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Defense and footwork — father and son in the yard

The Yard

Defense and footwork

A bat without a position is a bad place to be. Ground balls, hops he wants, fly balls in BP, catch from his position. Travel weekends skip this. Don’t.

← Tonight’s 20 minutes

These are ideas, not a program. I wrapped each clip so you know what to look for. If the video uses a cage or a fancy board, the note underneath is how you do it in the grass for nothing.

Ground balls — get the hop you want

Hands out front. Get the hop he wants, not the one that happens to him. This is the work travel weekends skip.

In the yard. A street, a garage door, a wall. You roll it. Short hops and in-between hops. You do not need a fungo or a field.

Infield first step

Right, left, in, back. One step that actually wins the ball. Then feed it. College staffs write this down whether the weekend tournament did or not.

In the yard. Ten feet of grass. You point, he takes the step, you roll it. If you don’t have a glove for yourself, throw tennis balls. Same first step.

Fly balls

Routes first. Then the throw that holds the runner. Fly balls are best taken during batting practice until he gets great jumps — but you can teach the drop-step in the yard.

In the yard. Park or a field if you have it. You throw it up. He drop-steps and runs. A tennis ball in the street still teaches the first two steps.

Catch from his position

The arm from his position has to play. A bat without a position is not a good place for him to be. Use the same catch plan — then throw from the angle he actually plays.

In the yard. After long toss, have him make 8–10 throws from short, from the outfield grass, or from his knees if he’s a catcher. Street is enough.

More on this tool is in Defense is how he stays on a roster.