Variation of the Around the Horn Drill
Tonight we did a variation of the “around the horn” drill. Everyone has thrown the ball around the horn. While it seems pretty boring, if you get the ball moving fast enough, it can be very effective. We like to usually do it like this:
- Straddle 3rd, 2nd, and 1st base.
- Pitch to the catcher.
- Have her whip the ball to 3rd, then 2nd, then 1st, then home.
- Catcher whips to 3rd and you start all over.
It is fun to see how many times you can get around without an error.
For variety we advance to “making a tag” when they receive the throw at each base.
Tonight we switched it up a bit. We had the following throwing pattern:
Catcher —> 2nd —> 3rd —> 1st—> home.
I feel that the catcher to 2nd is a more effective practice for the catcher. Likewise, 2nd to 3rd is a good practice for “pickoff” once the out is recorded at 2nd. Third to 1st is a throw that is often made and almost always the 1st baseman has to catch for the out and immediately fire home.
This went very well, and while it didn’t move quite as fast, it was much more “game friendly”.
Throwing and catching are simple skills that are often overlooked. It is usually boring to practice them, so coaches sometimes neglect them. They are too important to neglect, finding fun drills that hone those skills w/0 the kids even recognizing they are practicing is the key.
Have you used a modified drill before? Post a comment below and let us know about it.
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Combined Pitching/Catching Practices
Tonight was pitching practice. I combine my girls and boys for this practice and it works pretty well. We have balls flying all over the place. I am fortunate enough to be blessed with the best co-managers on the planet. My softball manager has been able to be there when the baseball coaches weren’t and visa-versa.
It is very good to have such great people surrounding me. They are managers in their own right. I am the assistant on the boys minor team and my assistant was a manager for years on the girls softball team. I really consider us all equals. We all have great knowledge and skill sets that compliment each other.
The progress both teams have made in the pitching department is amazing. Our first game we didn’t throw hardly any strikes on either team, and now we hardly walk any players. The progress the girls have made is awesome and the boys are developing such confidence.
It is important to hold special practices just for pitchers/catchers. It is tough to work them during the normal practice schedule and a separate day is required to provide proper instruction.
Again, I go back to the best lesson I ever learned, it came from a customer of mine who also coached softball. He said “I found that the team that practiced the most usually won the most, so we practiced the most”. So simple, yet so brilliant.
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