Wednesday, July 9, 2008 | By Alex Eisenberg

Different Ways to Be Great - Reggie Jackson and Paul Molitor

This article begins what will be an on-going series that will look at how the all-time great players in Major League Baseball history became the players they were in terms of the mechanics they used. The players we start with are Reggie Jackson and Paul Molitor. This article was written for Baseball Digest Daily. Below is an excerpt from the article.

Reggie Jackson

Using a side shot of Jackson, take note of the following observations:

The most important thing is his contact point.  That is letting the ball travel DEEP.  There are varying degrees for how deep a player lets the ball travel, but the deeper, the better is most often the case.

If you're looking for signs of a major league swing, one of the first things to look for is the player's contact point. Letting the ball travel deep into your hitting zone is an indication of bat speed.  You allow yourself more time to decide whether to commit to a pitch or not.