"Outfielder Crossover Step" Drill

This drill comes from Steve Markey our December 2003 Drill of the Month Winner.

Equipment: Ball and Glove (Something to mark off the lines.)

Spray paint, lime, or tape a twenty-foot straight line in the outfield, (or on a parking lot, gym, etc.) Cross the line in middle marking a "T". Now split the center of the lines two more times, so that you have a total of eight lines coming from a center point equally spaced.

The player stands in the center and the coach is at the end of one of the lines. The coach throws a ball to the end of each line and the player has to do a crossover step and sprint down the line to catch the ball. The player then sprints back to the center for the next ball.

The coach can begin by throwing the ball in a pattern and then graduate to random throws. The only time the player should not crossover step is for a ball directly in front of him.

This drill covers every step an outfielder should ever take to catch a fly ball.