Catcher’s Drills

Mirror Drill
The catcher faces a mirror and reviews signals to himself while perfecting the stance in a home environment.

Partner Drill
The catcher faces a partner standing about 10 feet away. The catcher is critiqued for any mistakes in…

Dec 23, 2013

The Pitcher as a Fielder

Once the pitch leaves the pitcher’s hand, the pitcher can no longer consider himself a pitcher. He is now a fielder until the ball is cleanly caught by the catcher. Many pitchers leave the distinct impression that they feel their job is completed…

Dec 23, 2013

Building A Positive Relationship With Parents Promotes Winning

What are the ingredients that transform tomatoes into a great sauce? Ask any good cook that question, and they’ll all provide you with a different answer. Ask a coach, a teacher, an auto mechanic or any successful business man what makes him or…

Dec 23, 2013

On Field Player Communication

Players can communicate with physical gestures or signals or with verbal signals, tones, and inflections. Through either verbal or physical messages, the range of success in getting important details transmitted runs from dismal failure to amazing…

Dec 23, 2013

Improving the Relationship Between Coach and Umpire

The relationship between baseball coaches and umpires, much like a successful marriage, is built upon the ability to forgive, forget and move on to the next confrontation. It is truly one of the strangest relationships in all of sports.

Dec 23, 2013

Establishing a Practice Work Ethic

Coaches can acquire a wealth of baseball knowledge in a number of ways, beginning with their own personal playing experiences. They can also gain knowledge by attending coaching clinics, studying the strategies of respected managers, observing…

Dec 23, 2013

Three Key Steps to Conquer Baseball Post-Season Pressure

Here is a sobering thought…In the entire history of high school and collegiate baseball, the most important individual and team championship skill is often the skill that is practiced the least…namely the ability to perform extremely well…

Dec 23, 2013

4 of the Best Base-Running Drills

To be a well-rounded baseball player, you must develop and practice your base running skills. As my Guide To Base Running Strategy states, because rounding the bags happens almost every play, it is critical to allot time each practice to base…

Nov 13, 2013

The Suicide Squeeze – Parts 3, 4, and 5

I mentioned in Part 1 that I believe the suicide squeeze to be a great weapon for an offense because it is almost impossible to defend against once the play is in motion. The biggest reason for this is the timing involved. If both the runner and…

Nov 13, 2013

The Suicide Squeeze – Parts 1 & 2

At the college and professional levels, you don’t see many squeeze plays. However, I have noticed more of them on MLB highlight shows so maybe it’s returning to fashion. Tampa Bay Rays manager Joe Madden recently put on two squeeze plays on…

Nov 13, 2013

Putting Runners in Motion

Aggressive base running is a valuable weapon for any offense. Putting runners in motion in all its forms puts a lot of pressure on a defense because they are forced to deal with multiple things at the same time – throwing, covering bases, chasing…

Nov 13, 2013

In-Season Training Plan for Baseball Players

Baseball players need to be explosive to repeatedly throw and hit over the course of a season. To do this, you need to train during the season to maintain and even improve your strength, speed and conditioning. (Check out this off-season baseball…

Oct 24, 2013

10 Best Strength Exercises for Baseball Players

As a baseball athlete, you need to consider two important aspects of your training: total body strength and explosive power. But first, consider the muscle imbalances caused naturally by the sport. For example, you swing the bat from one side. You…

Oct 24, 2013

Pitchers: Throw Harder With This Med Ball Workout

Traditional pitching workouts typically involve dumbbell and/or resistance band exercises focused on specific parts of the throwing motion—e.g., Dumbbell Rows or Resistance Band Scarecrows targeting the back and shoulder. This type of training is…

Oct 24, 2013

Eight Ways to Get a Quality At-Bat

Clearly defining for players exactly what a quality at-bat is helps them understand clearly how they can contribute to the offense. Our program has identified eight ways to earn a quality at-bat…

Oct 24, 2013

A safety tip for batting practice

I heard this batting practice idea from the current head coach at Villanova University (Joe Godri) and I think it is a great one for a number of reasons. It involves moving the shag bucket(s) to a safer location during batting practice. In the…

Oct 24, 2013

Pitcher and Catcher: Working Together

A certain beautiful type of rhythm happens when a pitcher and catcher work in harmony together. I have found that this rhythm occurs more often when the pitcher and catcher are allowed to call the game—with limited interference from the coach.

Oct 24, 2013

5 Hitting Situations for Which Your Players Should Be Prepared

During this blog post, I’m going to go over some special baseball hitting situations that your team will most likely face at one point or another.
A suicide squeeze is used by a team that has a good bunter at the plate and a pitcher who has…

Oct 24, 2013

Coaching vs Managing

In one of my first days in professional baseball, I got an eye opener about the difference between a coach and a manager. A teammate of mine started a conversation with our manager by saying “Hey Coach, …”. What came next was quite unexpected.

Oct 24, 2013

When should a catcher go to the mound?

At the major league level you will often see catchers call time-out and take a trip to the mound to have a word with their pitcher. Usually these trips are not called for by coaches. The catchers decide when the time is right. At the lower levels…

Oct 24, 2013

Alone time for players

With practices starting up soon in many parts of the country, coaches are well into the process of designing practice routines and schedules for their teams. At least they should be. If you ever had the pleasure of participating in or watching…

Oct 24, 2013

Pre-Season Checklists

Before you ever hold your first tryout practice, you need to start compiling and sending out information for the season. Among the things you need to prepare in advance are sign-up sheets, the play-book, and the necessary equipment. This chapter…

Oct 24, 2013