Archive for the ‘Outfield Defense’ Category

Outfield Rules and Priorities

Thursday, May 21st, 2009

Defense in baseball is both an individual and team function. Being a good defensive outfielder requires correct fundamentals and focused practice. Playing good defense also requires that the players on the field work together. Each player must know the responsibilities of his position. They must back each other up and communicate clearly. And they must know the priorities to which each team member is subject.

When the ball is hit out to the field of play, each defensive position has responsibilities. The players must know where to position themselves. They must also anticipate the play and re-position themselves correctly.

As defensive teammates, each outfielder needs to “pick each other up” as the saying goes. Backing-up fellow outfielders and infielders is key. Covering for each other, and covering the field well, requires following assigned priorities. To do all of these things mandates clear and unambiguous communication.

The center fielder is the “field general” of the outfield. He is considered the best fielder in the outfield. He is most likely the fastest runner of the three outfielders too. Lastly, he is in the middle of the field and well-positioned to see all parts of the outfield better than the corner outfielders.

If the center fielder and a corner outfielder both go after a hit ball, the center fielder has priority to it. This rule assumes that both outfielders have an equal chance to field the ball! This qualification is important to note.

Unfortunately, I have seen two problems with stating this rule to players, or of not informing outfielders of the rule. The first problem usually happens in youth baseball. One of the corner outfielders takes this rule a little too seriously. This results in the corner outfielder not aggressively pursuing a hit ball because “you told me the center fielder should take everything”. And the ball ends up very close to him without any attempt at catching it.

The second problem of not understanding, or even knowing, this rule is player collisions. Both the center fielder and a corner outfielder run after a hit ball and neither gives way to the other. Nothing good can come from this situation.

The center fielder has priority to catch the ball when both he and a corner outfielder have a good chance at it. In these situations, both outfielders should communicate that they will catch it – they both “call” for the ball.

The center fielder should recognize that they have both called for the ball, and he should continue to call for it. When the corner outfielder hears the center fielder call for the ball, he should immediately veer off and back-up the center fielder.

It is important that outfielders understand the nuances of this rule. It does not mean he center fielder should take every ball hit to the outfield. Further, it does not mean that if a corner outfielder calls for the ball first that he has a “right” to the ball. It means only this: if the center fielder calls for the ball, the corner outfielders should give way and back-up the play.

On fly balls, or pop-ups, behind an infielder, the outfielder has priority on the catch. This assumes that both the infielder and outfielder can reach the ball. How do they know if they can reach it? Both the infielder and outfielder should run to the fly ball, and not quit, until they hear the other player call for the ball.

Infielders are taught, or they should be, to go after pop-flies until they hear an outfielder call them off. If they don’t hear the outfielder, they continue to run and attempt to catch the ball.

Now outfielders have to be smart on these plays. Just because an outfielder has priority does not mean he must take the ball. There are many instances where the outfielder has to run full stride to make the catch. Meanwhile, the infielder is standing under the ball in perfect position.

Why is this a defensive rule? It’s because the outfielder is running forward and the infielder is running backward, or backpedaling. And remember, it’s easier and faster to run forward for a catch than to run backward.

Another reason is back-spin, and/or side-back-spin of the ball. Pop-ups near the middle of the diamond have back-spin. This makes the ball move farther away from the infield as it descends. That means it is moving toward the outfielder and away from the infielder. Much easier play for the outfielder.

Maybe you’ve seen a catcher try to catch a pop-up in foul ground behind the plate. Once in a while a youthful catcher will start to backpedal as the ball is descending. Did he misjudge it? Did he overrun the ball? Yes and yes. But this happened because back-spin is moving the ball toward fair territory. Experienced catchers know this and approach the catch from the infield side of the ball, not the backstop side.

When a pop-up is hit down either foul line, the ball has side-back-spin. This makes the ball move toward center field as it descends. This is a really tough play for first and third basemen. It’s a little easier for shortstops and second basemen. And it’s very easy for left and right fielders – if they can get to the catch target.

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Outfielder Basics: Charge the Ball!

Tuesday, March 31st, 2009

Recently, a friend of mine who coaches high school baseball told me the one thing that stood out after reading my new book was the concept of charging the ball. He had read my book, How To Play Baseball Outfield: Techniques, Tips, and Drills to Learn the Outfield Positionand said he really liked it. He went on to say that his outfielders had thrown out more base runners than ever before in his 20-plus years of coaching after emphasizing this fundamental.

It’s not surprising that my very experienced friend did not know about this aspect of outfield play. After all, he was an infielder when he played competitively. Also, most coaches are primarily concerned with teaching their outfielders to just catch, or at least stop, the ball. Unfortunately, this angle of coaching is a glass half empty approach. What I mean is it relieves the player from being aggressive in the outfield. The player’s mindset is to let the ball play him, not the other way around.

As my book shows, outfielders have a lot of ground to cover. They have 360 degrees of ground that they must roam to catch a myriad of batted ball possibilities. But when balls are hit directly, or nearly directly, at them, they may be timid and wait for the ball to come to them. This puts the player in a “defensive” frame of mind – and usually results in a missed chance. I say this because if the outfielder lets the ball come to him, most times he will not get a good hop. Most times he gets an in-between hop that is very difficult to glove.

By charging the ball, the outfielder does two very important things for himself and his team. Firstly, he can position himself, and time the catch, much better. Good fielders are taught to catch a ground ball after the ball has reached its apex. Even if the ball is not bouncing very high off the ground, the outfielder can still time the catch while the ball is in the air, and as it comes down from its high point. Secondly (and no less important), the outfielder cuts down the distance the ball travels. By reducing this distance, the outfielder also trims the distance of his ensuing throw. Now if the ball is bobbled or missed, the throw is much shorter to a base or cutoff man.

Base coaches have two indicators they evaluate when deciding to stop a base runner, or wave them through the base. This especially pertains to third base coaches and their decision to send runners home. Base coaches first look for the catch, then distance. If the outfielder catches the ball but has not charged it and is farther away, they will send the runner. But if the outfielder catches the ball and is much closer to the throwing target, the base coach will probably hold the runner. And here’s a bonus: if the outfielder aggressively charges the ball, the base coach may hold the runner anyway! We have all seen plays where the runner is stopped, but the outfielder bobbles the ball. By the time the coach and runner realize this, the outfielder has recovered the ball and has made the throw.

So by outfielders charging the ball, they go on the “offensive”. By being aggressive and charging the ball, the outfielder greatly increases their chance of catching the ground ball (after the apex), and of throwing runners out – and even preventing runners from even trying to advance. In my playing career, I threw out a lot of base runners. But I stopped many more from scoring by closing the distance of my throw by charging the ground ball.

Coaches: teach your outfielders to be aggressive, not timid. Coach them from an offensive standpoint, not a defensive one.

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The Outfielder’s Crow-Hop: Book Excerpt

Wednesday, February 25th, 2009

One of the least understood and incorrectly executed movements is the Crow-Hop. This movement used by outfielders correctly will improve throwing accuracy and strength. So what is a Crow-Hop? Basically, it is a movement the player executes to provide balance and throwing momentum after the catch. The catch can be on ground balls or fly balls – but the player must properly use the Crow-Hop to give him the best chance of making good throws. Balance is the goal and the key to good outfield play.

Below is an excerpt from my new book, How To Play Baseball Outfield and can be reviewed and purchased at my Bookstore. Happy reading!

“The Crow-Hop
This next sequence is done in one fluid motion. After catching the ground ball, the outfielder should push off the front knee and replace the front foot with the back foot.

The best way to do this is to elevate off the ground, lift the back knee first, then the front knee, and put the back foot down approximately where the front foot was. When done correctly, the back-knee/front-knee lifts and back-foot/front-foot exchange happens quickly.

While elevating and replacing, the player should also turn his torso and hips so that his glove shoulder is pointing toward the target. This motion is called the “Crow-Hop”.

The Crow-Hop is a movement that gets the player best positioned to throw the ball. The outfielder is creating balance, aligning shoulders to the target, and loading up his throwing (back) leg for the throw.

Loading the back (throwing-side) leg is a term used to describe the beginning of the throwing motion. Simply put, it means most of the player’s weight is on his back leg. “Most” means more than 50 percent and less than 100 percent. Some instructors like to pinpoint the exact percentage, but my experience with thousands of ballplayers tells me it is a little different for each player. The average weight distribution is about 80-20 back leg to front leg.

Like most sports including baseball, a player must move in one direction to move better to the opposite direction. Both hitters and pitchers do this as well. It’s a mechanism for balance and bodily energy.

Some players exaggerate the crow-hop by lifting their knees very high, almost like a marching band. Other players drag their back leg in to a bad, or “short”, position – and the back leg never gets completely under the body. Neither of these methods is correct.

The proper technique is to lift the knee high enough so the player’s back leg supports the body. This creates balance – and good throws. See Figures 2-4 (a), (b), and (c) for this sequence of movements.
When outfielders get really good at the Crow-Hop technique it looks seamless and smooth.
Here’s a summary of the One Knee Block Technique:
• Drop the throwing knee to the ground, slightly behind the other knee.
• Extend the glove hand, elbow slightly bent, to “look the ball in to the glove”.
• Expose the glove pocket to the ball by bending the wrist back.
• Open the throwing hand and position it two to six inches above the glove.
• After catching the ball cleanly, push off the front knee (the one not on the ground).
• When rising, crow-hop by replacing the front foot with the back foot (replace the glove- side foot with the throwing-side foot).
• The final result is the player’s back leg (throwing-side) is loaded, his shoulders are aligned to the target, and the throwing sequence begins.
• The One Knee Block can be used by any level player, but youth players benefit most by it.”

Caution: Sliding, Cha-Cha, and Gliding
Many players, me included in my youth, try to execute the crow-hop without clearly replacing one foot with the other. They just slide the back foot, leaving it short of replacing the front (glove-side) foot.

First hand experience shows that this results in bad balance and poor throws. Once I learned to lift my knees and position my throwing leg underneath my body, my balance and throws were consistently good. Figure 2-6 illustrates the incorrect Sliding Crow-Hop. You can see that the outfielder has not loaded his back leg, is overstretched and off-balance. This throw is highly likely to be a poor one.

A common situation of the Sliding Crow-Hop happens after his back leg has slid short of full balance. The player’s brain tells him he is off-balance and he tries to correct it by quickly re-positioning his back (throwing-side) leg. His front leg is still in the air while his back leg is pumping up and down.
This makes him look like he is on a pogo stick. He pumps his back leg two or three times to try to get balanced – and all the while his momentum is carrying him forward so that he rarely gets fully balanced.

Another incorrect variation of the crow-hop is what I call the Babe Ruth Cha-Cha. The Babe would move up in the batter’s box to swing at a curve ball before it curved. He did this by moving his back foot behind his front, then striding to hit the ball. A lot of today’s slowpitch softball players do this too. Figure 2-7 shows the Ruth Cha-Cha move.

Again, you see that the player is off-balance. He is also moving parallel to the target, taking his momentum off-target. Arm strain and bad throws surely will result.

Many players use the Cha-Cha move to turn their upper bodies to throw. While the move does align the player’s shoulders to the target, it also reduces balance and momentum.

The Gliding Crow-Hop looks like a mid-air scissor kick, as if a ballet dancer were fielding the ball. The player’s knees do not lift; instead he leaps up, brings both straight legs together, then strides out with his front (glove-side) leg while his throwing leg hits the ground.

To most untrained observers, this looks pretty good. But gliding has very high odds of getting the player off-balance. Most times, the player’s momentum is moving so fast that he does not allow himself to properly load his back leg for the throw.

The Gliding Crow-Hop also never allows the outfielder’s back leg to get fully loaded. He is so off-balance that many times he falls forward to the ground after the throw. Figures 2-8 (a) and (b) show this incorrect sequence of movements.”

I hope this post helps players and coaches know the correct and often-used incorrect ways to use the Crow-Hop in the outfield. You will be amazed at the improvement in your fielding and throwing by properly executing this critical movement.

For the full explanation of all outfield techniques, visit Steven E. Michael Publishing and click on “Bookstore”. Thanks for reading my blog.

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Fielding Ground Balls: Book Excerpt

Thursday, February 5th, 2009

I have seen and heard too many different coaching methods for fielding ground balls in the outfield. And most of the methods I hear are wrong. Some coaches teach players to field the ball off to one side of the body, and others say get a bigger glove and just snatch everything with one hand. But, hands down, the worst mistake coaches make in teaching young players is neglecting the lower body and its proper movements.

In this post, I give you another excerpt from my new book, How To Play Baseball Outfield: Techniques, Tips, and Drills to Learn the Outfield Postion. Today, we will explore the correct way the player should position his feet, knees, arms, hands, and head. Too much you say? Without all these body parts in the correct position, the player’s chances of consistently fielding ground balls is slim and none – and slim left town. Read on and enjoy.

“Fielding: Non-Urgent Throw
While every throw an outfielder makes should be accurate and strong, not all throws are urgent. Urgent means the throw is used to put out a base runner.

Those throws where the outfielder has more time to field the ball are called Non-Urgent. These are throws back to an infielder or a base and are used to prevent base runners from advancing. The typical example is where a batter gets a base hit and the outfielder returns the ball to second base. This prevents the base runner from advancing beyond first base.

One Knee Block Technique
This is just like it sounds. The outfielder positions himself in front of the oncoming ground ball, drops one knee to the ground, and fields the ball. Sounds simple right? Not so fast, there’s more to it than that!

The outfielder should be ready to field the ball as it gets closer. He should be in an athletic stance:
• feet outside shoulder-width
• knees bent (not too far)
• head up
• torso bent slightly forward

Figure 2-1 shows the outfielder prior to the One Knee Block Technique. Notice that his hands are not on his knees, his head is up and alert, knees are bent, and his torso is slightly bent forward. This position gives the outfielder the best chance at not only fielding the ball cleanly, but also getting good jumps on the ball. More on “Jumps” later in the book.

As the ball approaches and the outfielder is sure he is positioned directly in front of it, he drops one knee to the ground. This reduces the size of the hole between his legs. It also brings his chest lower to help block the ball in case of a bad hop.

The fielder’s glove hand should be extended out in front of his body, but his elbow should not be fully extended. The fielder should bend his wrist back just far enough to expose the glove’s entire pocket to the ball. Too many outfielders keep their wrist straight, which points the glove pocket skyward. Bad wrist position reduces the size of the pocket and contributes to the ball glancing off the heel of the glove.

The other problem is not getting the glove out away from the body far enough. While keeping the glove closer to the body allows the pocket to be easily exposed, it also prevents the player from seeing the glove. A player can’t “look the ball in to the glove” if he can’t see his glove. Figures 2-2 (a) and (b) show the incorrect and correct ways to position the glove.

His throwing hand should be two to six inches above his glove, facing out and open. His throwing hand will help knock the ball down and also help prevent a bad hop from striking him in the face.”

There is much more information in my book on all aspects of playing outfield. If you are interested, visit the Bookstore at www.stevenemichael.com. You can also read about my experience and qualifications for the book. Thanks for reading!

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The Importance of Outfield Basics: Balance

Friday, January 30th, 2009

As a player, I always wanted to hit. I wanted to swing the bat until my hands were sore or bleeding – or both. It’s the part of the game that’s most fun. So why do coaches stress and work on defense so much? Because defense wins ballgames.

Below is an excerpt from chapter two of my new book, How To Play Baseball Outfield: Techniques, Tips, and Drill to Learn the Outfield Position. To be a good outfielder, you need balance, and balance comes from the ground up. Read on and enjoy!

“The main focus of outfield play is to cleanly field the ball and efficiently get it back to the infield. It’s not any more complicated than that. But accomplishing it at a high level takes flawless technique and a lot of concentrated effort.

So outfield play includes not only fielding the ball well, it involves throwing the baseball well. And throwing the ball accurately, with something on it, should flow easily after fielding the ball. If the player does not have good fielding technique, their throwing will suffer as well. A good arm does not make up for fielding problems.

From the Ground Up
Footwork by the outfielder is the most important part of fielding. This is because where the feet are is where the body will be. And throwing a baseball accurately and with force takes balance. Balance is only achieved through good footwork.

Footwork is important because it gives the outfielder the best chance to not only field the ball cleanly, but it also sets up the ensuing throw. Good footwork gets the outfielder in the best position to field the ball. And good footwork helps to stop the ball and keep it in front of them. Nothing hurts a ballclub more than a batted ball getting by the outfielder. Except maybe walks, but that’s another book.

Proper positioning of the outfielder’s hands is also important. The reasons are as important as footwork. Positioning of the glove will make the odds much better that the outfielder catches the ball. Further, good glove position greatly increases the chances that the outfielder will throw the baseball quickly and accurately.

From Youth to Big League
We have all seen youth baseball or softball games where the outfielder has a ball hit at them and it gets by them. Some turn their bodies sideways to avoid getting hit. Some do not bend their knees and the ball goes between their legs; this is called “through the wickets” (remember Croquet?).

Being afraid of the ball in youth baseball is common. Most youth players have never been taught the basics of fielding, so they leave it to their own methods, which usually result in errors. But is also results in being afraid. Proper technique will eliminate fear and give the player confidence.

I have also seen major league players with bad fielding technique. Many people assume that these players have learned the proper techniques, they merely choose to not use them on “routine” fielding attempts. Wrong.

Big League outfielders were once youth league players, and probably the best athlete on their teams. Good athletes can “make up” for deficiencies in their technique by having superior reflexes and coordination. So they never learn the correct way to play the outfield. And it comes back to haunt them, and hurt their team.”

Chapter two goes on to cover the basics of fielding ground balls in detail. If you are interested, check out my publishing website where you can order a copy of How To Play Baseball Outfield at www.stevenemichael.com. Thanks for reading.

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