Just Want To Keep Getting Better

Question
hey coach,
well the main reason im sending u this is because i just want to keep getting better at defense.im already and all state second base man but i dont want to just stop there i want to be known as the best second baseman ever and yea u get the point. so i was just wondering if u could help me out by tellin me some drills that i can do to really improve my defense and also i play some outfeild so i know u can help me on that part. well thx even if u can't help


Answer
Congratulations on your All-State selection.  I never really played the infield, and I don't know if there is anything that I could teach someone who is All-State at that position.

All I can say is practice, practice, practice.  You have to shag a million fly balls.  When other guys try to weasel into more batting practice, just stay out in the outfield and judge as many flies as you can--even the ones that aren't hit near you.  Use your ears and eyes like you do when you watch a game at a stadium.  Guess how far the hit is going by the sound of it, or the look of the swing that sent it into the air.  Good outfielders guess in a split second and they are on the way to where the ball is going to land...they are on their way instantly--before they even know what they are doing...the crack of the bat sends you after the ball.  This is what is known as "getting a jump," like a track star popping out of the starting blocks.  You have to see many many fly balls to start getting good jumps on the ball.  It comes over time.  But even the ball is not coming to you, try to guess exactly, in your mind, where it is going to land.



In the outfield, one thing that is sometimes overlooked is simple good running form.  If you improve your speed, you will catch more balls, period.  In the outfield, it is very important to run smoothly.  If you come down heavy when you run, your view of the ball in the sky will bounce and move.  One thing you can do is practice jogging while staring at something very high above you--the top of a telephone pole, or stadium lights above your baseball field or track.  I used to jog around a track and, while staring at that one point, I used to run the straightaway and concentrate just on the point.  I would see how still I could keep the point as I ran.  I would run toward the point...and I would run away from the point (looking sideways or over my shoulder.)  I would see how straight and how smooth I was running.  When you jog a few laps on a track and you get tired, you begin to land on your heels and you see with each landing, the point you stare at, it begins to bounce and jar itself from where you were concentrating.  Then you understand how much better off you are if you land on the front of your shoe instead of the heels.  Give it a try for a few laps.  Being a better runner will help you chase down infield flies too.  Another thing: make sure no one is in front of you when you run down the track (if your eyes are focused on the high spot!)

Running is just one thing.  There's more you can practice but running smooth is very important when you are judging flyballs.  (It will never hurt you to run anyway.  Maybe you'll be a better baserunner for it too.)

In the outfield, I always thought it was important to get your own feel for each batter too.  One guy stands far off the plate...lean to right field....he's likely to drive it there...next guy crowds the plate...looks like he'll pull the ball to left...lean that way then.  Yell to the bench "what'd he do last time?"  Lean the way he went last time.  If you have a pitcher throwing real heat, many of the hitters will be behind the pitch and go opposite field.  This is hard to teach, but I am just saying it is good to have your own "feel" for where the ball might go.  If you were leaning the wrong way, you lose a step, but when you are right about it a lot, it's great.  You get confidence and start guessing just a little more.  One or two steps you make can get you to a ball you would have missed otherwise.  I used to play little games in my head about knowing where the ball was going.  Tried to see how many times I would be right about it.

Good luck at 2B.  Sounds like that is your best position.  If you want to see--in my opinon--the greatest defensive 2b of all time, check out Bill Mazeroski.  Many people say he was the best ever.  There was an ESPN SportsCentury on him.  Here is a guy who made it to the Hall of Fame because of his glove.  Look him up.

Hope this helps.  If not, please write again.

Another thing, if you want to improve your running form--is there a track coach at your school?  Ask him to wacth you run.  Tell him you want to make sure you have good form.  Track coaches watch for wasted energy.  They want you to run straight as an arrow and smooth.  They want your feet to touch the ground as little as possible--no heavy landing--just quick, light, leg speed, landing on the front of your shoes.  Ever notice that track shoes only have spikes in the front?  Sprinters--their heels never really touch down at all.

Good luck.