Baseball Creativity In Your Backyard

   The sporting goods industry is a multi-billion dollar business, and the cost of equipment can be ridiculously expensive. Every family cannot afford the latest and greatest products (and gimmicks). But the old saying that 'the best things in life are free' can also hold true in sports. Before you go out and spend hundreds of dollars on a deluxe glove or equipment to help your kids learn a level swing, you should look around your house and see what you can create, cheaply, that will help your kids improve their skills--and still have fun. When I was a kid growing up, some of my best memories were throwing around the baseball with my older brother in our backyard. Using our imaginations, we used almost every tree and rock in our yard to create fantasy sports and games. One of our favorite games was something we called ‘error.’ One of us would throw a tennis ball on the roof of our house--within an imaginary twenty foot boundary--and the other would have to catch the ball before it hit the ground. We spent endless hours playing this game. Other then some yelling from my parents (something about too many balls being stuck in the gutter), this game still sticks in my mind as providing some of the most fun in my childhood. 

                   

Hit Like A Champ!                          Field Like A Champ                         Win Like A Champ

   Rushing forward about twenty five years, I found myself with my kids creating some similar games in our backyard (with my own gutter lurking nearby). Most combined fun with affordability. We made use of almost every part of our property. Instead of spending over a hundred dollars on a hitting net, we put together a comparable apparatus using a 10X14 plastic tarp along with some bicycle hooks, rope and two convenient trees. And we had fun putting it up. The boys would hit balls into the tarp as I did my best impression of a big league hitting coach giving them tips. Drills such as hitting off the batting tee and soft toss worked out great, too, with the tarp as backstop, but wacky games were also plentiful. We created a game right on the tarp, putting two squares, one inside the other made out of duct tape. This game we called 'toss ball home run derby'. Doing the soft toss drill against the tarp, a ball hit inside the small square would be a home run. A ball hit inside the large square would be a single. Everything else was an out. Three outs a team. This game combined skill building and having fun. But I'd been inventing games for years. 

   One of the first things I did with both my sons as soon as they were old enough to hold a bat, was to get one of those large red plastic 'whiffle ball' bats. I then bought a bottle of soap bubbles that all kids love. I would blow the bubbles and have my son hit them with the big red bat. We would run up and down the backyard as he chased the bubbles down and tried to break them. I encouraged him to keep both hands on the bat as he swung but if he didn't, so what--he was having fun. 

  Another game my kids loved when they got a little older was called the 'dive game'. I would throw ground balls to either their left or right side, and they would have to dive in front of the ball and stop it. I tried teaching them that the goal was to just stop the ball--like a hockey or soccer goalie--and not necessarily catch it. But it was amazing how much effort they put into trying to catch the ball. Aside from explaining the grass stains to their mother, this game was a real hit with them and I even caught them playing it without me a few times which made me feel great. Another favorite involved a few tennis balls, a tennis racquet and a cinder block. Laying the cinder block flat, we created a simple version of 'Home Run Derby' Standing next to one of my kids as he held the tennis racquet ready to swing it like a bat, I would bounce the ball high off the cinder block. With the ball on the way down, he would time it and hit it as far as he could. Both my kids could not get enough of this game. We were lucky that our backyard was fairly large but some of the tennis balls did travel into our neighbor's yard. The real beauty of this game is that hitting a tennis ball with a tennis racquet almost guarantees success for the fledgling ballplayer. 

                                               The 59 Minute Baseball Practice

                                      Putting players in the best position to succeed 100% of the time!            

   Families who live in the inner city can also make use of a lot of what's around them. I remember as a child going to visit my grandparents in Brooklyn, New York. My uncle would take my brothers and me to the back of the building and play numerous games off the huge concrete wall. 'Toss ball home run derby' can be played off a wall, as well as a tarp, with the two squares made out of chalk. Another game which we played, that was made popular just after World War 2, was called 'stoop ball'. In this game we would throw a ball off the stoop (or concrete steps) and see if the other team would catch it before it bounced on the ground. One bounce would be a single, two bounces a double and so on. Inner city kids who have limited room but love sports can still find just enough to play for hours on end. 

 Baseball and softball need not cost a fortune. And it doesn't have to be all boring instruction, whether it is on a practice field with twelve kids or in your own backyard with just you and your son or daughter. Keep it cheap, if you can, and keep it fun.

Marty Schupak has coached youth sports for 25 years. He has written 11 books and produced 26 sports instructional videos. His is the founder of T-Ball America. 

www.TBallAmerica.com

Hitting Drills & Techniques

Check our new YouTube Channel: Schupak Sports

       Over 5,000 free sports instructional video clips!

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                      Change The Way You Coach Sports!

 

 

Youth sports tips from t-ball to that college scholarship!

Follow Marty Schupak at Twitter for the latest news, tips and techniques!

@SchupakSports

If you likes this article, you may also like:

Practicing When No Field Is Available

Bunt Young, Bunt Often!

Baseball & Softball Hitting Techniques

One Sided Game Motivation

 

All Marty Schupak's Sports Videos Are Free On:

Hoopla (through your local library)

 

Like the NFL?

Maybe the NY Jets like Marty?

Check out his Blog/Podcast at:

www.JetsRewind.com

Four Things Baseball Coaches Should Practice But Don’t

 It is amazing how youth baseball teams, as well as older and more competitive organized leagues, do not practice many of the basic fundamental aspects of the game. From my standpoint, the reason I practice certain things other coaches may not is because I’ve been burned by other teams and have lost games and championships because of it. In my 25 years of coaching youth baseball, the list of things that should be practiced is long, but some situations come up over and over again.

Here are four of them:

  Pitchers not practicing fielding: This issue is incredible to me, although it took a few years before I started to have my pitchers practice fielding. When youth baseball teams practice fielding, usually it will include every position but the pitcher. Youth baseball coaches need to put pitchers on the mound in practice and include them in fielding drills. Coaches also need to rotate the pitchers. Have the pitcher go through his pitching motion without the ball. The coach then throws or hits a baseball to him, and not always right at him. It can be to the left, center, and right of the pitcher. Coaches can also put one or more runners on base and declare how many outs there are and continue hitting to the pitcher, forcing him to decide on the spot which base to throw the ball to depending on the situation. The pitcher should also be accustomed to knocking the ball down, instead of fielding it cleanly, so he knows how much time he has to re-establish himself and complete the play without panic. The drills work and also get pitchers familiar with game situation.  

                                               The 59 Minute Baseball Practice

                                      Putting players in the best position to succeed 100% of the time!                                                                                    

  Catching a foul ball near a fence: I swear I’m the only one in my league who takes this seriously, probably because I’ve seen more catchable foul balls hit the ground than any team in my league. The scenario usually starts with a pop fly just foul of first base. The ball moves deeper into foul territory. The first baseman looks like he has a beat on the ball as he gets closer to the fence or dugout. At the same time, however, he looks like he is hesitating the further he moves into foul territory. Then plop! The ball falls right near his feet about 12-24 inches from the fence. We all know the consequences of giving away outs in youth baseball. This stuff kills me. How can coaches rectify this? At least once a year, usually before the season, I do the “Fence Drill” with my team. I start the drill on the first base side, having the players form a line behind each other, approximately 6 feet from the fence in foul territory, parallel to first base. I’m located by home plate. I throw pop ups as close to the fence as I can and instruct my players to track the ball. As they do this they should come right near the fence. They put their arm out to feel for the fence, either with their glove hand, if they are right-handed, or free hand for lefties, and then proceed to track and catch the ball. This is getting the fielders used to feeling for structures while keeping their eyes on the ball. It makes them more comfortable and helps limit the fear of getting hurt. I then move the line closer to fair territory, eventually moving the line where every player is a first baseman and has to hustle to feel for the fence first before catching the ball. I then move the line to the third base side of the infield. Is this drill fool proof? Absolutely not! But I did notice a few more catches over the course of a season if we practiced this drill.

      

Hit Like A Champ!                   Field Like A Champ              Win Like A Champ

  Players not sliding at every base: This is a tough one. I’ve seen major leaguers not slide and cost their team runs. The Yankees-Oakland A’s 2001 American League Championship series comes to mind when Derek Jeter made that great backhand flip to home and Jeremy Giambi didn’t slide and cost his team a run and possibly the game and series. You can preach to your players to slide but they will continue to forget. As youth coaches, we have to remember that these are 10, 11, and 12 year-old kids and their retention is different than a high school player. But this is also something that you can practice instead of just telling the player when it comes up in a game. I want my players to slide on a force play even if they know they will be thrown out. Having a reputation, even on the youth level, that of being a team that always slides might become a potential distraction for the opposition and the fielders might bobble a throw to them at the base. When we practicing sliding, I take my team in the outfield grass and have my players remove their cleats. I have a diamond set up with throw down bases. We got through a few scenarios rotating players having them slide in the grass and this process helps. We reinforce for them to slide during the game from the coaching box. Again, not fool proof, but very effective.

  Practicing fielding a wild pitch or passed ball with a runner on third base: Usually not a game goes by without a wild pitch or a passed ball in youth baseball. When there is a base runner on third base, he has a better than 50% chance of scoring if he has just average speed. Let’s break this down from the defensive end. The pitcher throws the ball past the catcher. The pitcher recognizes this and rushes home to protect against the runner on third from scoring. His head is going back and forth between the base runner coming from third and the catcher getting ready to make the toss. Many times the toss from the catcher is off target or the pitcher swoops down to tag the runner without the ball. Very few coaches practice this other than to yell out to the pitcher, “Cover home if the ball gets by the catcher,”when the situation comes up in a game. To practice this, set up the positions with a runner at third. Plant a ball behind the catcher without him seeing it. Have the pitcher do his wind up without the ball, and when the coach yells, “go,” the baserunner breaks for home and the catcher locates the ball while the pitcher comes to cover home. Here we are setting up a practical situation and the catcher is practicing his toss and the pitcher is getting used to the runner coming at him while trying to secure the toss and tag. Coaches should rotate both pitchers and catchers during this drill.                                                                             

  These are only four situations out of many that need to be practiced. In youth baseball, coaches tend to teach during the game. Practices are the place to teach and games are the place to reinforce what we conveyed to the players. With this formula they become familiar with the situation and give your team the competitive edge on the field.

Marty Schupak has coached youth sports for 25 years. He has written 11 books and produced 26 sports instructional videos. His is the founder of T-Ball America. 

www.TBallAmerica.com

Hitting Drills & Techniques

Check our new YouTube Channel: Schupak Sports

       Over 5,000 free sports instructional video clips!

                    Go to: www.SchupakSports.com

                      Change The Way You Coach Sports!

 

 

Youth sports tips from t-ball to that college scholarship!

Follow Marty Schupak at Twitter for the latest news, tips and techniques!

@SchupakSports

If you likes this article, you may also like:

Practicing When No Field Is Available

Bunt Young, Bunt Often!

Baseball & Softball Hitting Techniques

One Sided Game Motivation

 

All Marty Schupak's Sports Videos Are Free On:

Hoopla (through your local library)

 

Like the NFL?

Maybe the NY Jets like Marty?

Check out his Blog/Podcast at:

www.JetsRewind.com

Increase Batting Practice Repetitions 20-30%

 In all my years of coaching youth baseball, I have always looked for the most efficient practice methods in every aspect of baseball. It took me only a few years to realize that most youth baseball coaches, including myself, were running batting practice, not incorrectly, but inefficiently. From what I have seen in the typical batting practice, a coach will pitch a predetermined number of pitches to each batter with the fielders fielding the hit balls and throwing them to first base. Usually the coach will yell something like, "run the last one out,” and the batter does just that. If the ball is hit to the infield, they try to throw him out at first. If it is hit to the outfield, he usually runs until he is thrown out. This is all good- intentioned, but it wastes valuable time when a coach wants to run an efficient batting practice. Here is the most efficient way of running a batting practice. Batting practice is just what it sounds like, batting practice. Batting practice is not fielding practice or baserunning practice. So, all youth coaches and parents should really define what a youth batting practice is and what they want to get out of it. Most of my youth practices do not run more than one and a half hours. Every minute of wasted time will affect other drills, skills, and techniques I want to cover. The first thing a coach needs to have is an overabundance of baseballs. The league will provide baseballs, but I always make sure I purchase a few dozen extra. I try to work with three dozen and keep an extra dozen in my trunk. And I'm frugal about it, accounting for every baseball at the end of practice. I try to make sure we find each one, and after practice, we comb the field to make sure we got them all. Usually we find extras and end up with more than what we started with. I am extremely aware of the economic times we live in but maintain if coaches need to spend any extra money, they should do it on extra baseballs if their league doesn’t give them enough.

                 

                                                Make every at bat count

                                              Hitting Drills & Techniques

 

  Here are the actual logistics and set up that I use about 95% of the time I run batting practice. I'm a big proponent of bunting. I set up two cones on the third base line, about six feet apart, approximately where the bunt is supposed to go. I set up two empty buckets, one about three feet to the outfield side of second base and the other one between the pitcher’s mound and second base. I have another bucket with the baseballs on the mound easily accessible to me. Now, this is a key. As a youth coach who wants a well-run practice and a lot of repetitions for the kids, I move up almost to the front base of the mound to pitch. I do this mainly so I can throw strikes consistently. For safety purposes, an "L" screen would be required from a shorter distance for safety. If your league doesn't have any, make them get one. I have the first person up at bat with the 2nd player or on deck hitter ready to bat. By ready I mean he has to have helmet and his batting gloves on. It is extremely important when switching hitters to waste as little time as possible. I have the 3rd hitter or double on deck hitter on the outside of the field hitting balls into the fence on a batting tee using pickle balls (plastic) or Wiffle balls with another parent feeding the balls on the tee. If there are enough assistant coaches, I have one working with the 4th hitter on the soft toss. So we have a lot of activity going on with four kids including the batter not in the field. The batter bunts the first to pitches. For each successful bunt, the player receives an extra swing. I usually give players five swings besides his two bunts. So if a player lays one of the two bunts between the cones, he gets six regular swings. If he lays both bunts between the cones, he gets seven swings (the maximum per hitter). There are certain things that have to happen to make this work. Remember, there are two buckets strategically located. After the bunts, when the hitter swings away, wherever the ball is hit, the fielder tosses it into the bucket nearest to him. If it is hit to the outfield, he will throw the ball as close to the bucket behind second base. If he hits it to the infield, the fielder will toss it to the bucket behind the pitcher's mound. Reinforce to the players that they must toss to the bucket on one or two bounces or they will tend to play basketball with the baseball and bucket. The point here is that the fielders do not make a play to first and the hitter does not run the last one out. We get more repetitions in a short period of time. The players are always facing the hitter. One might ask, isn't this boring for most of the players in the field? Well, not really. Because of the amount of balls hit in a short period of time, the ball is usually hit all over the place. And the coach throwing batting practice will keep one or two extra balls in his glove and is ready to pitch the next ball right away. When out of baseballs, have the players in the infield hustle to gather up the balls, combine buckets, and we're ready to go again. This works great!

                         

                                             1-2 Extra run per game with:

                                            Baserunning & Bunting Drills

 

  I have heard from people knocking holes in my method of having a grown up throwing batting practice. Some people will insist that it is better having a player throw batting practice with the thought process being that the pitch itself should be as realistic as possible. It is beneficial to the batter when he is seeing the baseball at the correct angle rather than from a grown up and the angle of the ball coming down is different than the batter sees in a game. I have not tried every single method but I have found what I described as the one that works for my team the most. You as coach can try as many systems as you want and you make the final decision. Batting practice is a favorite of any baseball player at almost every level. Do not deny batting practice at any practice. And always look for the most efficient, safest ways to help enhance your whole practice.

 

Related Resources:

The 59 Minute Baseball Practice (video)
Backyard Baseball Drills (video)

Hitting Drills & Techniques (video)

Fielding Drills & Techniques (video)
Baseball Coaching:A Guide For The Youth Coaches & Parents (book)

Bobby Woods, one of the top batting coaches in the world is interviewed. Check it out at Schupak Sports by clicking:

           Batting Coach Interview With Bobby Woods

     

         If you like this article, you may also like:

Four Things Coaches Should Practice

Practicing When No Field Is Available

Bunt Young, Bunt Often!

Tips For Catchers In Youth Baseball

  I’m not sure why, but I have always had a huge affinity toward catchers in youth baseball. A good catcher is like having a tenth man in the field. And if you get one of those rare 11 or 12 year-old catchers who is extremely vocal and knows the game well, then you also have an extra coach on the field. For some reason I have found that certain players will just gravitate toward being the catcher. There are some things that I see come up over and over again that youth coaches should be aware of with the catching position. The first thing is the equipment. It must fit well enough so the catcher can be nimble when he has to move, but it also must protect the player’s body to prevent injury. I encourage catchers to have their own equipment if they can afford it just because you don’t want to have to adjust it every time you need to put it on another catcher. With the equipment, I’m including the glove also. I’ve gone over this before. Leagues have to realize that new catcher’s gloves are not broken in for about a year. Leagues should always be working one year ahead so the team uses an older, broken in glove during the game. The new glove that each team gets each year should be used in practices and for warming up the pitcher. This glove will then become the game glove the following year and the newly bought glove is the practice glove, and so on. Ideally, leagues should buy broken in catchers gloves every year.

 

Drills & Techniques For Catchers

 

 With the equipment, coaches have to teach their catchers that for the most part they are almost 100% protected when they are facing the pitcher squarely with their shoulders. In youth baseball, what happens a lot is that many young catchers will flinch when the pitched ball hits the dirt short of home plate. This is a natural reaction that is hard for young players to overcome. Once the catcher flinches or turns his body, he is more apt to get injured because his equipment does not cover or protect the sides of the catcher’s body. In a drill I call, “Overcoming Fear”, the catcher will get in his position. The coach will stand in front of him and throw plastic balls at him on a bounce and or on a fly. The catcher must hold his position and not flinch or turn his body. We are conditioning the catcher to keep his body square and not to turn. Getting used to feeling a ball make contact with the equipment on his body is reassuring the catcher that the protection he has is generally very safe. Coaches can move from plastic balls to tennis balls to soft covered hard balls. The older player can do the same drill and even have the coach throw regular hard balls at him from a short distance. Remember, we are trying to overcome any fear of the ball and keep the catcher from turning, thereby exposing his body to injury.

                                     Championship Baseball Drills

                           Putting your players in the best position to succeed!

  The set up behind the batter is something the catcher must learn, and learn quickly. Many catchers in youth baseball set up either too far or too close from home plate. Setting up too close, or reaching for the ball with their glove, can cause catcher’s interference, which will award the batter first base. The best way for the catcher to set up an appropriate distance is to work with the batter’s shoulder or elbow once he is in the batter’s box ready to hit. The catcher should actually reach out with his glove toward the shoulder or elbow of the batter and set up at that distance, or a foot or two further back. Coaches want to make sure the catcher is not too far back for a number of reasons. First, he will be at a longer distance from the pitcher. Second, this can impede the umpire from calling a strike that he might call a ball because he is too far to judge the ball as it crosses home plate. Remember, the umpire will set up behind the catcher.

  Another issue for catchers on the youth level is guarding against the steal. Many times with a runner on base an aggressive coach will have his players take an exaggerated lead after the pitch. There are certain things the catcher should or should not do. When the baserunner on first is taking an extra big lead after the pitch, and the catcher throws the ball behind the runner to first, this gives the baserunner a green light to go to second. Coaches on the youth level need to practice and school their catcher as well as their whole team, in almost all baserunning situations. The correct way to defend this when the baserunner at first takes an aggressive lead is for the catcher to run right at the baserunner. Make sure the catcher is actually running at an angle a little in front of the baserunner. While running at the baserunner, if the runner commits to the next base, the catcher should then plant his foot and throw it to the base he is running towards. It doesn't matter which base the runner is leading too much on; the catcher needs to run at him. When there is a baserunner, the catcher should never throw from his knees or throw a rainbow-type throw back to the pitcher. It must be a hard throw back that is easily catchable for the pitcher.

  One of the toughest things to teach the catcher is how to block and/or retrieve the throw when there is a play at home plate. The reason this is tough is because if I have a twenty game season, I can get twenty different interpretations on how a catcher can block the plate. I’ve heard he cannot be in the base path without the ball. I’ve also heard he has to always leave a partial part of home plate open so the baserunner has a chance to tag it. When I go over the ground rules for every game, I always ask the umpire about the play at the plate. If I feel the catcher is mature enough to understand about any adjustments he has to make, I let him know. Otherwise I don’t say anything to him so he doesn’t have something else to think about. I just roll the dice.There are tons of other things that come with catchers each and every year that need to be taught. Things like pop-ups and taking the mask off, or blocking and framing are all important. Youth coaches who take a big interest in their catchers, like I do, should spend extra time with them before feeding them too much information too fast.

  I know a number of college and MLB scouts and there are always 3 things in demand: leftie pitchers, leftie hitters and catchers!

      Check our new YouTube Channel: Schupak Sports

            Over 5,000 free sports instructional video clips!

                    Go to: www.SchupakSports.com

                  Change The Way You Coach Sports!

 

Bobby Woods, one of the top batting coaches in the world is interviewed. Check it out at Schupak Sports by clicking:

           Batting Coach Interview With Bobby Woods

     

         If you like this article, you may also like:

Four Things Coaches Should Practice

Practicing When No Field Is Available

Bunt Young, Bunt Often!