Expert: Rick Bundy - 4/15/2009

Question
QUESTION: i coach my sons 9 and 10 year old team.A bunch a knotheads that really are a diverse group. i have 4 returning kids and 10 new ones. two have never played before and the other 8 are out of the coach pitch league. My question is how can i teach them situations and job assignments when only 4 can properly catch and throw. my other question is son pitches and plays infeild and wants to catch but he has trouble getting over or down on bad pitches. what can i do to help

ANSWER: Randy:  Thank you for your question.

I would suggest spending 30 -40 minutes per practice on throwing and receiving.  It is the core of all that they will do within the game.  Without those skills, it is very tough to find a position to play, as the only position which doesn't require throwing and receiving abilities is DH.

Begin at the ground level and build a strong base.  It will help all 14 of your players improve.

On my website, www.theoleballgame.com, there are pages on rookie receiving and advanced receiving, as well as advanced throwing.  I am still working on the rookie throwing page.  Hopefully there are some ideas in there that will help.

The important components on throwing are:

1.  Glove side towards target.

2.  Hands together at chest, from this point this rhyme helps kids learn the movements:  Thumb to thigh
         
         Knuckles to sky
 
         Elbow up high

         Point your glove, let it fly!

They tend to learn that quickly, then they have some spots to check and see if they are correct.

Suggest teaching them a four seam grip, the ball is more accurate and with more velocity.

When starting out, it is good to have them stand on a foul line and just go through each of the steps, stopping at each point to check them for corrections.

So, you would say, thumb to thigh.  To get to that position, they will need to break their hands, thumbs down, like cracking an egg.  Their glove goes towards their target, the ball down to their thigh.

Then, elbow to the sky.  From their thigh, they take the ball up and back, puts them in what is sometimes referred to as a goal post position.  For their elbow to be high, they need to be able to see the back of their hand if they look back at the ball.  The ball should be pointing away from the target.  This will allow them to get a good overhand motion as they begin to throw.

At that point, you can show them what happens to their elbow if the ball gets rotated to the front.  The elbow will drop below their shoulder, the ball will come out the side of their hand; puts a lot of pressure on their elbow.  

From that rotated position, when the ball is thrown, it will have all side spin and slice away and down over longer distances.

If the elbow remains up, then the motion will be overhand, the ball will spin backwards, keeping the ball on line.  Players can check on the spin with every throw.

As they go to throw, they need to step directly at their target, as stepping off line will also cause their elbow to drop.

Finish the throw by "taking a bow".  Puts them back in a good athletic position.

Throwing and receiving take a lot of time and effort; but you will start seeing results quickly.  They will, however, tend to slip back to their old ways when reaction is called for.  Eventually the new habits and skills will take over.

Play some games that allow them to use the new skills in a competitive environment.  Makes a good diversion.  There are a couple of good ones listed on my nav bar, under fun games.  They are four corners and hit and get.

You can teach the situations and assignments; it will be slower at first as you will need to take time to talk about throwing mechanics when they slip back into an old habit.  Because the mechanics will help them throw more accurately and with better velocity, it is a good environment to show them what happens when, for example, they don't step straight at their target and the ball slices off to the right where the first baseman can't reach it.  You can stop at that point and explain it, then recreate the same situation again and let the player have a second shot.  Chances are good that he will step on line the second time and now all players have seen it.  

It slows down the situation and job assignment process; but if they are unable to throw and catch, the other parts won't matter much until they can.

For catchers, blocking is truly an essential skill.  The first step in the process is to convince them that they aren't trying to catch the ball in the dirt, they just want to block it.  This sounds easy; but it isn't.

The block:

When they see the ball is headed for the dirt, they need to collapse on their knees, shin guards drop flat on the ground with the shins against the dirt, weight back and not on their kneecaps.  Shoulders kept square to the ball, eyes fixed on tracking the ball from where it hit the ground to the point to where it hits the catcher on the chest.  Both hands drop to the ground and touch the dirt with the knuckles, and the palms facing up and in the direction from which the ball is coming.  Catches sit flat, shoulders square to the ball, eyes tracking the ball.

The blow and curl:

Catchers track the ball as it hits the ground and heads towards them.  Watch the ball hit the chest protector.  As the ball hits, air is blown out and the shoulders curl around the ball.  The chin tucks in to the chest.  Blowing air out of the lungs makes the chest give with the contact of the ball, thereby softening the impact.  The chest cushions the ball like a pillow, allowing the ball to drop closer to the catcher rather than bouncing farther away.

For balls to their right and left it is the same, except the catcher slides in front of the ball, always squaring the shoulders in the direction of the ball.  This pushes the ball back to the plate, rather than bouncing off to the side where a runner can advance.

Start slow with him, use tennis balls.  Let him build his confidence and skill before tackling baseballs.  When you move to baseballs, use softies and finally baseballs.  

Eventually work with him on getting up after the block and getting to the ball quickly.  Best to get the block, blow and curl before moving on.

Hopefully there will be some things that will help you out.

Take your time, enjoy the journey.  It is always about small, slow steps.  Get them to focus on the process, not the end result.  When they do, the results take care of themselves.

Yours in baseball,

Rick





---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: thanks for the advic rick.  about my son catching, its not that hes scared of getting hit.  he wili let hit him with the ball when geared up  its his mobility that needs work. any suggestions?          thanks   randy

Answer
Randy:  Thank you for the follow up.

Here are a couple of drill options for working lateral movement.

Drill 1:

Put a baseball out to both sides, see if they can slide out to it.  For high school players, a goal range of 6" either side of the plate is good, so scale down to 2 or 3" to start.

At the same time, you can work on getting their body angled back to the inside, so blocked balls come back to the plate area, not further outside.


Drill 2:

This game provides a lot of fun and competition between catchers,  Goalie Drill, hockey game.

Just need two catchers, full gear, baseballs and some form of goal to use behind the catcher, something up to 24" max.

Thrower stands at about 25' from the catcher and throws hard, attempting to score goals with the thrown balls.

Mark boundaries even with the front of the plate, to match the width of the goal behind the catcher.  Thrown ball must hit the dirt within the boundaries to count.

Score a goal if the ball is blocked, but bounces too far from the catcher.  (If using incrediballs, allow some leeway for their bounciness.)  I would suggest starting at least with them, and building up to baseballs.  

Set your own number of throws that make a game.  This is a physically demanding drill and skill, consequently smaller amounts will provide more gain and less strain.

Eventually add getting up, and to, the blocked ball, and throwing to
second base.  Added bonus point for an accurate throw.  When ready for this part, add it to the last 5 throws of each game.

Prizes for the winner are always fun, soda, candy bar, sunflower seeds, Gatorade.  They get into it big time.  This game makes what is a tough drill, a fun drill.

Hope this will help with his lateral movement.

Yours in baseball,

Rick