From WebBall's Richard Todd: Any number of well meaning coaches have offered advice on bat grip over the years. Probably the most frequently heard suggestion has something to do with lining up the door-knocking knuckles.

I have a confession to make. I always hated that advice. I felt my wrists tense, my forearms tighten and all the way up to the shoulders just felt wrong. I thought it was me - after all I have always been a better bunter than a power hitter. For me it always seemed better to start with a wider V and tighten during the swing. Of course I wouldn't give that advice to anyone either.

But the knuckle alignment? I mean, if there's common advice out there and everyone says it then it must be right. Wrong! Or, to be more accurate, not absolute. Turns out that - much like back elbow up, or squish the bug - most bat grip advice is worth as much as a two-hopper to the shortstop.

So we turned to some other sources for their take on bat grip, including placement in palm or fingers and those knuckles...

Some Real Answers

From Doug O'Neil & team (D & D Baseball was a company that produced great videos back in the 90s)...

We teach to align the middle finger knuckles. This creates a loose grip
which will also gives the range of motion and whip necessary to hit any pitch
location without rolling over or locking yourself.  The hands and grip will
naturally tighten when the pitch is on the way.

We actually instruct NOT to rest the bat in the palm.  It is a 'taboo' so
to speak, in fact, in the baseball world. The palm grip will cause a hitter
to 'muscle up' on the ball just based on the fact that they feel this gives
them a strong grip. We're not looking for a strong grip. When we see a
hitter do this it usually leads us to the conclusion that he is trying to hit
the ball too hard or far. Similar to golf, a relaxed stance and grip
(although not too relaxed) is the best all around approach, not just mentally
but scientifically as well.

From Bobby Woods (on the new Hitting Skills video from Marty Schupak and the Youth Sports Club)...

If your arms form a natural V-shape and the bat rests easily in your fingers that's all that matters. Where the knuckles line up doesn't matter - you want to be palm-up/palm-down at contact.

From Daryl Ringwald (Hitting Coach, Ontario and B.C.)...

Lining up the door-knocking knuckles brings the elbows in. Keeping the elbows in lets you have a quick controlled power swing... (considers knuckle alignment a definite "teach").

From Ted Kubiak (former MLB Oakland infielder, and currently a manager in the Cleveland Indians organization)...

The bat does not rest deep in the palms. It gets held with the lower portion of the fingers about where the calluses are on your hand; with the lower hand using a little more of the palm area than the upper hand. Every one is, of course, different but that is a pretty basic grip. [No mention of knuckles.]

From Chris Sperry (Head Baseball Coach, University of Portland)...

Handle across the calluses at the base of the fingers. If you start with the barrel on the plate, wherever the hands line up is okay. Not concerned with the knuckles at all, more important that the hands come through the zone palm-up, palm down.

So, different opinions from different instructors in the know. We leave it to you to take which ever kernels of wisdom get you the results.