fear of groundballs

Question
I have an 8 year old currently playing all-stars.  He plays shortstop but has a definite fear of groundballs.  He is a talented hitter, has a good arm, but I need to figure how to shake him of this fear.  It is not debilitating, he can make plays, but, he is not as good as I think he can be.  Thanks, John Yannelli

Answer
John,

Most coaches I know try using tennis balls during practice. They don't hurt, and because of their bounciness, it really does train the player to concentrate on the path of the ball. After lots of practice with the tennis balls, you can then move on to the safety baseballs (which are softer than a regular ball), and then eventually to the real thing.

Most important is to be sure you're teaching him the correct way to field grounders, which will result in far less bad hops. First, charging and attacking the ball is very important. With the player moving forward towards the ball, it effectively flattens out the path of the ball and results in less unwanted hops. Also, it's important to feild the ball out in front, rather than letting it get way in to your body. This is easier to demonstrate than it is to describe in writing, but it's VERY important.

Hopefully the above will help. When doing these drills, also make sure he's having fun with it. Kids are amazing learners when they're doing something they like to do. Eventually his fear will fade and you'll end up with a good little ballplayer.

Mike Fortunato