Todd sent his [tag]softball coaching philosophy[/tag] and gave these suggestions for [tag]outfield[/tag] [tag]drills[/tag]. Keep ‘em coming!
I coach young [tag]softball[/tag] players; I started at 12u and now at 2nd yr 14u. I look into my group of girls as a 3rd party looking in. I see things other don’t or can’t and I design, make, or find a way to correct and improve on them. The success has been wonderful and the girls see the improvement almost instantly. This leads them to trust me without question or hesitation and this saves time and time is very short and precious.
Drill #1 The Outfielders Drill
This is to correct poor tracking and slow starts to a ball in flight. Line your outfielders in any outfield position. We use a pitching machine to sail balls deep into the pocket or burn a line drive into the gaps. The girls must learn to take off just before the ball goes into play from a ready position. They stand at ready, both feet moving in anticipation. They must react to the ball as soon as it comes off the bat so they are locked on the strike zone with such concentration that when they explode toward the ball is a reaction not a thought.
Part 2 is an eye patch over their glove hand-eye
This makes them track the ball in the air all the way to the glove. They must move their head and glove to track the ball and make the catch. Since these 2 drills were put into our practice regiment we have had only 2 fly balls make it to the ground out of just over 30 fly balls in fair territory. The girls now call it the easy out [tag]drill[/tag].