What I've Learned From Baseball

1st Base
In general, it takes two hits to score from first base.
So think in terms of playing small ball to advance runners, create opportunities to steal, or the more advanced hit and run.

2nd Base
Second base is called scoring position for a reason.
It takes one hit to score most runners from here...and has the added bonus of eliminating the force or double play and pressures the defense and your opposing coaches further.

3rd Base
There are 29 different ways to score from 3rd base!
Wow! You just have to attack this base and get yourself there. It puts so much pressure on opposing coaches, pitchers, catchers and infielders that you could steal an extra game or three over the course of a season!

Some Coaches Notes On Baserunning
I wish I knew why so little time is spent on baserunning in practice.
Maybe there’s just so much to do coaches are less comfortable with their knowledge, and as I said, I don’t know.

But what if it were true that you could actually steal a few extra victories in a season? Would you feel it was important enough to rethink it? I hope, yes. But where would you start...and how would you implement it?
Some quick thoughts:

1. Decide how much time you would dedicate. I think 20 minutes 2-3 practices in a row. Now they can get better, quicker and it becomes a habit for the entire team.
2. Explain to the team about a new weapon they will be using:  baserunning!
3. Let players know that all players can help, not just Johnny Fast-Guy.
4. Find the knowledge you need and practice it on yourself. If the boys know this is new and you will be learning together, it takes undo pressure off everyone including you! We will learn as a team!
5. Be prepared for your 2nd practice drills to go 20-30% better than the 1st! Be prepared to get excited (as will your players) as this happens.
6. Make it a part of your practice routine every 2-3 practices to keep 'em sharp. You’ll even come up with more ideas that I PROMISE you’ll “get” as your interest peaks!

Base Running - Youth Baseball's Tenth Man
 by Marty Schupak

Anyone who saw the 2000 World Series saw one of the worst exhibitions of base running ever. Especially in game one when the New York Mets literally ran themselves out of a rally which cost them the game, and quite possibly could have changed the whole outcome of the Series.

Who could forget when Timo Perez of the Mets was on first base and, after the batter hit the ball deep to left, slowed down while running between first and second only to be thrown out at home because the ball ended up being in play?

Or how about when Todd Ziele hit a slow grounder to third and didn't run it out because it was in foul territory, only to have the ball kick fair before it reached third. Ziele was thrown out while almost standing in the batter's box.

Then there was Jay Payton hitting a three foot roller in front of home plate and he thought it was foul and stood in the batter's box. The Yankee catcher, Jorge Posada, picked it up and tagged out Payton while holding the runner on second. We also saw Mike Piazza being picked off first base in the same game.

What can we teach our youth baseball players from this? Base running has always been very underrated in baseball. In youth baseball, some coaches (including myself) claim you can get one to three extra runs per game with aggressive smart base running.

One year my team won the league championship and a few months following the season I picked up my score book and after going through it, discovered that my team had been thrown out at home 13 times during the season in the course of 23 games - probably a record that will never be broken. During the season I didn't realize that we were thrown out this much but we must have scored about 25-30 extra runs by being aggressive and smart on the bases.

I've learned over the years that my fastest base runners aren't necessarily the smartest, and the slow base runners can make up for their lack of speed by being smart. But can a team practice smart base running? Are there drills to help even the slowest base runners?

There are....

This is an excerpt. Read the full article online at this link: Base Running, Youth Baseball's 10th Man

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Coach JP Note
On the right side of all our articles, I add various problem solvers that relate to the articles you read. In this base running article, you will find DVDs and books that will get you the great start and plan you need...inexpensive insurance for a better season for you!

High Percentage Baserunning

Target Bases
Available in sets of 3 bases, each "Target" base is designed to reduce injuries and teach players to run the bases correctly. They are youth field sized (14" x 14") and fit any posts used at a youth ballfield.

The 59 Minute Baseball Practice
Marty Schupak's 34-minute DVD has over 30 easy to follow drills that makes it simple to run a high quality practice for kids in under one hour.

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- Coach JP

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