Practice Organization

What does it mean to be organized at baseball practice? It is up to you as coach to know what you are going to do with your players for the next hour or two. What are your objectives today? What special skills do you need to work on? How are you going to accomplish your objectives? These are all questions that must be answered as you plan your strategy for today’s practice. The key word is “plan.” It’s vitally important that you don’t waste your player’s time and also your time.

Get a clipboard and write down what you are going to do. Your players will see that you have a plan and will work accordingly. The worst thing that you can do is to come to practice and ask, “What shall we do today?” It is not up to them , it is up to you. So many areas need to be covered. Things like hitting, fielding, catching, throwing, bunting, baserunning and pitchings need to be covered on a daily basis. Your key is to situate your practice so that everything can be covered in a reasonable amount of time.

Make sure you bring a watch with you to practice. A stopwatch would be ideal. Break your practice into segments so that everything you planned gets covered. For example, an hour can be broken up into 6 ten minute segments. One group of players can be taking ground balls in the infield, while another group gets fly balls in the outfield. A third group can be working on proper throwing technique, while a fourth group is bunting. A fifth group can be taking dry cuts while the sixth group is working on baserunning. Depending on the number of players on your team, you may need to cut down on the number of groups. With 12 players for example, you may only want four groups of 3. You are in charge. You decide how you want to break up your time at practice. Time goes by so quickly. The players will be moving constantly. There is no time to be bored. Obviously, you may need to recruit parents to supervise your groups. Tell them what you want them to do and they will surely respond to your request. Being organized will cover up any lack of knowledge in any one area.

Make your practice fun. Instruct, don’t yell. Have patience with your players. They are there to learn. They will look forward to the next practice. You will find that missing practice will no longer be a major problem. If it is a fun experience, they will find a way to be there. Stick to your time schedule. If its ten minutes per group, then at ten minutes the groups change. Its important to be on time. You may want to use the first part of your practice for group work and the second part may be team hitting practice. I say hitting practice because it takes longer than ten minutes to complete bp. Again, keep bp moving. Give your players, for example, 5 cuts and 2 bunts. This way you can cover batting in a reasonable time. Utilize your time and your players will not be bored.

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Outfield Play: Getting Great Jumps on the Ball

While this may not be a long diatribe on getting to the ball quickly in order to throw someone out advancing to the next base, it is clearly one of the most generally under taught skill given to the outfielders. One reason is that unless this is a separated skill, one that is recognized for not only for it’s end result importance, but also for the fact that as these critical plays develop, unless there are 5 different camera angles taping the play, (and we all know that doesn’t happen), the coaches fans and even the position players never see the root cause for the offense taking the extra base, no one recognizes why the extra base was successfully taken.


Lets backup here for just a moment and recap the session on “getting good jumps”. Part of the drills used was for both infielders and outfielders to be looking “down the chute” and into the hitting area where contact must be made in order for the ball to be hit in our direction. Unlike in the infield, the area of contact gets be a little wider since there is much more outfield turf to cover for any one of the outfielders than there is for the infielders. The best way to develop that recognition is with BP and Tee work. However, once again, being near-sighted and not wearing corrective lenses pretty much eliminates the player from ever getting a good jump on any hit ball.

If we can eliminate poor vision, then we can begin to work on the drills and the almost instantaneous reaction that we should develop to where contact has been made in the hitting area and most importantly, where was the FIRST place that the ball touched the ground.

Lets remember we selected our outfielders based on at least three criterion; they can judge fly balls, they have average to above average foot speed, and they have an average or above average arm strength. When the ball is hit in the air everyone in the park can judge the outfielders skill at catching the fly ball. With hang times anywhere from 3-8 seconds, we can tell if the player can camp under it, or put a circus tent over it! We all have some time to observe the set up and final catch. When they finally catch the ball, we all can see whether the throw will bring down rain, or you can hang the morning laundry on it. The one aspect that we tend to lose sight of is, if the ball is hit on the ground, we all look to see if it is going to get through the infield first, even on a well hit ball. We seldom look at the outfielder to see what his approach to ball is like, and it’s that element of his effort that determines whether we throw the runner out trying to advance. Simply put, did he CHARGE the ball, or did he DRIFT to the ball? The REAL question is; does he know when to charge the ball and when to come under control?

So here is the simple rule of thumb and it’s not unlike what we teach our infielders to do on ground balls. You have to practice it daily. You have to demand that it is done correctly and you have to provide the comparison in the results between right and not-quite-so-right. As an outfielder, if the first time the ball touches the ground is in front of the edge of the OUTFIELD grass, then the outfielder must run, fly, charge, sprint -whatever your description of charging the ball is immediately. This is not a controlled sprint; this is the 100-meter Olympic finals kind of sprint. If you’ve placed the outfielders, based on hitting charts, at certain depths and alleys, then the player needs to know that their sprint to the ball is SO vital not just to get to the ball quickly, but most of all to increase their arm strength by substantially shortening the distance they have to throw. Suddenly the average arm in the outfield becomes much better simply because our aggressive approach to the ball has reduced the distance the typical casual approach taken by a good 20 to 30 feet, and in a game of inches, that’s a huge difference! Remember, the FIRST time the ball touches the ground BEFORE the outfield grass, it’s BONZAI! all the way until we are 15-20 feet from the ball at which time we get under control to come up cleanly with the ground ball.

What about the ball that hits on the outfield grass for the first time? We know that that ball was hit pretty damn hard so we need to read the hit to determine how strongly we can come to the ball without risking the ball getting by us and going to the fence. However, in almost every case, our first few steps should always be aggressive on ground balls hit directly at us or in the hole, so we can get to the best throwing position and shortest throwing distance that we can get to, as quickly as we can.

So you can see why this is a very neglected part of the outfielders routine. It’s really hard to see develop and in almost every case where a runner advances on a ball that the outfielder comes to slowly, the advancing runner gets some undeserved credit for being fast when an alert and aggressive outfielder should have cut him down by steps.

Start your outfielder with good vision, good speed, a strong arm and an understanding of what to do the first time the ball touches the ground and watch those assists go up!

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Infield Fundamentals

Over the years, we have been seeing certain tendencies with infielders that we believe are created by the typical pre-season training that goes on indoors in the northeast. One such tendency is for good athletic infielders staying back on ground balls and taking ground balls on their heels with their hands under their butts, instead of out in front of themselves. In most cases the root cause of that action is fear on the part of the player. It comes from all of those hardwood grounders that the coaches hit as they try to unsuccessfully simulate an outdoor environment as well as the desire to try to simulate game conditions. What better way to “simulate” game time conditions than to hit absolute screaming, vicious rockets right at the player, indoors, on hardwood? Something that their player “might” see 2 or 3 times a week – maybe. Now, it would be one thing if the coach were using a quality safety ball, like the ones that Baden Baseball manufactures. Their SAF-00 ball has a real leather cover and weighs close to a regular baseball. On hardwood the ball will show a higher bounce factor than on turf. On turf or grass it has a real good resemblance of a “routine bounce” for the player and most of all, very little, or no pain if you mishandle the “screecher”. Every coach has he own beliefs and style to coaching fundamentals and if hitting liners at the feet of your infielders off of hardwood with regular baseballs, is the method you use, then lets help the player keep his head down and through the grounder by reducing the pain factor…especially with the young players! Nevertheless the real goal is, or should be, to get the young players to “come to and get through the ball, don’t sit back on your heels”.

So how could we develop a better approach to the ball, or at the very least, a method that may help the player know when to come to it and when to “sit and wait”?

Like all coaches, when hitting prolonged infield, whether to one player or the whole infield, you try to hit varied grounders. We always attack the seven (7) angles and that goes a long way in developing good approaches to the baseball as well as quick feet. Often times we won’t use a fungo; we’ll just roll them out from short distances at the perfect speed and angle to get the job done correctly with high repetition and in the shortest amount of time. We think that gets the job done from the repetition standpoint for sure.

However, like everything else with this game, the anticipation and ultimately the reaction to what we see, often times separates the good player from the best. We try to give our infielders, regardless of their position and place in the starting lineup, an advantage as to whether they should charge the ball or sit and wait, so we have come up with a BP and pre-game mental drill to play to get better at charging or “sitting”.

The baseline within the baseline: If we take line marker and marked our field as we normally do, we would have our 1st and 3rd baselines. Those lines are on every field that we play on and whether they are Little League or College, they never change, they may just be longer. But now what we’d like for you to do is draw a baseline between 1st and 2nd and 2nd and 3rd. Now think, from your own past experiences (and here is where being a student of the game-day conditions you play under comes into play), if you have had one week of solid rain and your field is wet and soft, and a ball was hit and the FIRST time it hit the ground was on the home plate side of that line, would you charge…or sit? Remember, it has rained for a better part of the week, or (as we know it up here in the Northeast, it’s June and we still have snow in the dead-ball territories), would you charge or sit? You’d come to the ball-you’d charge it. Now what if it is the 2nd or 3rd week in July and we haven’t had any rain in 3 weeks and that same scenario is played? Is that imaginary line as far out as it was in the first few wet weeks of June? Not even close. That imaginary line could easily be moved toward home plate by at least 45 feet, half a base path! Any ball that touches the ground on the outfield side of that imaginary line for the first time, means you probably should “sit” like Rin-Tin-Tin. Remember in this game the operative word here and in just about everything that we do in baseball, is the word “probably”; nothing is absolute.

When we see our infielders just barely getting runners out at 1st base early in the season and on a regular basis, the first thing we talk about is, where is that line between 1st and 2nd and 2nd and 3rd, in their eye/mind? Is it even set up to recognize? How do we get them to react to what they see and therefore know when to be aggressive and when to “sit” and relax, so they are not encouraging the other team to run as hard as they can because they may beat, not so much a weak throw, as much as late anticipation and recognition to the grounder by not paying attention to where the ball FIRST hit the ground!

BP and Pre-Game are Critical: Now the key to this visualization is not so much trying to “guess” where this imaginary line resides, but to know within +/- 3 feet where it would be. How and when would we do that? During batting practice and pre-game of course! What we’ll learn in BP and pre-game is that more often than not the line resides between 45 and 75 feet from home plate…weather conditions dependant. By the way, these conditions will change during the game…especially double headers. The moist, damp ground that started off a 10AM double header is now rock hard by 2 PM start for game two. That means everything relative to charging and sitting has changed; even on a well manicured field.

Again, the line has been drawn mentally for each infield position. So what is really the first indicator that we have to react to? It’s the down-angle of the ball immediately off the bat. This is where contact is made for each infield position across the plate. Ever want to scream when your shortstop sits back on a high bounder, waiting, waiting for it to come down because he’s caught in the in-between hop. When the ball finally lands, he’s catching it at his knees and throwing flat-footed, at best, with the runner past the bag. He’s been waiting for the ball to be hit without zeroing in on the hitting area and seeing where the ball hits the ground for the first time. If the first time the ball hit the ground and it was on the home plate side of that imaginary line, he’d be standing under the first bounce and would throw the runner out by a bunch. Happens all the time. What about our approach to the seven angles to a ground ball? Knowing where that line resides is the difference between taking a path to the outfield to get a ground ball versus a lateral direction to that same ball.

In the infield time is really important. But in the infield we do have the capability of controlling the amount of time we have to throw someone out. It just takes a little practice; ya know, like everyday, a hundred times a day…if you’re lazy.

So, the effort is well worth taking in order to get your infielders to gain time and balance and accuracy on their throws. So much of this game is played between the ears and in the mind that creating another thing to visualize early in their career eventually will become second nature and truly improve their defense and consistency in making routine outs, because they will be “creating” more routine outs with their approach to the ball.

More about anticipation in the hitting area for infielders in future articles.

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Reacting to the Ball Hit

OK. We all know one of the curious things about players that play great defense, regardless at what level they may be in, is the fact that they seem to be two to three steps closer to any ball hit in their direction that the 2nd or 3rd tier player. In some cases the one major factor is the great equalizer – speed. Yes, there is no substitute for speed. An apparent misjudged fly ball some how gets cradled in whether the outfielder is charging in or driving back to get to it.

Jumps on hit balls start in the hitting area, that magical place that requires a great deal of concentration at precisely the correct moment of contact. The extent of which the high level of concentration is possible is meaningless unless you are capable of doing two things; having excellent dynamic vision, (including corrective lenses that get you to 20/20 vision) and the ability to anticipate and know where the area in the strike zone that contact will be made, and should contact be made in that specific area, you know the ball will be on some sort of flight plan in your general direction.

The simplest way to work with infielders as well as outfielders when they are late getting jumps on balls is to work off of a Tee. The most obvious position to start with is at 3rd base. At 3rd the Tee can be placed deep and outside on a right-handed hitter. Have a player or a coach go up there and take cuts with the ball in that position. One of the first things the 3rd baseman realizes is that a ball hit from that position seldom ever gets hit to him unless the hitter severely tries to come around the ball and if that should be the case, then the end result will be a weak hit ground ball to the shortstop or pitcher, or very occasionally, in the number 3 angle to 3rd. What the player will notice is that he will not get a very good view of the contact area because it is deep and away from the front of the plate where a ball hit most likely will come to him.

Systematically continue to move the Tee forward and diagonally to the front of the plate until the 3rd baseman is seeing balls hit directly at him or down the 3rd base line. That contact area is where the player begins to learn to focus his eyes consistently and quickly. He should not be “staring” in that area for more than a second- second and a half. He should be doing the same pre-pitch eye focus as he is taught at the plate – short bursts of focus, with high acuity at the point of contact. The great thing about this drill is that while you may need to work with your 3rd baseman this time, you can place all of your fielders and outfielders in their positions and everyone gets some real valuable vision work at the same time.

Of course there are additional critical elements to be learned in this drill, not the least of which is, we are looking down the “chute” as we like to call it. It is that moment of contact that tells an instantaneous story to us; pop up, line drive or ground ball. The quicker we can recognize that, the better position we will be in to react to ball. This same drill, in addition to working your fielders, is tremendous for working your base runners as well, especially the man at 3rd where reading fly ball, line drive and ground ball can mean the winning run scoring on a very close play.

Once again, the very best place to practice this is during BP on the field, and best done with a coach roaming around from foul line to foul line. If a player is not making progress on getting significantly better jumps on the ball, then a quick trip to eye doctor and following up with dynamic eye drills need to looked at immediately because there is a very real reason the age old axiom,” ya can’t hit or catch, what ya can’t see”, is still as true today as it ever was.

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COACHING BASEBALL: VOLUNTEERS

Hats off to the volunteer baseball coaches, from tee ball through American Legion, who give their time and energy to teach the great game of baseball. There is no monetary gain for their efforts. Why do they do it? That is a good question that must be answered by each and every coach. What motivates them to utilize a great deal of their time on the ball field?

Problems do occur when the reasons are not what they should be. Unfortunately, getting coaches to volunteer their time can be very difficult. It may be necessary to take parents as coaches to keep the league operating. Following are some prerequisites that all coaches should adhere to.

1. Knowledge of the game

It is important that coaches spend enough time learning the game so they can adequately convey needed skills and fundamentals to the players they are involved with. Playing the game as a youngster is not always a good prerequisite. Times have changed. Reading instructional articles and attendance at clinics are two great ways to upgrade their knowledge.

2. Treat all players equally

For team unity and team chemistry, treating all players the same is very important. No player should get special treatment. Team rules should apply to everyone. More talented players and coach's son or daughter should not be exempt to the rules. Winning is not the most important thing at this level. The least talented player on the team is just as important as the other players. Everyone knows where they stand on the team. Too often, the coach who gives special treatment to certain players, such as his son or daughter , leaves himself open to criticism. Parents cry "favoritism" and team morale crumbles. They are more prone to accept coaching decisions if they see they apply to the coach's children also. If the star player breaks a team rule, he should be disciplined just as everyone else. It is an important lesson to be taught.

3. Keep the game fun

Baseball is a game and is meant to be fun to play. Keeping that in mind will go a long way to the players having a great experience. Winning should not be the end-all. Winning is the result of doing things the right way. Yelling at or belittling players when mistakes are made does not help the situation. Patience and understanding are needed at this time. You don't want your players fearful of making a mistakes because of the consequences that follow.

4. Be organized

Organizing practices so that the players learn and have fun is an ideal path to follow. Cover several skills during practice so that your players learn how to properly play the game. Breaking your practice into different stations that cover hitting, throwing, fielding and running would go a long way in making your practice organized and fun. Utilize available parents to help supervise the stations. Having your players stand out in the outfield shagging balls for two hours is not my idea of a productive practice. It is actually quite boring. Make your practice fun and teach at the same time. You won't believe how the time flies. The kids will love it.

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Pitching With Your Mind

If we send our pitchers to the mound without any mental preparation, we as coaches are neglecting an important part of the game of baseball. The smart pitcher is the one who is thinking all the time. He does not have to possess a blazing fast ball or a wicked curve ball. But he should possess a thinking capacity which is constantly trying to outwit the batter. The pitcher who has a great fast ball and a super curve will win his share of the games. But not everyone can come up with a player like that. And even so, this gifted pitcher has his limitations if he lacks a thinking capacity for he will fall prey to the aggressive batter who knows what is being thrown at him. Mixing the pitches and knowing when to mix them is the route that should be followed. Do you teach your players that? The smart pitcher may have only a decent fast ball, adequate curve ball and an off speed pitch, but he knows how to use the three basic pitches to manipulate the batter, not be manipulated by him. Assuming that the boy has some talent, thinking will make the average pitcher a good pitcher and the good pitcher a super pitcher. When the count changes, so should the pitch being thrown. As the caliber of play increases, it is not practical to throw all fast balls or all curve balls. Before long, the batters will adjust to the pitches and hit them all over the park. It is important, therefore, to keep the batter off stride be mixing the pitches so he does not know what. is being thrown. Anyone can be a thrower on the mound, but not anyone can be a pitcher. Some thinking is required. Following is a run-down of the various counts on the batter and a mental approach to that count. The pitches mentioned are only suggestions. There is no set pitch to be thrown at a particular count. If there was a set pitch, a routine would quickly be figured out by the batter. The pitcher’s job is to outsmart the batter, not cater to him.
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Before the batter steps up to the plate, the thinking process begins. If the pitcher is familiar with the batter from past experience, he greatly helps himself by knowing the batter’s tendencies on that first pitch. Many batters are first ball hitters. If this is known of a certain batter, then nothing too good should be thrown on the first pitch. If he is one who takes the first pitch, there is no need to be too careful. The ball can be thrown down the middle of the plate without fear. Facing an unknown batter, it would be wise to challenge the batter with the pitcher’s best pitch to gain an advantage in the count. But remember, the pitcher should not pattern himself on that first pitch for he will quickly be figured out by opposing batters if he does.

0-1
The pitcher has gained the advantage. He can afford to move the ball around. By attempting to get a strike on the corners or at the knees, he exploits the advantage that he has obtained. Watch out for second pitch hitters. If a fast ball was thrown on the first pitch, a curve ball might be chosen for the second pitch. Baiting the batter with an off speed pitch would also be an ideal pitch in this situation.

0-2
All the pressure rests with the batter. He can not take another strike and thus must protect the plate from anything close. The batter will swing at anything close and the pitcher should try to have him do just that. This is an excellent time for the so-called “waste pitch”--- a pitch purposely thrown outside the strike Zone to lure the batter, by his anxiety in this situation, to swing at a bad pitch. An off speed pitch might be the right pitch here.

1-2
The advantage is still with the pitcher. The anxiety of the batter being behind in the count and facing the third strike remains. The pitcher should come in with a strike but not one down the middle of the plate. It is not wise to waste another pitch here. The arm should not be taxzed any more than it has to. The pitcher should attempt to get the batter to swing at a pitch on the corners or at the knees.

2-2
A slight advantage remains with the pitcher. One pitch will get the batter out and two pitches will put him on. The pressure rests with the batter because the pitcher still has the third ball if needed. Don’t force the count to go full. The pitcher should challenge the batter with his best pitch.

3-2
The odds are completely even. The pitcher must come in with a strike or risk putting on a runner that may come back to haunt him while the batter faces the third strike. The pitcher must challenge the batter with his best pitch and risk being hit. The risk of being hit at this count is high because the pitcher can’t play around with his strikes. He must be sure of it, not hope it hits the corner or the knees. The smart batter knows this and will be looking for the strike to hit.

1-0
The pitcher has fallen behind in the count but the advantage is still even. He needs three strikes to eliminate the batter and the batter needs three balls to get on base. For fear of giving an advantage to the batter, the pitcher should come in with a strike. The batter has a definite mental edge. He feels that with no strikes and one ball he is ahead in the count. The batter will thus be a bit choosy, so warn your pitchers not to let up in this situation.

2-0
Now he’s done it. The pitcher has made himself the underdog. The batter won’t swing, unless it is his pitch, and the pitcher can’t afford to throw a ball. A sure strike has got to be thrown, and the smart batter knows that. It is an ideal hitting situation. Whether a fast ball, curve or an off speed pitch is thrown, it should be with the pitcher’s best effort. You have a relaxed batter challenging a pressured pitcher. Fielders beware!

3-0
The pitcher is really in deep trouble now. The batter can afford to wait for his pitch. In contrast, the pitcher has to come in with three strikes or he will walk the batter. More than likely, the batter will have the take sign, so your pitcher should bring it to him and over the plate.

3-1
The pitcher remains at a disadvantage. It is still an enviable position for the batter. The pitcher has to throw the ball over the plate and the batter does not have to swing. The batter will be looking for a fat pitch to clobber, so an off speed pitch over the plate might be the pitch to use. Remember, every time the count is brought to full, the strength of the pitcher’s arm is being taxed. Waste pitches are used when the pitcher is ahead in the count for the purpose of getting the batter to go after a bad pitch. Off speed pitches are ideal for free-swingers--- power hitters who are trying to jack the ball out of the park on every pitch. Your spray hitters are more likely to hit the off speed pitch because they can wait that extra instant to hit the ball. Know who your pitchers are throwing to. Check your hitters charts if they are kept. Thinking means winning..

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Throwing a Baseball

Proper throwing techniques are extremely important and very often neglected. Developing a sound and healthy arm depends on the right throwing mechanics. The basic grip is the four-seam grip--- the top fingers should be positioned perpendicular to the horse shoe formation of the seams. All field positions, infield, outfield and catcher, should be using the four-seam grip. Accuracy and true ball flight without movement depend on the four-seam grip. The pitcher does utilize the grip but also varies the grip to create more movement on the ball. The two-seam grip--- holding the ball along the two seams--- promotes lateral ball movement and makes it more difficult to throw a straight ball. He also uses other grips to create other movement on the ball such as the curve ball grip and the change-up grip.

Once the ball is gripped properly, the next step is to take it out of the glove in a circular motion with the hand remaining on top of the ball. When taking it out, the thumb turns down to the ground to ensure that the hand is on top of the ball. Otherwise, taking it out of the glove and pointing the thumb to the sky will cause the hand to be under the ball when throwing causing a lack of velocity and possible injury to the arm. It is also important keep the front side of the body closed, pointing the lead elbow to the target. This will help to ensure that the body will aid the arm in throwing instead of throwing with all arm causing injury to the arm. Utilizing the body to help the arm will definitely increase the velocity of the throw.

Young players, little leaguers and lower, are too often seen taken the ball directly back out of the glove with the thumb pointing to the sky. This causes them to be under the ball when the ball is thrown and not on top of it. This is a bad habit to start with and will definitely hinder proper throwing development. Breaking an improper throwing habit is difficult to change later on. What an advantage a young player has if he is taught properly in the beginning of his development. It is well worth the time to set up drills to stress the proper removal of the ball from the glove. Teaching now is far better than un-teaching later !

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Pitching with Your Mind

PITCHING WITH YOUR MIND

If we send our pitchers to the mound without any mental preparation, we as coaches are neglecting an important part of the game of baseball. The smart pitcher is the one who is thinking all the time. He does not have to possess a blazing fast ball or a wicked curve ball. But he should possess a thinking capacity which is constantly trying to outwit the batter. The pitcher who has a great fast ball and a super curve will win his share of the games. But not everyone can come up with a player like that. And even so, this gifted pitcher has his limitations if he lacks a thinking capacity for he will fall prey to the aggressive batter who knows what is being thrown at him.

Mixing the pitches and knowing when to mix them is the route that should be followed. Do you teach your players that? The smart pitcher may have only a decent fast ball, adequate curve ball and an off speed pitch, but he knows how to use the three basic pitches to manipulate the batter, not be manipulated by him. Assuming that the boy has some talent, thinking will make the average pitcher a good pitcher and the good pitcher a super pitcher.

When the count changes, so should the pitch being thrown. As the caliber of play increases, it is not practical to throw all fast balls or all curve balls. Before long, the batters will adjust to the pitches and hit them all over the park. It is important, therefore, to keep the batter off stride be mixing the pitches so he does not know what. is being thrown. Anyone can be a thrower on the mound, but not anyone can be a pitcher. Some thinking is required.


Following is a run-down of the various counts on the batter and a mental approach to that count. The pitches mentioned are only suggestions. There is no set pitch to be thrown at a particular count. If there was a set pitch, a routine would quickly be figured out by the batter. The pitcher’s job is to outsmart the batter, not cater to him.


0-0
Before the batter steps up to the plate, the thinking process begins. If the pitcher is familiar with the batter from past experience, he greatly helps himself by knowing the batter’s tendencies on that first pitch. Many batters are first ball hitters. If this is known of a certain batter, then nothing too good should be thrown on the first pitch. If he is one who takes the first pitch, there is no need to be too careful. The ball can be thrown down the middle of the plate without fear. Facing an unknown batter, it would be wise to challenge the batter with the pitcher’s best pitch to gain an advantage in the count. But remember, the pitcher should not pattern himself on that first pitch for he will quickly be figured out by opposing batters if he does.




0-1
The pitcher has gained the advantage. He can afford to move the ball around. By attempting to get a strike on the corners or at the knees, he exploits the advantage that he has obtained. Watch out for second pitch hitters. If a fast ball was thrown on the first pitch, a curve ball might be chosen for the second pitch. Baiting the batter with an off speed pitch would also be an ideal pitch in this situation.


0-2
All the pressure rests with the batter. He can not take another strike and thus must protect the plate from anything close. The batter will swing at anything close and the pitcher should try to have him do just that. This is an excellent time for the so-called “waste pitch”--- a pitch purposely thrown outside the strike Zone to lure the batter, by his anxiety in this situation, to swing at a bad pitch. An off speed pitch might be the right pitch here.


1-2
The advantage is still with the pitcher. The anxiety of the batter being behind in the count and facing the third strike remains. The pitcher should come in with a strike but not one down the middle of the plate. It is not wise to waste another pitch here. The arm should not be taxzed any more than it has to. The pitcher should attempt to get the batter to swing at a pitch on the corners or at the knees.


2-2
A slight advantage remains with the pitcher. One pitch will get the batter out and two pitches will put him on. The pressure rests with the batter because the pitcher still has the third ball if needed. Don’t force the count to go full. The pitcher should challenge the batter with his best pitch.


3-2
The odds are completely even. The pitcher must come in with a strike or risk putting on a runner that may come back to haunt him while the batter faces the third strike. The pitcher must challenge the batter with his best pitch and risk being hit. The risk of being hit at this count is high because the pitcher can’t play around with his strikes. He must be sure of it, not hope it hits the corner or the knees. The smart batter knows this and will be looking for the strike to hit.


1-0
The pitcher has fallen behind in the count but the advantage is still even. He needs three strikes to eliminate the batter and the batter needs three balls to get on base. For fear of giving an advantage to the batter, the pitcher should come in with a strike. The batter has a definite mental edge. He feels that with no strikes and one ball he is ahead in the count. The batter will thus be a bit choosy, so warn your pitchers not to let up in this situation.


2-0
Now he’s done it. The pitcher has made himself the underdog. The batter won’t swing, unless it is his pitch, and the pitcher can’t afford to throw a ball. A sure strike has got to be thrown, and the smart batter knows that. It is an ideal hitting situation. Whether a fast ball, curve or an off speed pitch is thrown, it should be with the pitcher’s best effort. You have a relaxed batter challenging a pressured pitcher. Fielders beware!


3-0
The pitcher is really in deep trouble now. The batter can afford to wait for his pitch. In contrast, the pitcher has to come in with three strikes or he will walk the batter. More than likely, the batter will have the take sign, so your pitcher should bring it to him and over the plate.


3-1
The pitcher remains at a disadvantage. It is still an enviable position for the batter. The pitcher has to throw the ball over the plate and the batter does not have to swing. The batter will be looking for a fat pitch to clobber, so an off speed pitch over the plate might be the pitch to use.



Remember, every time the count is brought to full, the strength of the pitcher’s arm is being taxed. Waste pitches are used when the pitcher is ahead in the count for the purpose of getting the batter to go after a bad pitch. Off speed pitches are ideal for free-swingers--- power hitters who are trying to jack the ball out of the park on every pitch. Your spray hitters are more likely to hit the off speed pitch because they can wait that extra instant to hit the ball. Know who your pitchers are throwing to. Check your hitters charts if they are kept. Thinking means winning..

Catcher

The Catcher…
1- is the leader of the team.
2- must be able to communicate and perceptive to know differences in the staff.
3- is a coach on the field knowing pitcher's strengths, hitters weaknesses and
defensive situations.
4- is a positive person who needs to separate himself from individual negative
experiences to stay positive for the game.
5- has defense as his number one priority; he cannot take his bat out to his position.
6- is the hardest worker on the team.
7- must be a take charge guy.
8- must encourage and support his pitcher and thereby gaining his trust.
9- cannot be a silent warrior but must constantly yell throughout the game.
10- is an outstanding example to the rest of his teammates of hustle and hard work.
11- must make everyone better.
12- is the reason that teams win.
13- must vary his stances throughout the game.
a. signal giving stance
b. primary receiving stance- used with no men on base and
two strikes on the batter.
c. secondary block/throwing stance- used with man or men on base
and two strikes on batter.
14- must communicate pitch selection to the pitcher clearly and covertly.
15- must be a good receiver.
16- must force the umpire to get a good look at a pitch, have to
decide on ball/strike, call all pitches in the zone strikes and call all borderline strikes as
possible.

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The Art of Throwing

How important is proper throwing technique? Pitchers need to throw, catchers need to throw, infielders need to throw and outfielders need to throw. Throwing is one of the most important aspects of the game and probably the most neglected. It is essential to stress throwing fundamentals at the t-ball, minor league and little league level. Teaching proper technique later on in development becomes very difficult because improper habits are difficult to change. What an advantage a young player has if he is properly taught how to grip the baseball and what to do with it once he has it.
The proper throwing grip is across the four seams, commonly called the four-seam grip. When thrown properly the four seam thrown baseball goes straight. Why is that important? You would want your shortstop to throw straight across the diamond to the first baseman, instead of throwing a ball that curves or dips. That makes it very difficult for the first baseman to catch it. You would want your catcher to throw straight to the second baseman on a steal attempt. Simply put, throwing the ball straight makes it easier to catch. The only player who may change the grip from a four-seam grip is the pitcher. For obvious reasons, he wants the ball to move so the batter has a more difficult time hitting it.
Once the proper grip is established, it is extremely important to throw the ball with the right technique so as to insure velocity and to avoid injury. It is unfortunate to hear of rotator cuff and other arm injuries at the little league level. Could these injuries have been avoided if the proper techniques were stressed at practice. As coaches we have a responsibility to teach the game of baseball so that our players have a fun time and avoid serious injury. Winning is secondary and will come if things are done properly.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

A. THROWING
B. PITCHING
C. HITTING
D. CATCHING
E. INFIELD PLAY
F. OUTFIELD PLAY
G. SETTING UP PRACTICE
H. THE RUNNING GAME
I. BUNTING
J. TEAM DISCIPLINE
K. MOTIVATION

The Great Game of Baseball

Baseball is the greatest game in the world. It is played by the youngest of children and adults of all ages. People watch baseball on TV and listen to it on the radio. Professional baseball is a major industry, paying players millions of dollars. The All-Star game in mid-summer and the World Series in the Fall are some of the main events that attract quite a bit of interest from around the world. Baseball stadiums are packed by hometown fans, paying astronomical prices to get in. Just as popular are t-ball games, little league games, high school games and college games. It seems that everyone is somehow involved with baseball.



The purpose of this site is to give some hands-on advice to not only the coaching of baseball, but also motivational tips and weight training preferences. Hopefully, this site gives you some additional information to give to the players you deal with. Passing on needed skills and methods is what this is all about. Good luck and we hope you use some of the information that has worked for us.