If your child plays as an infielder on their local baseball team, they may occasionally struggle with fielding ground balls. It can be frustrating for the player when they have trouble fielding a ground ball, as the baseball can roll into the outfield and cost the team one or more runs. It's important to know that your child can make significant improvements in this part of the game by attending a baseball training program that focuses on playing infield positions. Instructors will break down the process of fielding a ground ball into several steps, and then give the children in attendance ample opportunities to practice these steps. Here are some things that your child will learn.
Charge The Baseball
Some young infielders have a habit of waiting for the baseball to reach them, rather than being proactive and running toward it. On a slow-rolling ground ball, the player who has just hit the ball has a good chance of making it safely to first base when the infielder waits for the ball to reach them. Your child's baseball training instructors will emphasize the importance of moving toward it — something that is called "charging the ball" in the world of baseball. Getting to the baseball faster will increase your child's ability to throw the runner out.
Get The Body Low
Infielders need to get their bodies low to field the baseball. While it can be tempting to simply reach down and attempt to scoop up the ball in their glove, your child needs to bend at the knees and get their torso low. Doing so allows them to better see the trajectory of the ball, which can have an impact in getting their glove into the right position to field the ball. Additionally, if they miss the ball with their glove, it will often bounce off their body instead of roll behind them.
Use Both Hands
Even though your child will use their glove to pick up the ground ball, they should incorporate their throwing hand into this step. One fundamental that many instructors will teach is keeping the throwing hand close to the glove. If the child has their glove on the ground with the palm facing upward, they can hold their other hand just above the open glove. The throwing hand in this position serves two purposes. If the baseball hits the palm of the glove and bounces skyward, it will hit the hand and drop back into the glove. Even if that doesn't happen, having the throwing hand close to the glove will allow your child to quickly retrieve the ball to throw it to the appropriate base.
Look for a baseball training program to enroll your child in.