Time to contact is a measurement defined as the elapsed time between the start of the swing and impact with the ball. Essentially, it represents the total time it takes for you to complete your swing.
Measurement
Time to Contact can be directly measured with a Blast Motion bat sensor and is represented in seconds. The sensor will start measuring during the initial movement of the swing so that it doesn’t account for wasted movement in the load.
Average Time to Contact will vary depending on playing level, however, an average range of times for different playing levels is listed below:
* Professional: 0.13 – 0.17 seconds
* Minor League MiLB: 0.13 – 0.17 seconds
* College: 0.14 – 0.18 seconds
* High School: 0.14 – 0.18 seconds
A major league pitch reaches home plate after being released from the pitcher’s hand in approximately 0.4 seconds on average. During this time, you have to read the pitch’s movement, decide whether or not to swing at the pitch, and swing your bat through the correct part of the zone to make solid quality contact.
To make contact and hit the ball hard, all of this must be accomplished in less time than it takes for the pitch to reach the plate.
This is where this data point becomes important; a faster Time to Contact means it takes you less time to complete your swing, which ultimately enables you to afford more time to execute your swing. All of these elements are part of what makes a successful hitter.
Keep in mind, multiple factors can influence Time to Contact like strength or movement sequencing. Other bat sensor metrics can be used to measure these factors and ultimately analyze different parts of the swing.
Summary
Time to Contact is a metric vital to determining the total time it takes to complete your swing from first movement to impact. Hitters need to be decisive and quick in order to be successful and understanding how quickly you can impact the ball can help optimize performance at the plate.
Related Links
https://blastmotion.com/blog/building-efficient-swings-time-contact/#gref
https://rocklandpeakperformance.com/a-review-of-blast-motion-baseball-and-its-swing-quality-metrics/
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