THROWING:

1. Throwing Mechanics

• Grip: three fingers on seam, thumb on seam on opposite side of ball ("C" or backwards "C")
• Ball away from head (player should look at hand and see three fingers)
• Back elbow level or slightly higher than shoulder
• 90 degree elbow angle
• Point front elbow or glove towards target (Point glove-side shoulder)
• Feet are approximately shoulder-width apart

2. Throwing Movements

• FIRST MOVEMENT: glove and front elbow "get out of the way" to open shoulders
• SECOND MOVEMENT: shoulders continue to rotate along with hips as throwing arm moves towards target (elbow should stay level or above shoulder)
• THIRD MOVEMENT:  throwing hand should follow through all the way down/across body (slight bend in waist) to opposite thigh (shoulders should have rotated all the way: player starts with glove-side shoulder pointing to target and ends with throwing-side shoulder points to target) and throwing-side toe should drag towards target

3. Throwing Progression

1. Wrist Snap
2. Dart Throw
3. One Knee (slap opposite thigh)
4. One Knee ( get elbow and glove out of the way)
5. Rock & Fire (rotating shoulders)
6. Regular Throws (work on slapping opposite thigh OR getting elbow and glove out of the way)
7. Long Throws: Footwork Transition with Pivot Step (righty: "right, left, throw" / lefty: "left, right, throw")
8. EXTRAS: front step ("open"), pull back with pivot step ("close"), throwing position ("open"); toe drag

DRILL:  4 CORNERS

DRILL:  TARGET PRACTICE

FIELDING:

1.  3 R's

• Relax: chill/hang out
• Ready: two steps forward into a sumo wrestler (feet wide / hands out to sides)
• React: GET THE BALL!! (alligator mouth and bring up to belly button)

2.  Footwork Transition into Throw (pivot step is FORWARD)

3.  Backhands:  turn hips, point toes, get back knee low/let ball come to you--DO NOT PUSH THROUGH IT!

4.  Forehands:  turn hips, point toes, get back knee low

DRILL:  In-Air Reaction Drill (face, backhand, forehand)

DRILL:  On-Ground Reaction Drill (feet, backhand, forehand)

DRILL: Touchdown Drill

HITTING:

1.  Stance

• TV Face
• Feet Width
• Toes Forward
• Knees Inside Feet
• Weight at 50-50
• Slight Lean Forward
• Slight Bend in Knees
• Knob to Catcher
• Barrel at 45 Degrees
• Shoulders Downhill
• Back Elbow at 45 - 90 Degrees
• Front Elbow Pointing Towards Plate

2.  Load & Stride, Follow Through

• Load:  Shift weight (hips) away from pitcher (front foot may come off the ground)
• Stride: Shift weight (hips) towards pitcher (front foot comes down or STRIDE) / weight should be back to 50-50
  • NOTE:  KEEP HANDS & BACK ELBOW STILL DURING LOAD & STRIDE
  • DRILL: FAKE SOFT TOSS

3.  Rotation

• Rotation: turn hips, drive back knee and hip together towards pitcher
• Front knee should straighten just before contact
• Back foot should pivot so that toes point to the pitcher
• Back heel should point towards sky
• Power L  at Contact:  elbow of top hand is at a 90 degree angle at contact (palm up-palm down: hands are always higher than ball)
  •  (DRILL: FREEZE AT CONTACT)
• Shoulder V at Extension: elbows are extended towards pitcher 
  • (DRILL: POINT TO THE PITCHER)

4.  Follow Through

MECHANICS:  "flip" top hand to get bat on plane with the ball sooner

MECHANICS:  "push" through ball with top hand

HITTING SOFTBALL TALK:

"Green Until Red":  assume the pitch is a strike (green means go), then react (red means stop) if it is a ball

**Always have players take 10 - 15 warm-up swings before starting drills.

COACHING BASICS & TEACHING IDEAS:

• Dynamic Warm-ups (high knees, butt kicks, etc) at the BEGINNING OF PRACTICE (gets the body warmed up and ready to go): 7 - 10 minutes

• Static Stretching (hold stretch and count to 15) at the END OF PRACTICE (helps with flexibility with injury prevention): 7 - 10 minutes

• "Take your brain and put it in your ______."

• Always explain how to do the movement correctly; not what not to do. 
  • (Example:  DON'T SAY: don't drop your hand = INSTEAD SAY: keep hands high/level)

• At the end of practice:  ask the players what they learned & give movement homework.
  • "Take your brain and put it in your ______."

• Age Group Time Limits for Drills: MAXIMUM of 15 - 20 minutes per drill

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ESTABLISH RULES:

• No walking (happy feet/hustle)
• When a coach/instructor is talking, players listen
• Players listen with eyes and ears
• High fives / fist bumps / etc

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COACH SHOULD ALWAY BE PREPARED:

• Progressive Sessions (don't move on until they understand and can do the drill)
• Key Objectives for each lesson/practice
• Use cones/dots to show where players stand, start, etc.
• Equipment Ready
• Drills Ready

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MODALITY TRAINING:

How do players learn best?

1. hearing

2. seeing

3. feeling (doing)

Do all three!

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Explain Stations:

• Focus of Station
• Brain in the body part
• reason of station/movement
• number of reps
• strength level (ex: 50%, 90%, etc)
• target variations (pitching/hitting/throwing)