My goal is to use video analysis to break down the fundamentals of your favorite MLB players, with the added focus on how to teach these “pro level” mechanics to youth players.
Ok, say that there’s a runner on second, and a single to center field and the cf throws the ball to the first baseman. My question is when should the first baseman preform the deak. Like, how close should the ball be away from him? Sorry if that didn’t make any sense. Anyway great video.
As a young coach who grew up playing baseball at a decent level and now I coach youth baseball . But after some years away from the game I was rusty on all these different situations and I'm finding your channel great for refreshing all these different situational plays , and just a tremendous amount of knowledge in your videos useful for someone wanting to learn coaching or a player wanting to learn how to be better and more elite !!
Hi, nice video, just a question: don't you think that, at youth and lower level, as the runner is running at home from second, it would be better the 2b is a bridge (in particular with the hit in the alleys) instead checking the 1st base?! Thanks in advance
This video had potential and then I heard the narrator giving a few "umm" and "uhh" and essentially stroked out on the message he was trying to give. What was this video about again?
I played baseball and now tennis and this technique is almost exactly how a serve returners footwork is played. Watch a clip of Djokovic or Fed or any top pro.Also in a rally the pros will always split step before the ball comes back so they can move right or left or forward and set up.
Thanks! Unfortunately it has been years since I’ve read a baseball book, so the only one I can recommend is the classic “the science of hitting” by Ted Williams.
Glove hand foot needs to lead the progression. The easiest way to get down is to have the glove hand foot in front to begin with. Even feet in ready position spell disaster.
Yea I pitched and played firstbase from little league to highschool and played travel baseball for coaches that played pro or college. But your right you have to read the hops and move your feet but some of them are easier said than done. Because I've had times where the ball was hit so hard that it hits the lip of the grass and bounces over me. But what your taught is to be on your toes before the ball hits and what we would call the creep. Because your moving toward the plate as the pitcher releases the ball but as you are fielding the ball to get your glove down all the way to ground and get in front of the ball and let it play off of your chest. Ron Washington who is the third base coach for the Atlanta Braves also is in charge of the infielder's has some really good infield drills that I would check out for all you young infielders out there
You are absolutely correct, sometimes there isn’t much the player can do to find a hop, especially at first and third base. And funny that you mention Ron Washington, my college coach played for him in the minors for a while and often told us he was the best infield guy in the game!
@@eliteyouthbaseball2885 Yea if there is any young players who play the infield and your goal is to get better then I strongly suggest that you look up Ron Washington's infield drills
Yea I played travel baseball and played for coaches who played pro or college and I was taught these drills but I never understood them. But they started teaching these drills when I was in highschool and so I'm wanting to do baseball lessons and so this helps me if I want to teach
your videos are very informative my man, something for everyone to take away at all levels of the game regardless of age. Hope you keep posting videos regardless of how long in between. Some very great analysis as always!
ps. i also agree with the comment below suggesting to get rid of the "youth" in your name, it might help with attracting more older players (college, juco...)
Do it ALL, if you have time. This and your videos thus far are a pleasure to watch. Maybe change "youth" to something else. (Apologies for my two cents. Almost never knew about your channel. I realize that maybe I should've learned this in little league.) You have exceptionally technical content, which most don't have. Maybe even break down controversial plays by the rules. Much success to you sir.
You often refer to "youth players" but I'm here to tell you that I am a 66-year-old softball player who found this video very helpful to me as a shortstop position player!
Let's say there's nobody on base and the batter hits a gapper. The shortstop or second baseman does *not* go out to perform the roll of "cutoff" man. What is the advantage to cutting off a ball while standing in the shallow outfield? Mostly, he's going out in the event the ball gets *by* the outfielder. In that case, he is now ready to play the role of RELAY man because of the great distance the ball will now have to go to get back into the infield. Sure, sometimes the left fielder tosses the ball to the shortstop, but that's not so much a "cutoff" as it is just a simple throw to get the ball back into the infield. It's obvious to everybody that the batter is NOT going to try and stretch a routine single into a double, so there's no reason to launch the ball from left field all the way to 2nd base. But, let's say a batter who has hit a routine single to left field foolishly tries to stretch that into a double. What's the role of the shortstop on this play? Nothing, really. He aligns himself with the left fielder's throw, but the expectation is that the left fielder is throwing it to the second baseman at the bag. I can't think of any reason for that ball to be cutoff UNLESS the throw is very, very much off target.
Great question. The 2 reasons a cutoff typically cuts the ball is 1) If the throw is off line. 2) If the player at the base tells him to cut it. For example, lets say there is a base hit to left field and the third baseman gets lined up correctly as the cutoff, and the throw from the left fielder is a step or 2 towards the pitchers mound, then the cutoff should automatically cut the ball because the throw will pull the catcher off the plate. If it is a good throw, then the cutoff should just be listening to the catcher. I teach our catchers to (after he has helped to line up the third baseman properly) to only yell if he wants the ball cut, and he should only yell "cut 1, cut 2, cut 3, cut 4 (*rarely), or cut hold". That way all the third baseman has to do is listens for the catchers voice, and if he hears it he is cutting the ball. A lot of catchers will yell stuff like "let it go", but now you're asking your third baseman to try and handle an outfield throw while at the same time process exactly what the catcher is saying, and especially for the younger kids, this can be a bit too much information at one. To go back to *, occasionally, the throw will be off line, but the catcher may determine that there is still a play at the play, and that would be one of the few times the catcher will yell "cut 4". A perfect example would be this play from the World series a couple years ago ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-qHvHCj1nPec.html Hope that helps, thanks again for the great question, that is something I should have covered in the video.
@@eliteyouthbaseball2885 Excellent! I coach my son's rec teams, and he's now at the pony level. I've never heard that explained until now, and I appreciate it. One more question if I may. On the throw to home, why is the third baseman the cutoff and not the shortstop. In my mind, it seems easier for the shortstop. But there must be some reason why it's done that way. Thanks again!
Mainly because as arm strengths increase, the cutoff will need to get more depth (closer to the catcher) to place himself at that correct “head height” of the throw. At younger ages this depth is closer to the infield dirt, so as you suggested, the shortstop could easily get there, but since that’ll not be the case as kids get older, we might as well teach the correct way now so they don’t need to re-learn it later.
