This document is designed as a foundation for all coaches working atthe 10-12 year old level. While it may seem basic, its usefulness is thefocus on fundamentals – frankly, an area that many coaches overlook.Baseball is an explosive sport – when things happen, they happen veryquickly. Players must react and to do so successfully requires a solidgrounding in fundamentals. Focus on these fundamentals and yourplayers are certain to improve. Build on the fundamentals with everyplayer on your team and your team will be competitive. There are fourprimary sections to the document – fielding ground balls, fielding flyballs / outfield play, hitting, and running practices including someuseful drills. John Verducci is the primary source for the content. John has been withLAMV PONY Baseball for nearly a decade coaching at all levels andserving as the league's president. He's been one of our moresuccessful coaches. His teams have frequently won the championshipor finished in second place. That's not because he always has the bestplayers, it's because he's excellent at developing their talent. John hasa rich baseball background - he was a local star in high school andwent on to play at Stanford University where he was considered one of the best defensive shortstops in the school's history. Following collegehe played in the San Francisco Giants organization for several years.He has a tremendous knowledge of the game but also a unique abilityto teach the game to young players. While it's impossible to captureeverything John teaches kids or his approach to coaching, we hope youfind this excerpt useful to you as you develop the young men andwomen on your teams.

Fielding the ground ball

The foundation of solid defense is fielding the ground ball. Thepitcher’s goal should be to live low in the strike zone and induceground balls. Strike-outs are a bonus. Making outs with ground ballsshould be the bread-n-butter of the defense.Proper fielding starts with the “ready” position. The player shouldalways start down low, glove on or near the dirt with the palm up, andthe throwing hand out in front of the body. Players often start a gamewith a good ready position but after six or seven innings they will losethe discipline. This is when games are often won or lost. Stay focusedfor the entire game. Don’t let your players slip on this. The player should move quickly and aggressively to the ball as soon asit’s hit with a cross-over step and good footwork. Better fielders will“round” the ball hit to their side – first step may be a hesitation moveand then moving into the ball as it approaches with the ideal of catching the ball at the top or bottom of the bounces arc. They shouldstay low as they move and step into the ball keeping the shoulderssquare and the left leg (right handers) slightly ahead of the right leg,then shift to get in line for the throw aligning shoulders and hips in thedirection of the throw. Always make a shuffle move with the feet to“close the gap” on the throw reinforcing that players should always“throw with their legs”. If the shoulders and hips are in line with thetarget and there is a good “shuffle-n-throw” move then the ball withalmost always be delivered on line.

Coaching points:

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Good “ready” position – Pre-pitch routine (similar to free-throwsin basketball or putting in golf) can be as simple as “right-left-glove down” for right handers and “left-right-glove down” forlefties. Corners should have their eyes focused on the hitter toread hands on a bunt and middle infielders should focus theireyes on the trajectory of the ball reading inside or outsidelocation and anticipating where ball will be hit.

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“Rounding” the ball

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Stay low moving to and through the ball – avoid the first movebeing “up”

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Step into the ball with right leg (right handers) and field it in-front. At the point where the ball makes contact with the glove,there should be a nice triangle shape formed by both feet andthe glove. If the triangle is flat, the player is not catching it farenough out front.

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Work from the ground up – there should never be a downwardmotion with the glove just prior to catching it (glove shouldalways be below the ball).

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Use momentum and strong right leg (right handers) to pivot forthe throw

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Shuffle and throw – closing the gap to the target and use thebody to make the throw. Most players will shuffle with their rightleg/left leg (right hander/left hander) going behind their otherleg. Others will go in front. Both methods are OK.Practice drills for fielding ground ballsInsist on the player always being in a good “ready” position before anyinfield drill – don’t hesitate to stop the drill if players are not gettinginto position, which will happen as they get tired (or a little lazy). If hitting ground balls, do not hit the ball until the player is in the readyposition. A solid “ready” athletic position sets the foundation for theplay.Drill 1 – “habituals” This drill should be performed at nearly every practice – the point is tomake the mechanics of fielding grounders routine such that it becomesa “habit”.Players pair up and face each other from about 8 feet apart. Start byrolling the ball to each other – focus on making the “triangle” (gloveand feet), fielding the ball in front, use the top hand to secure the ballin the glove (glove catches the front half of the ball, bare hand catches