BASEBALL / SOFTBALL

GRADE

SKILLS	5	6	7	8	ACTIVITY PROGRESSION
Throwing	I	R	M	A	Throwing Progression
Catching	I	R	M	A	Throwing and Catching Hoops
Fielding: ground ball and fly ball	I	R	M	A	Partner Flies and Grounders
Hitting	I	R	M	A	Hitting Off a Tee / Soft Toss / Home Run Derby
Pitching: overhand and underhand	I	R	M	M	Overhand Pitching Progression / Underhand Pitching Progression
Base running	I	R	M	M	Pickle / Base Running Relay
Individual position play	I	R	M	A	Long Base / Speed Up Baseball - Softball

I = INTRODUCE / R = REVIEW / M = MASTER / A = APPLY / O = OPTIONAL

ACTIVITIES FOR PRACTICING THROWING, CATCHING, FIELDING, AND HITTING:

THROWING PROGRESSION: All players are instructed in basic throwing technique. A and B are partners. A and B face each other 15’-20’ apart. A and B position themselves on one knee. A’s right knee is on the ground if A is a right-handed thrower. On command, A picks the ball up off the ground with the proper grip and uses basic throwing technique to throw to B. B catches the ball, places it on the ground and repeats the process, throwing to A. When A and B have mastered this basic technique, they stand up and throw and catch from a standing position. A should be throwing the ball accurately (chest high) to B’s glove. When A and B have mastered this basic technique, they back up 5’ and repeat the same activity. The activity continues in the same manner. Good technique and accurate throwing is stressed.

THROWING AND CATCHING HOOPS: A and B are partners. Two hula-hoops are positioned 20’ apart. A and B each stand with one foot inside their hoop, like a first baseman getting ready to receive a throw from a fielder. A attempts to make an accurate throw to B so that B can catch the ball in the air with his foot inside the hoop. B then throws in the same manner to A. If A or B fails they both try again. If A and B both make accurate throws that are caught in the air, they have met the challenge. A and B may then move their hoops back. They move their respective hoops back by the width of their hoops. The activity continues in the same manner.

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PARTNER FLIES AND GROUNDERS: This activity is similar to the Throwing and Catching Hoops activity listed above. A and B are positioned 25’ apart. A stands with one foot inside a hoop like a first baseman. B is the fielder. A throws a ground ball to B. B tries to field it "cleanly" (without error) and make an accurate throw to A. A must catch the ball in the air with one foot inside the hoop. If A or B fail, the process is repeated. If A and B are both successful the activity is repeated with A throwing a fly ball to B. The activity continues in the same manner until A and B have been successful with 5 grounders and 5 flies. A and B switch roles and the activity is repeated in the same manner. When A and B have been successful in both roles the hoop is moved back (the width of a hoop) and the activity continues in the same manner.

HITTING OFF A TEE: Players are instructed in basic hitting technique which includes stance, weight back, eyes on the center of the ball, twist, weight transfer, and follow through with the eyes fixed on an empty tee. Players are divided into groups of 2-4. Each group is given a plastic bat, plastic ball, batting tee, and a space in which to play. Player A bats first. All other players are in the field. Player A takes 3 swings and then switches with the next batter. Player A concentrates on basic hitting technique. A tries to make good contact with the center of the ball. Players B, C, and D are fielders. They field and make accurate throws to A. When A has finished 3 swings, A switches roles with B who becomes the new batter. The activity continues in the same manner.

SOFT TOSS: Players are divided into groups of 3-4. This activity is similar to Hitting Off a Tee (listed above). The ball is tossed instead of using the tee. A is the batter, B tosses the ball and C and D are fielders. B is positioned on one knee at a safe distance (8’-10’) away and to the side of A. B tosses the ball softly into the strike zone. A tries to hit the ball toward his fielders using basic hitting technique. A hits 3 balls. A then goes into the field, B becomes the new hitter and C soft tosses the ball. The activity continues in the same manner.

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HOME RUN DERBY: This is a good activity for practicing throwing, catching, fielding and hitting. Players are divided into groups with 2-4 players in each group. Each group chooses a batting order. A bats first. B and C are in the field. A takes 3 swings off the batting tee, similar to the Hitting Off a Tee activity listed above. Players keep track of their individual points. Points are awarded as follows:

HITTING POINTS:

Single: 1 point for hitting a ground ball that stops rolling before it is picked up, or rolls past the first fielder.
Double: 2 points for hitting a ball that goes past 2 fielders.
Triple: 3 points for hitting a ball that goes on the ground past the home run line.
Home Run: 5 points for hitting a fly ball that goes in the air over the home run line.

FIELDING POINTS:

1 point for fielding a ground ball without error before it stops rolling.
2 points for making an accurate throw in returning the ball to the batter.
3 points for catching a fly ball in the air in front of the home run line.
5 points for catching a fly ball in the air past the home run line.

When A has finished taking 3 swings, B becomes the new batter. A becomes a fielder. The activity continues in a similar manner. (See the Brick Monster Home Run Derby activity in the Activity Booklet).

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ACTIVITIES FOR PRACTICING PITCHING:

OVERHAND PITCHING PROGRESSION: This activity follows the same progression as the Throwing Progression listed above, with the following additions. After mastering throwing from a standing position, players are instructed to practice pitching off a rubber. A is the pitcher and B is the catcher. A is a right-handed pitcher. Proper pitching technique for a right-handed pitcher involves the following:

Pitcher A turns the left shoulder to the target and places the left foot on the pitching rubber. A covers the rubber by placing his foot parallel to and on the rubber.
A grips the ball and comes to the stretch position, bringing both hands to the chest.
A separates his/her arms, bringing the ball in the hand to the 12 o’clock position.
A throws overhand and follows through, bringing the right hand across the body and turning the right ankle toward third base.

Pitcher A simulates pitching 1 inning. A pitches until he/she strikes out 3 imaginary batters. Catcher B calls balls and strikes. A and B switch roles and the activity continues in the same manner. If A or B masters throwing strikes from the stretch position, he/she may try throwing with a wind up.

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UNDERHAND PITCHING PROGRESSION: A is the pitcher and B is the catcher. A is a right-handed pitcher.

a) A begins by placing both feet on the pitching rubber. Both feet are facing the catcher.

b) A grips the ball and brings the right arm straight back and forward, following through by bringing the right hand up slightly higher than the target. When A masters this simple pitching technique he/she can begin to bring the arm back further and throw harder, always concentrating on throwing strikes.

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ACTIVITIES FOR PRACTICING BASE RUNNING, THROWING, CATCHING AND FIELDING:

PICKLE: There are 3 players in a group. A and B are fielders. They stand on bases 30’-50’ apart. C is the base runner. C stands on one base. C’s goal is to go from one base to the other without being tagged out. A and B engage C in a run down. If C makes it safely to the next base C is awarded 1 point. C tries again to go to the next base. If C is tagged out, A and B are each awarded 1 point. A becomes the new runner. The activity continues in the same manner. A,B and C switch roles on a rotating basis.

BASE RUNNING RELAY: The runners are divided into 4 teams with 2-4 runners on each team. There are 4 bases similar to a baseball or softball infield. Team A lines up behind first base, Team B behind second base, Team C behind third base and Team D behind home plate. All runners are instructed to run safely without contacting any other runners. On command, the first runner on each team runs around all the bases touching the inside corner of each base. When A1 makes it around all the bases he/she tags hands with A2 and A2 repeats the process. Each team continues until all its runners are finished. The team that has all its runners finish running first wins the activity. Adjustments can be made, if needed, to equalize the competition. The activity can then be repeated in the same manner.

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ACTIVITIES FOR PRACTICING ALL OF THE SKILLS LISTED ABOVE:

LONG BASE: The field space is similar to Home Run Derby. The activity is similar to baseball and softball. There are only 2 bases, home and first. Players are divided into groups with 3-4 players in each group. Each group chooses a batting order. A bats first. B, C and D are in the field. The object of the game is for each individual player to try to score as many runs as possible. A hits a fair ball off the batting tee and tries to run to first base before being tagged or thrown out. If A is tagged or thrown out, B becomes the next batter. A becomes a fielder. If A goes safely to first base and home A is awarded a run for a home run. B becomes the next batter and A goes into the field. If A goes safely to first base he/she may choose to stay at first base. B becomes the next batter. B tries to drive A in as in regular baseball or softball. If A scores A is awarded a run. A goes into the field. The activity continues in the same manner

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SPEED UP BASEBALL / SOFTBALL: This game is played essentially like slow pitch softball.

Players are divided into two teams. One or two captains are chosen from each team to umpire the game (while they are playing) and to keep track of the score if needed.
The captains set the batting order. The batting order must alternate genders.
Everyone bats in the first inning.
After the first inning teams play 3 outs or everyone bats, whichever comes first.
There are no strikeouts, balls or strikes. Every batter has two swings.
If a Batter A fails to hit a fair ball after two swings, A must hit the ball off a batting tee. Anyone hitting off the batting tee can only advance one base. Other runners on base at that time can also only advance one base.
The batter can choose to have the pitcher throw underhand (softball style) or overhand (baseball style).
The first baseman should touch the inside half of first base when catching the ball at first base. The runner should tag the outside half of the base.
All runners and fielders should avoid contact.

The game continues for the allotted time. The game can be continued from class to class or a new game can be started in the next class.

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