i need help fielding ground balls?

Question

i used to be a pretty good ss in club but now i started lifting and and playing high school ball and i feel great and my hitting is better but i cant field anymore.
is it because i moved to third base or because i gained weight.
help me please

drills anything
i really used to be a good fielder. that was what i prized about my baseball life, fielding. i dreaded hitting

Answer 1

I'm a baseball coach and lifting or any other exercises do not decrease your ability to field. Fielding is a hard thing to do especially when you shift positions. I was the same way. When I play shortstop I have the whole hole to myself... Ranging is no problem for me and I can get to the ball right away. This is like a freedom from a restriction... when you moved to third base, thoughts come in mind.... "Oh man! Hot corner! I'm going to get some hot shots in this area! Crap the foul line!" There are restrictions especially fielding over the foul line; you can't continue a play that is foul (unless it's a pop fly). Plus the hot corner contains a ton of spins from a grounder... plus its 90 feet from home plate compared to a longer distance at 6 position (shortstop).

Never say can't do. You need to adapt to your new surroundings... you think Cal Ripken Jr. had it easy? He had to drill his *** off to get used to third base. My advice is this:

Get a coach or another player to get some baseballs and a bat and to head to that area of the field (3rd base). Start with your driller rolling the ball to you. Who cares how hard it is rolled, as long as your eyes stick to the ball. You seem to be an experienced player so I don't really have to explain the whole get ready and pick up for a ball... just keep your glove palms out and sticking out forward.... stay low... you need to stay focus on this area... back to the drill lol... when you adapt to the speed, tell your driller to speed it up, continue with this until the driller is tired from increasing the speed. Next is the bat. Start from a short distance and let the coach tap a few to you... again adapt (straight grounders would do you good for now just to get the weird hops... to get better add some varieties... line drives at you, left right grounders, etc). Continue doing this... tell the coach to back up, do it again, and then back up until home plate. Then when you feel confident, tell him to rack some at ya (not too hard but hard enough to get the experience). This would help you a lot.

If this is still bothering you, try getting a L fence (the pitchers) or another portable fence with flexible roping) and drill yourself by throwing the ball at the fence and getting the grounders produced from it. Keep this in your area (3rd base)

Well i guess i just wrote a book to you lol. If you need help, feel free to leave a message to me. I'm not a professional coach, but I'm always here for someone to improve.

Good luck and NEVER GIVE UP!

... and also NO PAIN NO GAIN IS FALSE!!! Any pain, STOP! or your baseball career is over... (Rotator Cuff injuries, ie)

Answer 2

3B isn't called the hot corner for nothing. The trick with it is that you get a poor read of the ball coming off the bat and when a righty is up they can pull the ball and line one really hard at you. Even when a groundball is coming at you it seems really fast at 3B. So get a jump on the ball early. Some coaches disagree so listen to yours over my advice but I'd say hug the line tighter then normal and just a little back then as the batter swings take a shuffle step to your left and forward. This movement will help you avoid being flat footed when the ball gets to you. Also you're then moving toward the ball (unless it's foul). Of course the usual get in front of the ball applies. Lastly make full contact between glove and ground, don't try to be flashy with scooping the ball up like the pros do. Trying to be flashy causes errors. It may look a little rookie-ish but making that full contact will help a lot.

Check this site for some more good tips, J.T. Snow has some good grounders tips listend under 1B also: http://www.baseballcorner.com/fieldingtips.asp

Answer 3

It's mechanics dude. Go at them like a robot, keep your head down, watch the ball in the glove, use both hands, and make a decision. Preferably the right decision but that comes with repetition. Get somebody to throw you ground balls and work on that technique. Take some diving catches left and right to mix it up. You can also use a wooden paddle to take ground balls. It's impossible to catch a grounder with a wooden paddle unless you use both hands. And lastly if you make an error it's history immediately, don't dwell on it. The guys above have excellent suggestions to. Good luck!

Answer 4

Try taking ground balls on a hard floor, like cement or something. The balls will come at u faster and every once in while take a real bad hop cause of the laces, but if u can take them when theyr hit to u on cement, dirt/grass wont be a problem. And a little piece of advice, charge the ball, if u charge it u hav the decision on which bounce u want to take it, but if u back off from it, the ball just make a bad bounce right before ur glove and then ul be out of luck cause u dont hav time to adjust. Good luck!

Answer 5

all about the eyes and hands. good ready stance, knees bent, loose. move toward the ball,butt down glove touching the ground.eyes follow the ball all the way in,using 2 hands.
then you get into hips and feet with throwing motion. if you can find someplace to throw a ball against a wall, like a school bld that is on blacktop. use it. get a racquetball and use it. it will bounce faster than a tennis ball. and if you get good using a racquetball , try a golf ball, the golf ball will come at you real fast. i used these drills when i was a kid, helped alot, you just have to remember, dont be afraid of the ball.

Answer 6

It's tough to give pointers over the internet, but one thing I always found useful as an infielder was to touch the ground with your glove just before the ball gets to you. If you do that every time, a ball will NEVER go through your legs.

Answer 7

Just be sure to have the glove touching the ground so the ball doesn't roll underneath your glove. Also be sure to field the ball out in front of you....not behind. Another thing...do NOT be nervous!! If you are nervous, you will do worse. So just trust your insticts and yoiu will be fine!

Answer 8

It's as easy as taking as many ground balls as you possibly can. The technique to it is take a step with your throwing hand, then another step with your gloveside foot to about the instep of your other foot. and finally don't be afraid of the ball

Answer 9

well i would get a friend to throw a tennis ball at a wall and u try to field it.U can do it yourself but if u have a friend ur friend can help u figure out wats wrong. u probably are lifting ur glove to early. so also keep ur glove down and eat some slimfast bars (ok no really but keep ur glove down)