365 Days to Better Baseball - Leave the Web Gems to the Big Leaguers

Wednesday Web Gem Tips Last resort only

Great plays are so cool to watch on TV, but one thing to stress to young players is that what superior athletes, with unbelievable throwing arms, can do, is not usually best for young players to copy. Those great plays involve players leaving their feet with either a dive or slide, before getting up and making the throw, or possibly throwing from their knees. Once again, great athleticism is necessary. Most youth ballplayers are not capable of doing that and having a chance to get an out in that manner.

The problem is that kids think it is so cool and begin to leave their feet on balls where leaving the feet are not necessary because they are trying to mimic the big league plays.

As implied, once kids leave their feet, there is no possible way to throw the runner out, even when they make the catch. On the other hand, if they would not have left their feet to catch the ball, they may have caught it and been able to make a throw and a possible out.

Lesson to teach young ball players

Leaving the feet to catch a ball is a last resort method, when that is the only way to possibly catch it or stop it. Of course, leaving the feet to stop a ball when no throw is intended is something different, and another thing to be taught young players.