Okay, let’s talk about this Ted Burton baseball thing I’ve been messing around with.
Getting Started with the Burton Stance
So, I heard about this Ted Burton approach, not sure where exactly, maybe some old forum or a guy I used to play ball with mentioned it. Sounded kinda different, focused a lot on the setup and weight distribution. Decided, what the heck, might as well give it a try. My swing felt kinda stuck anyway.
First few times I went to the cages, felt real awkward. Tried to copy what I thought the Burton stance was – more weight back, different hand position. Man, it was weird. I was either lunging or staying back too much. Couldn’t find the timing. Lots of swings and misses, or weak grounders. Felt like I was starting over, you know?
Breaking it Down
I realized just trying the whole thing at once wasn’t working. So, I broke it down. Focused just on the initial setup for a whole session. Like, literally just getting into the stance, feeling the balance, then relaxing. Did that over and over.
Here’s kinda what I focused on:
- Getting that weight distribution right, feeling grounded but ready to shift.
- Keeping my hands in that specific spot Burton supposedly taught, felt higher than usual for me.
- Trying to stay relaxed in the upper body, which was tough ’cause the stance felt unnatural at first.
Then I moved to tee work. Slow swings, just focusing on the path and keeping that stance solid through the motion. Didn’t even care where the ball went initially, just wanted to feel the mechanics click.
Seeing Some Results
After a few more sessions like that, slowly working up to soft toss and then the machine again, something started to change. It wasn’t magic overnight, but I started feeling more connected. The swing felt shorter, quicker maybe? Hard to explain. But the contact was getting cleaner. I noticed I wasn’t trying to muscle the ball as much, but it was jumping off the bat better.
Still working on it, definitely not perfect. Sometimes I slip back into old habits when I’m not thinking. But when I focus on those Burton keys, especially that initial setup and staying balanced, the results are just better. More line drives, less effort, feels more efficient. It’s become a part of my regular practice now, trying to make it second nature.
