Do right handed batters have a speed advantage?

Question

Since right handed batters don't need to turn around after hitting the ball do they have a slight speed advantage?

If so, I am sure that that miniscule amount of time has changed the course of games plenty of times.

Answer 1

I actuall think lefties do because their natural momentum takes them towards first, see Ichiro for the most extreme example of this!

Answer 2

LH hitters are closer to first base and have a 2 step advantage to begin with. The correct hitting position pushes your weight to your back leg and opens up the front hip so your body can come through the swing forcing your weight to follow your front hip. For a right handed batter that means that the front hip and first step momentum is actually going toward the third base dugout which means that your front foot now becomes your push off foot and your first step is with your back or right foot. This also means that most right handed batters have to change the direction of the weight of their body. For a left handed hitter this means that the momentum of the swing is already pushing your front hip toward the first base side and their weight is headed in the direction they are running so the first step and the time it takes to get up to full speed is less. Not only is the distance less but it increases the speed of the player. Ichiro is one of the most famous for this, he has a unique batting style that was developed when he was a child to take advantage of this. When he hits he starts his running motion along with his swing - then why don't all left handed batters do the same? His swing technique cannot be duplicated without years of practice and understanding hand control and practice of controlling multiple moving parts in a swing, so for most lefties it's enough just to focus on hitting the ball and knowing that they have a 2 step headstart.

But you are right about the miniscule amount of time changing games, when Ichiro first entered MLB he was so fast that teams had a hard time getting him out on a routine ground ball to SS.

Answer 3

Even if they do have that advantage, Lefties are closer to first base, so any time advantage righties woudl have is probably at least made up in the distance.

Answer 4

no, lefties have the advantage from home to first. The lefty is closer and they can drive out of the box faster because of the way they have to turn their body to go to first.

Answer 5

lefties have an advantage from home to first. they're about a half step to maybe a step closer.

Answer 6

they don't have to turn around but they have to run a few feet further than a lefthander so it balances out