US Sports Baseball: How To Become The Ideal Leadoff Man And PHILLIES vs. METS: Official Full Game Highlights

 

• By Brandon Ogle

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Simply put, you can’t describe a leadoff man with just one skill. Analysts

will typically say they prefer certain attributes, but the truth is they

need to possess a little bit of everything. Legendary leadoff man Kenny

Lofton once said, “You can’t put your shoes on without your socks.

Everything works together – shoes, socks, pants and shirts. If one is

missing, you’re in trouble.” This analogy is referring to the varying

skillsets needed to effectively be the man at the top.

High On-Base Percentage

First and foremost, leadoff men need to be able to get on base. Their

primary responsibility is to give the power bats an opportunity to drive

in some runs, which is what they do best. However, the important thing

to understand here is that there are many ways to get on base. The on-

base percentage statistic shouldn’t be confused with batting average. In

general terms, it is calculated on every time you reach base by way of a

hit, walk or hit by pitch. So, with this being the case, leadoff men need to

be creative in getting on. Some guys possess the speed to bunt

frequently and get on. Another scenario would be ones with a

discerning eye that are tough to strikeout, while others are pure hitters

that can hit to all fields. There are many ways to get on, but coaches are

generally just going to be worried about whether or not you get on.

Energized

Since leadoff man possess the opportunity to get the entire dugout

amped up right away, they need to be an energizing presence. Often

times, I refer to this as the leadoff man having a certain level of swagger.

I’m not saying they should do something to show the pitcher up, but

rather get the game started in a positive manner. Whether it be working

a 10-pitch walk or beating out an infield single, there are many

possibilities. Hitting is a contagious trait and when you see people

before you having success off a pitcher right off the bat, it can lead to

good fortunes for the rest of the squad. As for the actual characteristic of

being an energetic player, it’s reliant solely on production and

personality. For the personality side, you can’t really teach this, it

mainly comes down to the person. However, production can be

developed through experience in the game.

Fast on the Base Paths

One trait that often comes to people’s mind immediately when thinking

about leadoff men is their speed. You’re almost never going to see

someone that’s not fleet-of-foot in the opening spot. There are many

situations where this speed comes in play. First, it allows them to beat

out bunts and infield grounders to increase that on-base percentage.

Next, they can steal bases more easily to put themselves in scoring

position for the power bats behind them. Finally, they can take extra

bases on hits, such as going to first to third. Each of these plays can

greatly affect a game. The offseason is a great time to improve this speed

if you believe it is something holding you back from manning the leadoff

spot. There are many ways to do so, but I urge practicing 100 meter

sprints on the track. 100 meters are long enough to ensure you can

accelerate quickly and keep top speed going for longer distances. In

addition, you should practice you’re reaction time and how you’ll time

jumps. This may come from agility exercises or even watching others

appropriately time jumps.

Patient at the DishDish

One aspect of the on-base percentage discussed above is the ability to

secure walks and work the counts. Unless you’re like the Kansas City

Royals’ Alcides Escobar, a leadoff man should work the pitcher and

make him throw plenty of pitches. Sometimes, the first pitch might be a

fastball thrown right down the middle. In these instances, it might be

wise to be first-pitch swinging. However, other times, the pitcher will

try to get you to swing at something outside the zone. It is at these times

where a leadoff man should possess the ability to utilize a discerning

eye and work the count. Another element to keep in mind is the concept

of good outs. Occasionally, these can include outs that move the runner

up a base, while it can also be ones that make the pitcher work and tax

his or her pitch count. Even if you get out, making the pitcher throw 10-

plus pitches can get him or her out of the game quicker.

Being disciplined at the dish is critical to a leadoff man’s job. This video

from former Major Leaguer Gary Gaetti goes over many of the

fundamentals to successful hitting. Don’t ignore the basics; they’re at the

crux of all great hitters!

Occasional Powerower

While I’ve discussed extensively the element of leadoff men getting on

base consistently, it also doesn’t hurt for them to be able to have a little

pop. Even the speedy Juan Pierre, who once stole 68 bases in a season,

hit 18 home runs over his MLB career. To back this up, it isn’t

uncommon for leadoff men today to hit around 10 homeruns each

season. This can provide a little more power to the lineup as a whole, as

well as keep the defense honest. They can’t be cheating up while

expecting a short hit or else they could fall victim to a shot over their

head. In saying this, leadoff men need to stay focused and remember

they’re not in the lineup to hit it deep. They’re still considered a table

setter, but when the opportunity’s right, they can take a big rip.

Positions Played?yed?

The last section I’ll discuss is the positions often occupied by leadoff

men. While technically, any player can hold the leadoff position, we

typically see some more than the others. These positions include second

base, shortstop and center field. Part of the reason for this is since these

are usually position that require plus-defenders. In addition, these

positions are filed with players that are pretty good athletes and

possess above-average speed. With this section, I’m not intending that

you have to play these positions to hit leadoff, but rather that the

skillsets between the two roles usually intertwine.

Non-StopStop

When describing a leadoff man, I’m usually looking for someone that

can always be counted on and plays with non-stop consistency. Since

they often occupy a defensively difficult position, they need to be on top

of their game every time they’re on the field. This includes always

knowing the situation and when your team is desperate for a base

runner. With this said, in the end, the majority of this role comes down

to the ability to set the table for the power bats!

View more of our hitting courses and become a great leadoff hitter:

50 Things a Hitter Needs to Do to Be Successful at the Plate by MLB vet Luis Ortiz

The 10 Base Running Drills Every Coach Needs with Steve Nicollerat

Pro Hitting & Generating Power by Nick Giaquinto

Sports help kids #GetActive and learn new skills – but don’t forget about fun! Learn about @HealthGov’s National Youth Sports Strategy and help make fun the top priority in #YouthSports: https://bit.ly/2lIHPUc

US Sports Baseball - Baseball Training Exercises to Strengthen Arm and Bat Speed and BREWERS VS. BRAVES: Highlights Little League Classic

 

• By Grant Young
 

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Although much of success in baseball comes down to natural talent, any player who wants to improve can maximize their natural ability on the field by working hard. Yet, players can only take so many swings or throw so many pitches before their body begins to fatigue. 

Arm and Bat Speed Training

Click here to review this course

by Steve Zawrotny

Therefore coaches must come up with ways to help strengthen their arms to perform for longer periods. And these types of drills also contain another benefit: they will increase their players’ arm and bat speed, which will make players more powerful, more intimidating, and more appealing to prospective scouts. 

But coaches need to be careful in prescribing arm strengthening drills to their baseball players because doing too much of an exercise (or doing that exercise the wrong way) can cause injury, and have the opposite effect that arm and bat speed strengthening training is meant to have.

Luckily, there are coaches like Steve Zawrotny around, who can set coaches and players alike on the right path.

Coach Zawrotny is one of just a handful of individuals with experience as an NCAA Division 1 pitcher and coach with the CSCS credential. His baseball and softball-specific training programs combine solid clinical research and Steve's 30 years of playing, coaching, & training.

Coach Zawrotny’s ‘Arm and Bat Speed Training’ course will give you precise and well-research exercises that you can implement to any baseball player’s training regimen, in order to get them throwing and hitting as far as their genetics will allow.

We’ve pulled some of our favorite methods that Coach Zawrotny teaches, so you can get a taste of what his exercises can do for your players.

“Using a medicine ball is really going to help us develop explosive power. And we’re going to develop this power from the ground up.”

Coach Zawrotny’s extensive studies into sport-specific strength training taught him that no muscle group is more important for developing (and sustaining) athletic and explosive movements than the core. 

Therefore, Coach Zawrotny provides a series of medicine ball drills that are catered toward increasing core strength, which will be a massive benefit for hitters, pitchers, and any other type of athlete. 

The first Drill Coach Zawrotny mentions is the medicine ball chest pass. For this drill, players will need an eight-, ten-, or twelve-ounce medicine ball, a wall or wall-like surface, and something to pad their knees, because they will be on both knees. Once the player gets on their knees, they will face the wall they’ve chosen directly, about five feet away from it. They will then bring the ball up to chest height and make 15-20 throws at the wall with the medicine ball.

It’s important in this drill that the player isn’t sitting back on their heels, and is instead in as upright of a position as possible. This is crucial because doing so will make it so the core is responsible for the movement, rather than the shoulders. 

After a set or two of this, the player can then stand up and do the same thing while standing. The player will know they’re doing the drill correctly if they are feeling a burn in their core by the time they stand up. If they’re feeling more of a burn in their shoulders, the medicine ball they’re using is too heavy.

Many people think that arm curls are solely for aesthetic benefit, and have no place in an athlete’s strength training regimen. But Coach Zawrotny proves that this isn’t the case. 

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Yet, Coach Zawrotny doesn’t think that bicep curls specifically are beneficial for the athlete. But he’s a big fan of any sort of curl that strengthens the forearm or helps to increase grip strength. 

The best arm curl that Coach Zawrotny prescribed for baseball players of all positions is one where the player is sitting on a bench, with their knees in front of them. From there, the player will want to grab a barbell.

The player will then grip the barbell with their palms either facing upward or downward and their wrists over their knees. From there, the player will simply flex the barbell upwards (or downwards, depending on their grip) 25 times per set, for three sets.

Grip strength is imperative for hitters especially, because they can’t drive the ball if they don’t have a firm grip on the bat when making contact. And the same goes with forearms; although forearm strength is also important for pitchers as well, because having muscle in that area helps protect it from other internal injury. 

One of the best leg strengthening exercises that doesn’t require any weight is goodmornings. 

This exercise is straightforward. A player will either start with a barbell resting on their shoulders or with no weight and have their feet at shoulder width. From there, they will keep their chest open, tuck their lower back, and drop down, so that their upper body is parallel with the floor. 

From there, the player will then raise themselves, while taking caution to use their hamstrings to lift themselves, rather than their backs. This is of the utmost importance because it’s easy for a player going through the motions to use their lower back to raise themselves, which could cause injury. 

While this drill might sound easy, any player who is doing it correctly will experience a ton of soreness in their hamstrings in the ensuing days; if they did the exercise correctly, of course.

These three drills that Coach Zawrotny emphasizes are for three different body parts, proving that it takes the whole body to maximize one’s arm and bat speed strength. But even the weakest players can see their power and velocity stats increase if they commit to Coach Zawrotny’s training routine.

Sports help kids build confidence and grow into healthy, active adults. Learn how organizations, communities, and policymakers can use @HealthGov’s National #YouthSports Strategy to support youth sports: https://bit.ly/2lQ85f6

US Sports Baseball: How to Use Bunting to Score More Runs and YANKEES vs. CUBS: Official Full Game Highlights

 

How to Use Bunting to Score More Runs

• By Grant Young
 

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Bunting is often deemed one the most boring things about playing baseball. Not only does just about every baseball player hate doing it, but their aversion to learning the art of small ball makes it difficult for a coach to get these players to improve their bunt game. 

Yet, even though players may not want to admit it, bunting is a crucial component of a team’s offensive repertoire; especially in the game’s lower levels, where players can’t rely on massive power or sheer talent to bring runners across home plate. 

And while it’s unlikely that your players will ever get excited about getting a bunt sign during a game, teaching them how to get hits (and increase their batting average) via the bunt is a great way to at least get them to not pretend like they missed your sign from the third base coaches box. 

Longtime high school baseball coach Brandon Bibbert has turned bunting into something of an art form. Coach Bippert just completed his eighth year as the head baseball coach at Warren High School and has 121 career wins. Other coaching stops include William H Taft, Odessa High, and Lytle High School.  Bippert is member of the executive committee of the San Antonio Area Baseball Coaches Association and is a Region 4 Director in the Texas High School Baseball Coaches Association. 

In his ‘Improving Offensive Production Via Bunt’ course, Coach Bippert details some excellent tips on how to maximize the bunt’s effectiveness in multiple facets of the game.

Some of his specific instructions include offensive bunt strategies for securing sneaky singles, fundamentals behind the suicide squeeze (which, despite what we wrote earlier about bunting being unsexy, may be the least boring play in the game), and discusses how to make bunting a part of your practice. 

Offensive Bunt Plays

In one of the first sections of his course, Coach Bippert details six bunt plays that he likes to run in games: the sacrifice bunt, the suicide squeeze, the drag/push bunt, the safety squeeze, the triple option, and the bunt and run.

In addition to this, Coach Bippert provides six more plays that, despite not actually involving bunting the ball, often provide the same effect as one. There are what he calls fake bunt plays, and they are fake bunt take, fake bunt steal, fake squeeze and steal, fake squeeze take, slash, and slash and run.

The secret to these six “fake” bunt plays is that they all involve convincing the opposing team that you’re actually trying to run a genuine bunt play. And the only way to convince them of that is by being a true threat to bunt. In other words, these fake bunt plays won’t work if you don’t actually bunt in games. 

But if you have proven that your team is capable of bunting (and bunting well), then defenses will get upright when they see the player at the plate squaring around.

Coach Bippert notes how, especially in high school baseball and below, the prospect of offensive preparing to bunt often forces mistakes out of an infield and pitcher. Whether it be the infield botching their bunt defense, the catcher calling the strong pitch, or the pitcher being unable to throw a strike, just the threat of being able to bunt can often get a team their desired result of moving a runner up along the basepaths — all without having to sacrifice an out. 

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Suicide Squeeze Fundamentals

Given that the suicide squeeze is often saved until it's direly needed, knowing how to execute it can (and likely will) be the difference between winning and losing games. 

Because it’s such a crucial play (and because of the consequences of the hitter not recognizing the sign), Coach Bippert suggests that, when the play is called in the game, it is done so both through a physical sign and a verbal sign. Both the runner at third and the hitter also should physically acknowledge the sign before the play goes live. 

Another crucial component to the squeeze is the batter not squaring up or the runner not taking off for home plate too early so that the defense has time to recognize what’s going on. For this, Coach Bippert suggests the runner take off as soon as the pitcher commits to throwing home. The batter should not square around to bunt until the pitcher’s front foot has touched the ground during their delivery.

An often unconsidered aspect of running a suicide squeeze (especially at the game’s lower levels) is how accurate the pitcher is. If the pitcher on the mound is wild and can’t seem to throw a strike, a squeeze should not be called, because the stealing runner will be left out to dry if the pitcher throws a ball that’s too wild for the bunter to connect with.

Bunt Game Implementation and Practice Planning

Teaching young baseball players how to bunt can be more difficult than initially conceived because of the fear that some players have of getting hit by the pitch. 

Because being a bunter demands the hitter watches the ball straight on, with their face seemingly in the line of fire, this might make kids fearful about squirting around. Coach Bippert suggests working through this by first having kids practice bunting with front toss drills. 

From there, you can also practice bunting with whiffle balls to get your players more comfortable with where their head is with the ball. Because a whiffle ball doesn’t hurt (at least not compared to an actual ball), this should help quell any fears about executing the bunt. 

Investing in bunting during your baseball practice could help you win meaningful games late in the season.

Want to help kids find sports they love? Sign up to be a coach or volunteer in a local youth sports program. Learn more ways to support youth sports in the National Youth Sports Strategy: https://bit.ly/2lIHPUc

US Sports Baseball: Important Ways to Improve Your Baseball Team’s Baserunning and PADRES vs. RANGERS Full Game Highlights

 

• By Grant Young
 

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Good baserunning is crucial in baseball for various reasons. It enables players to advance bases and score more efficiently, thus enhancing the team's chances of success. Strategic baserunning can also exert pressure on the opposing team, which often leads to defensive errors. Furthermore, it showcases players' awareness of game situations and their ability to make quick, impactful decisions. In essence, proficient baserunning is a vital element of the game that can significantly influence the outcome of a game. And that’s why having baserunning drills that you can utilize to help improve your baseball team is of paramount importance. 

Yet, coaching baserunning in baseball is challenging for several reasons. It requires teaching players to make split-second decisions while considering various factors such as the game situation, the speed and location of the ball, and the capabilities of the opposing team. Plus there’s the fact that baserunning involves a combination of speed, agility, and strategic thinking, making it a complex skill to coach effectively. Baserunning techniques can vary depending on the player's position, making it necessary for coaches to provide individualized instruction. Overall, coaching baserunning demands a deep understanding of the game and the ability to effectively communicate and demonstrate these intricate skills to players.

And Steve Nicollerat has the perfect techniques to help you increase your understanding of the game and improve your players’ baserunning prowess. 

Coach Nicollerat is the Founder of Coach Baseball Right! Which provides baseball organizations with dozens of resources available to grow and elevate their current programs and deepen their kids' experiences. In addition, Coach Nicollerat has about 40 years of experience coaching varsity baseball at St. Louis University High School, as well as playing collegiate ball at St. Louis University.

Coach Nicollerat’s ‘The 10 Base Running Drills Every Coach Needs’ course gives coaches the foundational set of fundamental and progressive base running drills that they can build from to take their teams to a new level. 

The Lead Off

The first aspect of a baseball team improving on the base paths is knowing how to have a good lead off of first base. 

Coach Nicollerat notes that when taking a lead off of first base, the lead should be comprised of different distances if there’s an intention of the runner stealing the base. If the baserunner is a threat to steal bases or if it’s a situation where stealing a base makes sense, the baserunner should be taking a lead that’s a step farther away from first base than they would if they weren’t intending to steal a base. 

While you may think that this will give away the baserunner’s intentions, the reality is that, from the pitcher's mound, a one-step difference isn’t discernible to the pitcher’s eye. They have so many other things to focus on that there’s really no chance they’re going to notice that one-step difference. 

Another aspect of executing a good lead-off is that the runner should be positioned higher up in the baseline if they intend to steal, typically in line with where the front of the first base will be positioned. 

Similar to the earlier point about the lead’s distance, nobody on the opposing team is going to recognize a few inches’ difference between where a player is taking their lead. But being just a little bit closer to the pitcher’s mound could help convince the pitcher that the baserunner is closer to the bag than they are. While this might only offer a slight advantage to the baserunner, baseball is a game of inches. 

How to Steal

One of the most important aspects of stealing bases is understanding when the right time to run is. Even the fastest runner can get thrown out if they get a poor jump, and vice versa for someone who isn’t the fastest runner. 

Coach Nicollerat says that the baserunner should be looking at the (right-handed) pitcher’s left foot when trying to gauge when to steal. As soon as that leg begins to lift off the ground, that’s what the runner should take off. 

If the baserunner sees the right heel coming off the ground, they need to prepare to dive back to first base because that almost certainly means the pitcher is picking off. 

This is extremely easy to drill, as a coach can go out and pretend to be a pitcher while a line of baserunners is in position in the baseline. As soon as the coach’s left feel lifts, the baserunners should simulate taking off for second base. And if the coach’s right heel lifts then they simulate giving back to first.

Reading Lefties

Coach Nicollerat discusses how to steal second base off of left-handed pitchers. The first part of this requires understanding whether the left-handed pitcher can read or not. If the lefty pitcher has proven that they can read effectively, it might be wise to not steal. 

But if the lefty isn’t a reader, and instead uses a more deceptive pickoff move to try and negate the run game, Coach Nicollerat explains that one option is to have the baserunner take a big lead, then take off for second base as soon as the pitcher makes their first movement. 

The idea behind this is that, if the pitcher’s pickoff move is slow, then the baserunner will have enough time to make it to second base if they steal once the pitcher begins their long pickoff move. 

However, if you’re also looking to steal against a reading lefty, one way to do so would be to wait until the pitcher enters the apex of their delivery (the top of their leg lift). While this is a risk, the reading pitcher has most likely already made their decision to pitch rather than pick at this point, so the baserunner has a solid chance of stealing the base. 

Everyone has a role to play in the National #YouthSports Strategy! Learn more about the strategy and ways to get involved from @HealthGov: https://bit.ly/2lQ85f6