"Perfect 30" Drill

Contributed By: Donnie G. Long

Equipment: Balls, Bats, Gloves Catchers Gear, also a Permanent Marker

One of the most difficult things to do is to teach young players, especially the ones moving up from Tee Ball, the importance of learning what to do and when to do it. So many youngsters today, and I’m talking about league players, do not practice outside of the scheduled practices that are held by their team. So, they get maybe 2 – 3 hours of practice and a couple of games per week. Working the infield can be one of the more boring exercises there is in baseball. What could be more fun than standing around waiting for your coach to hit you a grounder or pop up. I was even getting bored and I was the one hitting the ball every time. If I have learned anything, the one thing I do know is if you make it fun, they will be eager to participate. I have found the easiest way to get their interest up is to challenge them with each other and turn your drill into a mini-game. The rewards can be something as simple as the first in line to shake hands at the end of your next game or maybe purchase a couple different kinds of bubble gum or hard candy and at the end of practice let the winners of your different drill choose first.

Drill:
This drill will involve a scorekeeper – A good opportunity to get a parent involved.

Take five baseballs, using a permanent marker write the number 2 on one, 4 on another, 6 on another, 8 on another, and finally 10 on the last ball.

Set your normal infield in place. The quicker you move the less time you will have kids standing around.

Have your scorekeeper hand you a ball and record the number on a sheet of paper. Keeping the number quiet, bat one of the balls to an infielder (2, 4, 6, 8, or 10.) The scorekeeper will have to keep up with who you batted the ball to, as well as which number was batted. Eventually all six infielders will have fielded all six balls.

If the infielder does not field the ball then it is a no score. If he/she bobbles it but keeps the ball in front has a reasonable play at first, then count the score. The score will count only when the fielder makes a catcher and makes a throw that the first baseman has a reasonable chance to catch. When the first baseman returns the ball to the catcher, the catcher will then yell out what the number was. On younger teams, you can give half the points for a clean catch even if the throw is off-line. You want to give them every chance to succeed but always increase the level of difficulty as they improve.

Thirty (30) is a perfect score. If two or more people tie then you can have a playoff. Don’t forget to include your catcher in this drill. The catcher will assume their normal position with gear on. This is a great time to work on bunts and you can even throw in a wild pitch/passed ball if you like.

As the kids progress throughout the year, you can add the outfielders to this drill and teach the importance of hitting the cut-off man. You can add scenarios to make your players think of themselves, example: one out, man on second, ball is hit to shortstop, what should he do. Ball is hit to the left fielder, where should the ball be thrown. Make it fun – make it happen. Happy coaching!