The baseball drill book

322 Pages·2004·7.407 MB·English

by  Bob Bennett, American Baseball Coaches Association

the
Baseball
Drill Book
AMERICAN BASEBALL
COACHES ASSOCIATION
BOB BENNETT, EDITOR
Note: This e-book reproduces the text of the printed book, but it may not include
images, tables, or figures that have restrictions on electronic distribution.
Human Kinetics
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
The baseball drill book / Bob Bennett, editor.
p. cm.
ISBN 0-7360-5083-3 (soft cover)
1. Baseball--Training. I. Bennett, Bob.
GV875.6.B35 2003
796.357’2--dc22
2003019592
ISBN-10: 0-7360-5083-3 (Print) ISBN-10: 0-7360-8491-6 (Adobe PDF)
ISBN-13: 978-0-7360-5083-8 (Print) ISBN-13: 978-0-7360-8491-8 (Adobe PDF)
Copyright © 2004 by Human Kinetics, Inc.
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the
Baseball
Drill Book
Contents
Introduction vii Key to Diagrams ix
PART
Effective Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
I
Chapter 1 Incorporating Drills Into Practices . . . . . . . . 3
Bob Bennett
Chapter 2 Performing and Conducting Drills . . . . . . 13
Bob Bennett
Chapter 3 Making Drills Gamelike . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Bob Bennett
PART Physical Training . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
II
Chapter 4 Conditioning Drills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Ed Cheff and Bruce Madsen
Chapter 5 Warm-Up Drills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
John Savage
PART Fundamental Skills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
III
Chapter 6 Catching Drills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Jack Smitheran
Chapter 7 Throwing Drills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Jim Brownlee
Chapter 8 Sliding Drills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Bob Warn
iv v
PART Offensive Skills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
IV
Chapter 9 Hitting Drills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Rick Jones and Mark Kingston
Chapter 10 Bunting Drills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
Gordon Gillespie
Chapter 11 Base-Running Drills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Rich Alday
PART Defensive Skills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
V
Chapter 12 Infield Drills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
Sonny Pittaro
Chapter 13 Outfield Drills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
Jim Wells
Chapter 14 Catcher Drills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205
Pete Dunn
Chapter 15 Pitcher Drills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221
Steve Smith
PART Team Tactics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241
VI
Chapter 16 Offensive Team Drills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243
Gene Stephenson and Jim Dimick
Chapter 17 Defensive Team Drills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263
Ray Tanner
Chapter 18 Game-Situation Drills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287
Bob Todd and Bob Bennett
About the ABCA 301 About the Editor 303
About the Contributors 305
iv v
vii
Introduction
Drills are the life blood of any practice. They provide the setting and oppor-
tunity for growth, improvement, and maintenance. They create an environ-
ment that prepares the athlete and his team for game competition. When done
properly, drills excite, invigorate, challenge, and encourage. Through repetition
of drills and within drills, skills are perfected. This allows the athlete and his
team to execute difficult maneuvers more efficiently.
Some of the best baseball coaches in the country have combined their wisdom
to put this book together. If you’re a beginning coach, this book will help you
gain the foresight you need to select drills that suit your team both as individu-
als and as a unit. If you’re an experienced coach, this book promotes wise and
practical use of your precious practice time and will improve your ability to
match your drills to the precise needs of each member of your team.
Many time-tested drills are clearly described and diagramed and are read-
ily available for any coach or player. There are also new drills, shown for the
first time. Step-by-step guidelines for performing and conducting the drills
are suggested, as well as ways to modify the drills for greater variety and
customization.
The coaches who have put this book together are happy to give back to the
game what the game has given to them. Passing it on is the cornerstone of the
baseball coaching profession. We thank and pay homage to the many pioneering
baseball coaches who generously passed along their gift of knowledge to us.
vii
ix
Key to Diagrams
Path of ball
Path of player (running)
CH Coach
F Fungo hitter
B Batter
C Catcher
P Pitcher
R Runner
R Relay/cut-off man
X Any player
1B First baseman
2B Second baseman
3B Third baseman
SS Shortstop
CF Centerfielder
RF Right fielder
LF Left fielder
E3023_ABCA_80846_fig.KEY_SABAS_R2
ix