FIELDING DRILLS

CLOCKWORK

A cutoff-approx. 50 ft. from the catcher. And 5 or 6 outfielders-each spread out from right to left, approx. 50 ft. from cutoff. Start by hitting a ball to the girl farthest left, she throws to cutoff, cutoff throws home. After throwing to cut off the fielder then runs to take her spot, the cutoff after throwing home, runs home to become catcher, and the catcher is to run to the open spot in the outfield. In a short amount of time fielders get to field in all outfield positions, work on throws, and get some conditioning.

CONES

Set out some small cones in an arc in the outfield and then hit grounders to the outfielders. They must round the cones before reaching the ball. This teaches them to go to the path of the ball and not directly at the ball.

INFIELD/OUTFIELD RELAY

Divide the team into 2 groups. One group lines up behind third base. The other group lines up in deep right-center. Have an assistant coach acting as catcher - hit hard grounders to the first in line at third base. She fields the ball and quickly makes a sharp throw to home plate. Then hit a deep fly ball to the first in line at right-center. As this player sprints to catch the ball, the fielder that was at third base sprints to a relay position for home plate. The outfielder hits the (now) relay fielder who should be properly positioned to receive and relay the throw to home-plate.

The cycle repeats as the infielder that was the relay joins the rear of the line of outfielders. The outfielder that caught and threw the ball to the relay then joins the rear of the line of infielders.

OUTFIELD FLY

Place half the team in left field and the rest in center. The coaches hit a fly ball in between the first two outfielders.

They both go for the ball with one catching it and the other properly backing up the fielder. If the ball happens to get by both fielders then they will use a relay throw to get the ball back to the coach.

PADDLE

For this drill, make paddles with straps out of ping-pong paddles and stapled a strap on to the back of the paddle. Have the players strap on the paddles and hit them tennis balls on the ground.

This teaches them to go to the ball with both hands and also to have soft hands. It also teaches them to watch the ball all the way to the glove.

STRAIGHT LINE PICK 'EM

Take the fielders and line them up in a straight line. With plenty of space in between each one, line them up one behind the other away from the coach. Number each player such that the first person is number one, second is number two, and so on.

To execute the drill, the coach hits a hard grounder and calls one of the numbers at the same time. That number must field it, while the others step out of the way. The coach should randomly vary the numbers, so that each fielder has a chance to field a grounder and none can predict whose turn it is.

This drill teaches quick reflexes and clear thinking under pressure.

TRIANGLE

Divide your team up into 3 groups. The first group stands between first base and second base. The second group stands at short stop. The third group stands at home plate. A coach and the catcher stand a little to the side of the plate. The coach hits the ball to the first group, then the first group catches it and throws it to the second group while running to the second group position. The second group girl that catches the ball throws it to home plate while running there. You just keep on rotating in all of the positions.

GLOVES OFF

Use this drill to teach aggressive base running, hitting, and fielding. The drill uses a whiffle ball and a plastic bat. First set the bases at about 40 feet apart. Divide your team in two. One half fields and the other bats. Fielders do not use their gloves.

The ball is pitched from about 20 feet away. The batter has only three chances to hit the ball. (There are no balls or walks in this drill.) Once the ball is hit, the batter must run the bases until she reaches home plate or is tagged out. The fielders must always try to tag the runner out at first. You bat the entire line up. Then you change sides.

BAT AROUND THE HORN

One team takes the field at 1b, 2b, SS, 3b, and C. The other team is at bat. The batter hits a ground ball (from a tee, soft toss, or just toss the ball up and hit it). Fly balls are outs. An infielder catches the ball and throws to 1b. 1b then throws to one of the other infielders. That fielder throws back to 1b. 1b then throws to the other infielder (who hasn't touched the ball) who throws back to 1b. The ball then goes around the horn (1b to SS to 2b to 3b) and then to the catcher.

Each fielder must touch her base before throwing except for around the horn and home. If the batter-runner can run all the way home before the ball gets home, 1 run scores. If the ball gets home first, one putout is made. Fielders rotate one position clockwise and next batter hits. Each Fielder has caught 3 ball and made 3 throws. Every catch and throw must be accurate or a run scores. Bat until 3 outs are made and change sides. Batters need to wear helmets. Play 3-7 innings. With more than 10 players - Fielders can rotate in at 3b.

Here's an example:

Ball hit to 3rd.
3b catches batted ball, steps on 3rd, throws to 1b
1b catches ball, steps on 1st, throws to SS
SS catches ball, steps on 2nd, throws to 1b
1b catches ball, steps on 1st, throws to 2b
2b throws to 1b (now around the horn)
1b throws to SS
SS throws to 2b
2b throws to 3b
3b throws to C and c steps on home plate

GUTS

Divide the girls into two teams. Have the teams form two lines about 40 to 60 feet apart, with players shoulder to shoulder three feet apart. Place something two feet from each girl at either end of both lines. These are the goal posts. The goal posts can be buckets, cones, balls, or the parents. Hand a ball to one of the players. To play the game, the girls take turns trying to throw grounders through the opposing line. They can throw as hard as they want (make sure they're spaced far enough apart).

The rules are fairly simple: The player who fails to prevent the ball from going past the imaginary line between goal post is out of the game. The team who loses all its players first loses. The ball must bounce in front of the players to count. If a player's ball is caught on the fly without bouncing she is out - if it is dropped, she stays in. If a ball goes through the line without bouncing, it has no effect. Any throw outside the goal posts has no effect.

As players are eliminated move the goal posts in until the last player has a goal roughly six feet wide.

PEPPER

The name of this game is Pepper. A coach gathers a small group of players, which are only a few feet from him/her. The coach then hits or bunts the ball to the players in any random order, then the players must use quick reactions to retrieve the ball and accurately toss to the coach to hit again.
You have to do this drill as quickly as possible; the pace will increase as time goes on, and the players improve.

STAR DRILL

Get your infielders at their position (except the pitcher). The ball starts at the catcher, she throws to the second baseman, she throws to the third baseman, she throws to the first baseman, she throws to the shortstop, and she throws back to the catcher. The whole time this is going on you have a runner run the bases. They leave at the same time as the catcher starts the cycle.

It starts out easy for the fielders because they tend to start in close and creep in. Let them do that for a while, till it gets too easy, then make them start backing up. After they get a few steps in the grass the faster runners start making it close.

This really helps on the infielders learning to get rid of the ball quickly.

BOUNCE TOY

Find or make a spherical bunch of balls randomly put together like a bunch of molecules. It bounces every which way and is very good for eye hand coordination and reaction.

I get the athletes in a small circle and they call the ball and must catch it on the 2nd bounce (it bounces funnier on the 2nd bounce)

Very good for those rainy day practices indoors.

3-2-RUN

Place 3 balls on the ground evenly spaced, about 3/4 of the way from third base to home. The fielding team has a third baseman and a group at second base. Another team is at bat (without bats). When the coach yells, "Go", the batter (runner) runs as fast as she can to first base and on to second. The fielder at third base runs to the first ball and makes a throw to a teammate at second base, then goes to the second ball and makes a throw to the same fielder at second base and does the same thing with the third ball.

The object of this game is to make 3 good throws from third base (third base line) to second base before the runner gets to second base.

4 CORNER DRILL

This drill can be done either indoors or out using 1 ball.  Distribute your players evenly into four groups and put them on the four corners of the diamond.  Have group 4 (home) throw grounders to group 3 (third).  Have group 3 make a strong throw to group 1 (first base).  Group 1 then throws grounders to group 2 (second).  Group 2 makes a strong throw to group 4 (home).

After the player has executed the throw for their “base”, the player then rotates onto the next group using different conditioning exercises.  Group 4 sprints to group 1; group 1 runs backwards to group 2; group 2 side steps (no crossovers) to group 3; group 3 sprints to group 4.

Here’s an example for clarity:

Start at group 4 (home).

Throw a grounder to group 3 (third), then sprint to group 1 (first).

From group 1 (first), field the throw from group 3 (third) then throw a grounder to group 2 (second), then run backwards to group 2.

From group 2 (second), field the grounder from group 1 (first), throw to group 4 (home), then sprint to group 3 (third).

From group 3 (third), field the grounder from group 4 (home), throw to group 1 (first), then side step to group 4 (home).

This should all be done quickly.  This works great for tryouts and as a regular drill.

SPRINTING

This drill is for conditioning and control.

Player set-up
A catcher stands between first and second base with a discard bucket. The rest of the team stands between third base and home with gloves.

Ball set-up
Place three balls on the first baseline, spacing them a few feet apart. Do the same on the second baseline. Place 5 balls in the center of the field, vertically between catcher and player.

Drill
This drill should be run one player at a time. The player sprints to any ball on the field, and throws it to the catcher. If the throw is not good, the ball is replaced by another player for a second try. They then sprint back to where they started, and go after another ball. This goes on until all of the balls are in the bucket. This drill should be tiring, and should be run at a sprint. Time the players if they need motivation.

GROUNDERS

Position players in two lines: one line at midpoint between 1B and 2B and one line between 2B and 3B. Two coaches hit balls from opposite sides of home plate. One player shags balls for each coach. Hit three balls to first fielder who throws to shagger. After third grounder, fielder moves to shagger (running around other coach/hitter) and shagger moves to the end of the opposite fielding line. Mix in line drives and pop ups as the drill progresses.

FLY BALLS

Position players in two lines in outfield about 30 feet apart. Put one player in relay position and one player as shagger. Hit fly balls between first two players in line and have them call for the ball while the other backs up the play. The player in right line moves to the end of the left line; player in left line moves to relay position. Player in relay position moves to shagger; shagger moves to the end of the right line.

LATERAL MOVEMENT #1

Place six balls in a row, each ball 10 to 15 feet apart. Put 3 to 5 players in defensive positions in a line between balls 3 and 4. The players use a cross-over step to first ball on the right, return to starting position, pause, then use cross-over step to the first ball on the left. They continue in this manner until all balls have been covered. Bring in new group of players and repeat drill as long as necessary.
 

LATERAL MOVEMENT #2

Position 6 to 8 tossers (with a ball each) in a row with each tosser 10 to 15 feet apart. Position a receiver up to 50 feet in front of tosser 1; tosser 1 throws a grounder to receiver who throws the ball back to tosser 1 and gets back into defensive position. Tosser 2 throws a ground ball to the receiver's right who moves laterally to field the ball and throws back to tosser 2. After last tosser, receiver reverses direction and then takes the last tosser's position. Tosser 1 becomes the receiver. Vary by throwing line drives and soft flies.
 

LATERAL MOVEMENT #3

Have players pair up. One player assumes fielding position about ten feet from wall. Partner stands behind player and throws ball against wall so that player must move laterally to catch the ball. Tosser should work the player from side to side for two or three minutes. Rotate positions and continue through several rotations.
 

LATERAL PICK UP

Players pair up with each standing about 6 to 10 feet apart. Tosser rolls ball about 5 to 6 feet to the right of the fielder who moves laterally to field the ball and throw it underhand back to the tosser. Tosser then rolls the ball 5 to 6 feet to the fielder's left and continues in this manner for 5 to 10 repetitions before players exchange positions. Be sure fielder follows underhand toss before getting back into fielding position.

WEAVE DRILL

Players line up in left field. Tosser 1 stands between 2B and 3B, tosser 2 behind pitcher's rubber, tosser 3 between 1B and 2B. Tosser 1 has ball bucket and throws a short fly to 1st player who catches the ball running in and throws it back to tosser 1. Player then runs toward CF and catches a fly over her shoulder from tosser 1. Player throws ball to tosser 2, runs in for short fly, returns ball to tosser 2 and then runs toward RF for long fly, throws the ball to tosser 3 and repeats sequence with tosser 3. 2nd player starts drill as soon as 1st player makes throw to tosser 2. When all players are in RF, repeat the drill in the opposite direction.

LINE DRIVE

Two or more coaches stand against one wall; players line up at one end of the room along opposite wall. First player runs laterally along wall; 1st coach throws a ball she has to stretch for. Player stops quickly, pivots, and throws back to coach then moves laterally to receive throw from next coach. Players form new line at the other end of the room. Reverse direction after all players have moved to opposite end.

FUNGO

Position one player 60 feet in front of player/hitter; position shagger to the right of the hitter (or left, if left-handed hitter). Form as many groups of three as desired; have some groups hitting grounders in the infield and others hitting flies in the outfield. Have hitter hit 10 grounders or 10 flies to the fielder, then rotate -- fielder becomes shagger, shagger becomes hitter, hitter becomes fielder.
 

CHARGING DRILL

Players form lines of 3 or more facing a tosser who is 50 to 70 feet away. Tosser throws a grounder so the player must charge to the midpoint to field the ball before throwing it to the tosser and going to the end of the line. Outfielders can be positioned 90 feet from tosser and perform the drill in the same manner. For outfielders, emphasize dropping to one knee on routine grounders to ensure the ball does not get past her.

FLY BALL PASS #1

Players pair up standing side by side. The receiver runs out about 15 feet and the tosser leads her with a fly ball so that she has to catch the ball over her left shoulder. After quickly getting set and throwing the ball back to the tosser, the receiver runs back to the starting position. Continue with 4 more throws that increase the distance by 15 feet each time. Switch positions. Then switch again to perform the drill with throws over the receiver's right shoulder.

FLY BALL PASS #2

Players with one ball each form a line of 3 or more next to a tosser. The first player hands her ball to the tosser and runs out to catch a ball over her left shoulder. After the catch, the receiver sprints back to the end of the line. After 5 or more repetitions, switch to throwing the ball over the right shoulder.

DOUBLE RELAY

Put 3 players in a line, evenly spaced, 50 feet apart. Player on one end turns her back to the others, rolls her ball out in front, runs it down, and turns to throw to the player in the middle who relays the throw (turning to the glove side) to the player on the other end. Player receiving the ball turns her back and repeats the drill. After 6 throws, the player in the middle rotates with a player on an end. Drill continues until each player has been in the middle a specified number of times.

FENCE DRILL

Drill has as many tossers as the side fence or wall area allows. Players form up in groups of two or more. Player stands 20 feet from the fence or wall and the tosser throws a pop up close to the fence/wall. Player locates fence/wall using outstretched arm, then comes back to catch the ball. Players rotate after 5 catches each. Be sure players switch directions so they have to find the fence from both the glove hand side and throwing hand side.

JURISDICTIONS

Put fielders in defensive positions and have two tossers throw fly balls and pop ups between them. Fielder going back should normally go for the ball until called off by a fielder coming in. Fielder going back should only call for the ball when she is certain of the catch. On balls hit between the outfielders, the centerfielder is in charge. On balls hit between the shortstop and second baseman, the shortstop is in charge. Pitcher yields to all infielders.

FLY BALL OVER THE HEAD

Players form a line about 15 feet in front and to the right or left of the coach. First player in line steps out to face the coach who throws a ball over her head and to one side. Player must take a drop step and run to the ball. Be sure the player runs with her glove tucked and put emphasis on running to the spot instead of drifting to the ball. The player should be in a position to throw the ball once the catch is made.

WRIST SNAPS

Players pair up 5 yards apart. Players support throwing elbow with glove and, using only wrist action, throw to each other for desired period.

ONE-KNEE THROWING

Players pair up and kneel on ground 10 yards apart. Right handed players kneel on right knee with left leg out front. Players throw to each other for desired period, then move another 5 yards apart. Emphasize proper shoulder turn, hip turn, and follow through. Continue moving apart and throwing for desired period of time and distance apart.

QUICK TOSS

Players pair up and throw to each other. Players must be moving forward and through the ball when they catch it and must be in position to throw quickly to partner. Emphasis should be on catching the ball with stride foot forward so a quick throw can be made. Players must back up quickly after each throw so that proper distance can be maintained between them. Players should move apart in 10 foot increments after an appropriate number of throws are made. Players can also throw grounders to each other.

THROWING ON THE RUN

Form two lines at opposite ends of workout area. First player from one line, with ball held up, runs toward first player in opposite line. At midpoint between lines, she throws the ball to the receiver and runs to the end of the receiver's line. The player receiving the ball puts a tag on "runner" and then runs toward first player in opposite line. At midpoint between lines, she throws the ball to the receiver and runs to the end of the line. Continue until everyone has performed at least four throws.

STATIONARY BALL THROW

Players form a line about 20 feet in front of coach. Each player has a ball. First player throws her ball to the coach who places it on the ground. Player runs to ball, picks it up and throws to player 60 to 90 feet away. Player receiving the ball keeps it and runs to the end of the line. Player throwing the ball runs to the receiver's position. Vary the direction of throws.

CIRCLE DRILL

Drill used to practice backhand and underhand throws. Players form a circle around a single player in the middle. Player on circle throws underhand to player in the middle and follows her throw to the center of circle. Player in the middle throws backhand to next player (clockwise) on the circle and follows throw. Player receiving the ball throws underhand to new player in the middle who throws backhand to the next player on the circle. Try using two balls at opposite ends of the circle and two players in the middle.

RELAY

Three or more players are spaced up to 50 feet apart from each other. Players make relay throws to each other being sure to turn towards the glove side as they throw to the next player in line. Turn this into a game by awarding prizes to the team that performs the fastest.

AROUND THE HORN

Players are positioned at their bases with both shortstop and second baseman at 2B. Catcher throws to third baseman who throws to second baseman covering 2B; second baseman throws to first baseman who throws to catcher. Then repeat in opposite direction with first baseman throwing to shortstop covering 2B. Each player applies a tag to "runner" before throwing to next player.

                  
HITTING DRILLS

BASKETBALL

This is a great drill for teaching follow-through. Get a couple of old basketballs or soccer balls and take most of the air out of them. Place them on one of those orange cones you see at construction sites. Have the batter take her normal swing and follow-through right through the basketball.

BATTING BEAM

Construct a batting beam with pieces of 2" x 4"s. The main piece should be about 4' long. Two cross pieces about 18" should be nailed about 16" from each end of main piece. Have player stand on this during soft toss. The player should remain on beam throughout swing.

The beam encourages the batter to be on the balls of the her feet and to maintain a balanced swing. It also helps the batter to take their timing step straight to the pitcher.

DROP

The drill consists of a dropper (coach or player) and a hitter. The hitter takes her normal batting stance facing a net or fence about 6-8 feet away from the net. The dropper (coach or player) stands about 1 1/2 steps to the plate side of the hitter and 1 1/2 steps in front of the hitter (toward the pitcher),  so that the ball will drop directly into the contact zone, which is slightly out in front of the hitter. The dropper drops the ball into the contact zone and the hitter must see the ball (she watches the dropper drop the ball) and hit it before it hits the ground with a level swing and proper stride, pivot and hands to the ball mechanics. If the hitter gets wide too early, she will never hit the ball except on an upward swing, which must be corrected immediately. Start the dropping height as high as the dropper can reach and then as the hitters become more adept at hitting the ball, slowly drop the ball from lower heights until you are dropping the ball from the players shoulder height.

KNEE HITTING DRILL

Set up a net with a mat in front of it. Place a medium size orange cone on the mat. Have the hitter kneel on their back knee. The front leg should be straight out in front towards the net. Place a ball on the cone and have them hit. This allows them to concentrate on the proper hand and arm movement without worrying about the legs.

BATTING

The players arrange on the field (just anywhere) and 1 player bats. If the batter hits a fly ball and if someone catches it, then the person who caught it gets to bat, BUT if the batter hits a grounder and a player fields it, then the batter lays the bat on the ground. The fielder has to stay in the same spot where they fielded the ball and rolls the ball on the ground and tries to hit the bat. If she hits the bat, then she gets to bat.

BUNTING

Bunting - Draw sections in the dirt in front of home plate. In each section, write a number representing a point value based on what the coach considers the perfect bunt. For example, a two-foot diameter circle in that no-man's area between the pitcher, catcher and either 1st or 3rd base. Divide the girls up into teams. Each girl takes her turn bunting. She is awarded the point value of the section that the ball stops in (not lands in).
After every player has taken her turn, total up the points and reward the winners.

EYE ON THE BALL

If your players batting mechanics are good, and they're still not hitting the ball, they are probably not seeing it correctly, or perhaps not following it right to the bat. Here are a few drills that are designed to really keep your eye on the ball:

BALLS AND STRIKES DRILL
Have the pitchers throw pitches and the batters just watch the ball into the glove and call balls and strikes. You'll be amazed at what batters think are balls. The best thing for good eyes are just seeing live pitching...lots of it, even if it is just being a batter while your pitcher is doing a workout. You can learn to read different pitches, and the pitcher gets better practice when there is a batter in the box.

HITTING DIFFERENT OBJECTS
Try golf whiffle balls, small coffee can lids (thrown like frisbees), pinto beans, etc, anything that has them concentrating on a smaller than usual target and hitting something that moves, rather than moving in a straight line. This will improve their concentration and teach them to follow the ball all the way in.

TWO-BALL SOFT TOSS
Get two different color whiffle balls (say red & white) or mark half of the balls with a different color dot. Works better with whiffle baseballs or even golf whiffle balls. Its easier to toss smaller balls plus helps hitters in focus and coordination. Toss the two balls at the same time (from same hand) and ask the player to hit one of them, either red or white. This helps players to coordinate, focus and react to hit the correct color ball.

PICK A NUMBER
Take 3 or 4 balls, write a number on each ball. The players job is to see the ball well enough to tell you which number is on the pitched ball. 

ONE HAND OFF

Kneel on the left knee parallel to the tee. Take 25 swings with the forehand and 25 swings with the backhand. Work on keeping the hands in and drawing a line across the chest as the hands take the bat to the ball.

DOUBLE TEE DRILL

Set one tee in front of the plate; set the other behind the plate and two inches higher. Have hitter take proper stance, except farther back from the plate than normal in order to hit the ball in front of the plate. Place ball on front tee and hit the ball without disturbing the back tee.

INSIDE/OUTSIDE DOUBLE TEE

Hitter sets up in normal stance in front of double tee. Place one ball on inside corner in front of plate and another ball outside and in middle of plate. Tell batter to hit one ball or the other without changing her hitting position.

ONE HAND TOSS

If right handed, hold the bat in the left hand in the ready position. Toss a ball up and out front with the right hand and draw a line across the chest as the hands move to the ball and drive it. This forces the hitter to keep her hands in and to execute a proper swing. Reverse for left handed hitters.

SOFT TOSS

Coach takes a position in front and to the side of the hitter. Using any of various size whiffle balls, toss ball out in front of the hitter, using little arc, and observe mechanics.

HIGH/LOW SOFT TOSS

Set up in the same manner as soft toss, only the coach throws two balls into hitting zone and then calls out which one to hit -- either "high" or "low." This forces the hitter to wait until the last minute to start swing.

DROP TOSS

Hitter sets up as in soft toss. Player or coach stands on bucket, chair or milk crate and drops ball into hitting zone. Forces batter to take hands straight to the ball. Batter should not move prior to release of the ball. Vary releases.

TOSS FROM BEHIND

Hitter sets up normally for soft toss, only coach tosses ball from behind the hitter. Coach can use tennis balls or regular softballs for this drill. This drill forces the hitter to wait until the last second to start swing and reinforces a quick, compact swing. 
 

REAR WALL SWING

Have hitter stand so fence or wall is directly behind her. Have her take normal swing. If the bat hits the wall, she is dropping her hands or sweeping. Use the wall or fence drill in the batting cage or in soft toss to get instant feedback on whether a player is dropping her hands.

   
BASERUNNING DRILLS

BASERUNNING SITUATION

Split the team in half and form two lines at home plate, one staggered ahead and inside the other. The coach stands at the pitcher's circle with two bats. When he (she) hits the bats together, the lead runners in both lines take off. One runs straight through first base as if she is beating out a groundball, the other makes a turn and continues into second. You now have runners at first and second and two lines of runners still at home. At the next crack of the bat, the drill continues in the same manner but the runner on second now rounds third and scores while the runner on first takes third. Now every base should be occupied. It continues again, with the runner on third tagging up and scoring. Two runners will now score each time the bats are hit together. They will then return to the end of the opposite line and the bases will always remain loaded.

OUT OF THE BOX

Out of the Box Drill: This drill is similar to the base drill, but this time the runner is a batter. The dropper is lined up a short distance from home plate in the base path to 1st base.

Have the batter take a normal swing with a "bat" (use a fake bat, or top of a batting tee). As the "bat" enters the impact or contact zone, drop the tennis ball and have the batter run out of the batters box and catch the ball before it bounces on the wood a second time. Once again, start out at a short distance and increase the distance to challenge the batters.

THUNDER BALL

Have a fielder on first base and one on third base (team 1). Place a ball on a tee or soft toss it to a hitter (team 2). The hitter hits the ball and runs to as many bases as she can reach before both fielders have touched the ball. For each base she reaches before the fielders touch the ball, her team gets 1 point.

FIRST AND THIRD

Split up your team into two teams and have the catcher on each team make up signs for her players. One of the teams will play defense in the field, while the other team runs the bases. The team running the bases will begin with a runner on both first and third, with the object being to score a run.

This becomes a game of competition, with the team scoring the most points winning. The runner on first has only three pitches in which she must attempt to steal second base. A successful steal of second base will be worth one point, and a run scored will be worth three points. If the girl scores at second base and the other is out at home then they get one point and have one out. However, if the runner scores at home and the girl is out at second, the out does not count because the girl scored.

Defensively, the object is to stop the runner from scoring while also attempting not to give the runner second base on an easy steal. The catcher calls the play before the pitcher pitches the ball.

LEAP FROG

Have your players lay on the ground in a circle with their heads toward the middle of the circle. Designate a player to start the action. When she starts, she gets up and runs over every player in the circle until she gets to an open spot (vacated by the first player she has run over)and then she lays down on the ground (usually falls down). After the starter has run over the first player on the ground, she gets up and runs over every player until she finds an open spot (vacated by the first player she has run over) and then lays down.

When played right, you will have 3 or 4 girls running over players and falling down at all times. The players love this game and it is a good warm-up exercise.

PICKOFF

This is a good drill for all aspects of stealing. Put players at each of the infield positions. Have the rest of the team put on helmets and line up at 1st base. The base runners will each run the bases in this pattern: lead off, steal. Only one runner on the bases at time. The first runner gets ready on first. The pitcher pitches the ball and the runner takes a lead. The catcher attempts a pick-off at first and the runner tries to get back in time. On the next pitch the runner attempt to steal second and the catcher tries to throw her out. The runner proceeds with a big lead at second, stealing third and big lead off at third. The final pitch for that runner is a deliberate passed ball/wild pitch which gives the catcher and pitcher a chance to practice this play.

After they have done this drill a couple of times, allow the runners to do a "delayed steal" on their lead-offs. If the catcher throws to first, the runners can attempt to go to second. This way the catchers learn to recognize the delayed steal and run the base runner back.

SCRAMBLED EGGS

Have 1/4th the players line up behind first base, 1/4th the players line up behind second base, 1/4 the players line up behind 3rd base, and 1/4th the players line up at home. You will need to have a dozen or so eggs (not hardboiled). Give 2 eggs (one for each hand) to the first player in line at home. She has to run to first base and slide, with her hands up so as not to break the eggs. The first player in line at first base, gets the eggs from the runner and runs to second base and slides. This continues until all the players have run and slid.

THE RUNNING

Have half of the team line up at second base and half the team line up at home. On the signal, one player from each team runs the bases until she reaches the base she started out at. When she gets there, she tags the next runner in line and she runs the bases. This is done until all the runners have run. Whoever reaches their base first wins. The other team has to pick up the bases.

RESISTANCE RUNNING

Players pair up. Player 1 runs at full speed with player 2 running backwards, in front of her, applying resistance to her shoulders. Players run about 100 feet and then reverse positions. Continue until all players have performed drill at least four times.
 

EXPLOSIVE START

Players line up at first base. A pitcher performs her motion and, using a rocker start with right foot on outside corner of the base, the first player times her start to the pitcher's motion.