Let the Game Come to You
Hideki Matsui catching a fly ball during the Yankees game. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
This is such a difficult game to play. It is a game of failures where if you succeed 3 out of 10 times you can earn millions of dollars! That is one of the hardest things to teach young players. That they have to let the game come to them, they cannot force it. In fact, the more they do force it, the worse they get!
I see this most often when learning to catch fly balls and learning to hit. They lunge forward trying to hit the ball before it gets to them. What they really need to do is sit back and let the ball get deep into their driving zone. The other thing they do, and this is mainly the younger players, is immediately run forward on a fly ball, every time the ball drops behind them.
To counteract overrunning the fly ball, have the player take one step back immediately at contact. It is much easier to get a feel for where it is going to land and the player can come forward much faster than they move backwards. Every time the ball lands behind a player I say, “where was your first step?” they answer, “forward.” I say, “where did the ball land?” they answer, “Behind me.” After about the millionth time they almost get it.
So make sure you are always preaching to your players to sit back and let the game come to them. Success in this sport takes time, patience, and persistence. Character traits anyone would love to develop.
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