One major thing every catcher must do before the inning starts: reduce the lip. That dirt lip in front of home plate sends balls straight to the backstop, and it can be the difference between winning and losing the game. Cover up all those lips so the ball does not hit the lip and get away. #youthbaseball #baseball #catchers #coaching #playerdevelopment

Is your child in a slump? Try Addressing these items first before you move to swing adjustments. Most kids have a good enough swing to get hits, as is

I’m so conscious of avoiding “Daddy Ball” that I sometimes put my own son at a disadvantage. Last week, I probably should’ve batted him higher based on his practices and ability. He hasn’t shown it in games a ton, but part of why I kept him lower was worrying that parents who don’t see his process would think I’m favoring him. I don’t think people see me that way, but it’s still something I wrestle with. If anything, I probably make it harder on him because he’s my kid. Any other parent-coaches deal with this?

Coach Catch Fielding Gauntlet, for ages 8 and under. Does your practice look like a zoo when your kids play partner catch? Remove the partner catch and have them play catch with coach instead. Split into groups of 3 or 4 along a line with poly spots. Start with basic catch and hand eye work, then first base footwork striding with the glove side foot, then ground balls in the triangle with a shuffle shuffle throw, then pop flies pinky to pinky and thumb to thumb, and finish with the goalie drill where they do everything they can to keep the ball from going by them. #youthbaseball #baseball #fielding #coaching #practicedrills

To every baseball dad trying to find the balance: you’re not the only one!

The 4 base infield drill, stolen from the University of Texas. Infielders are not robots. Train them to be athletes. UT runs a four base infield drill where middle infielders work as both second baseman and shortstop: left foot to the bag as a second baseman, right foot to the bag as a shortstop, bouncing balls, high throws, low throws, rocker steps, balls hit straight at them. Everybody gets a ton of work in. It takes a few coaches helping out, and it is worth it. #youthbaseball #baseball #fielding #coaching #drills

The number 1 most important infield skill. Right, left, catch. Right, left, throw. If you can get all 12 kids on your team doing that, you are going to have a really good infielding team. #youthbaseball #baseball #fielding #coaching #drills

How to get more strikes for your pitcher. As explained to youth...  #catcher #catching

Glove eye coordination drill for your little ones. Before they are ready for partner catch, start with two hands, palms up. Then two hands down low. Then one hand down low. The hardest one: thumb facing the ground across the body. Once they have it down, test them. Come at them from anywhere and make them be ready, be ready, be ready. #youthbaseball #baseball #fielding #coaching #littleleague

Catchers: set the tone for your pitcher. Give your catchers words to lead with. Repeat after me: stay positive, win this pitch, stay with me, good thoughts, rhythm, play catch, compete, believe in yourself. Your catcher is the middle linebacker of the defense. They set the tone for the entire game. #youthbaseball #baseball #catchers #coaching #playerdevelopment

When your players are running at your mid game and ask "Can I play shortstop?" "I wanna play first base!"... BUT you know they are absolutely NOT ready for it and CANNOT play there... How do you typically handle it?

Big problem I’m seeing across youth baseball. We need more volunteers, more fields and more intentional design of gameplay.

Hitting in 5 simple steps. No overcomplicating it. Step 1: check your feet, check your hands. Step 2: lift and hinge at the waist. Step 3: load back. Step 4: stride. Step 5: swing, and hold the finish. #youthbaseball #baseball #hitting #coaching #drills

The Maze Drill: a competition way to get kids throwing. For kids who cannot just play catch back and forth yet, start them sideways. Shuffle, shuffle, shuffle, then throw and try to knock the ball off the tee. Fun, competitive, and it sneaks in a ton of throwing reps. #youthbaseball #baseball #coaching #drills #playerdevelopment

Acceptable dugout chatter versus what you CANNOT say

Wall Ball: tons of throwing and catching reps, no coach needed. Line up the team, everyone wears a hat, grab a tennis ball and any wall. Rule 1: throw over the line and hit the wall. Rule 2: the next player catches it behind the line. Bobble it and that is an out. Scoring is the fun part. First out: hat goes sideways. Second out: hat goes backwards. Third out: the hat comes off and you are out of the game, but you keep playing for fun. Kids will play 20 minutes nonstop and beg for more. #youthbaseball #baseball #coaching #practicedrills #funfirst

Setup at the plate for ages 8 and under. Back foot on the edge of the plate, toes at the knob of the bat. From there they can cover the outside part of the plate. Rest the bat on the back shoulder and stick the fingers straight out. Why it matters: at contact you want palm up, palm down, which is strong. Crossed over fingers roll the wrist and take the bat out of the zone fast. #youthbaseball #baseball #hitting #coaching #littleleague

1B footwork drill: call the color. Coach calls a color and the first baseman moves their feet to the right spot: blue, yellow, purple, forehand and backhand. Love that footwork. If your 1B cannot catch the ball properly you will not get outs. Drill the feet and the picks follow. #youthbaseball #baseball #fielding #coaching #drills

Two fixes for kids who cast. Fix 1: put the belly button up against the knob and take swings, throwing the hands inside. A classic drill that keeps them from hitting the fence. Fix 2: stand about a foot off the fence. If they drop their hands and arm bar, they feel it right away. Make it a challenge and have them explode. #youthbaseball #baseball #hitting #coaching #drills

Defend the Castle: a fielding drill kids beg to play. The bucket is the castle. The player stands between two cones and cannot let the ball get to the castle. They stay athletic, moving their feet to the ball. Run it with four kids at once and coaches on each side, working together to protect the bucket. Fun, competitive, and keeps them moving. #youthbaseball #baseball #fielding #coaching #practicedrills