corrections also benefit from phone video so the hitter can see what they're doing — any phone camera works.
Does this replace taking lessons?
No — the PDF is a between-session tool. It works best when the hitter is also getting instruction that identifies which specific flaw is present and how severe it is. The PDF gives the drills; a coach or video feedback session tells you which ones to prioritize for that specific swing.
What's The Feedback Lab?
The Feedback Lab is Joey's online video lesson program — you send swing video, Joey sends back detailed video analysis with step-by-step feedback within 48 hours. It's designed specifically to address these five flaws through systematic, documented progression. Available in 6-session and 12-session plans. Details on the thank-you page after you download the PDF.
Are in-person lessons available?
Yes — for players in the Fresno/Central Valley area, in-person hitting lessons at Clovis West High School are available. One-on-one, dual, and small group sessions. Full details on the local lessons page after you download.
Get the Checklist — Know Exactly What to Work On and Why
Free. Instant download. One category per page — the evaluation sequence Joey uses with every new hitter.
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