Q.  How does Napoli look from an aikido perspective?

A.  Dr. D LOVES LOVES LOVES the way that Napoli sinks his weight to the pitch.  This is one of O'Sensei's four golden laws, "Keep Weight Underside."  

Digest that for a second, the fact that "Keeping Weight Underside" was one of Ueshiba's four basic insights.  It's like Ted Williams studying hitting his whole life, and saying "Get Your Pitch" is one of four things every hitter needs to do.  It's not an opinion.  It's an observation of natural law.

In Japan this is as common an idea as, say, "put your hip into it" is in America.  The Dragonball Z characters above are routinely drawn with their weight wayyyyy underside for dramatic effect.

Mike Napoli has probably THE most dynamic weight-sink in baseball.  And it's not just dropping his weight by habit; Napoli sinks his center of gravity to connect with the incoming energy.  Here's an example - actually three examples.  Grok the way his thighs look like they weigh 1,000 lbs. each.

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Q.  What does that even mean?

A.  "Keep Weight Underside" implies special relaxation as physical power is applied.  

... Imagine that a Doberman attacked you at your front door as you stepped outside.  Imagine that you panicked.  You'd go up on your toes, lean back, hands up, palms facing the dog, eyes open.  You float your weight when you panic, because you're about to run.

On the other hand, imagine a cat that doesn't want to be picked up.  It leisurely melts into the sofa and seems to weigh an extra ten pounds... you've tried to lift a dead body perhaps?  There's the expression "dead weight."  We're not talking about fantasy here; relaxation leads to a solid base, anchored in the ground -- the mortar can fire after its base is tacked down.

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An athlete who, at THE key moment of conflict, SINKS his weight calmly, that is a dangerous man.  That is a man who will cause you harm.

I read some stat - go look it up - that Mike Napoli hit for a 1.100 OPS against the Yankees (or in the Bronx), either last year or lifetime.  And that he's hit for a 1.100 OPS in Fenway.

We all know that he has murdered the LA Angels most foully, slugging .700+ against them since he left.  In the playoffs what has he done?  For Texas in 2011 he slugged .700+ as they ran to the World Series, and his lifetime playoff slash line is .273/.373/.472.  Against what kind of pitching has that been?

You get him into Seattle, maybe he'd add the Rangers to his mud list.  I kinda like the idea of a player who goes nuts against two of our three division rivals.

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"Keep Weight Underside" implies a lot of things, of which "relaxation with great power" and "listening" are only a couple of them.  And Napoli chokes up an inch, like Bonds did ... the barrel of his bat is just wonderfully connected to his navel.  It isn't his bat that covers the baseball; it's HIM that covers the baseball.

Napoli's .250 AVG kind of makes you think he's a stupidish player.  The aiki perspective indicates the opposite - that Mike Napoli is the anti-Brandon League.  Napoli first sees the opponent, and then he responds.

If Napoli became a Mariner, he'd become one of my favorites, in part because I flat enjoy watching him sink his weight to the ball.  It's beautiful like Ichiro was beautiful - granted we're comparing water buffalo and peregrine falcons.  I'm ready to switch zoology departments, anyway.

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I don't say that Mike Napoli is a guarantee.  I just say that the invisible AIKI indicator for his career path reads, "UP."

Cheers,

Dr D