Preparing and Resetting Between Pitches

Q&A with Division I Head Baseball Coach, Greg Moore. Quick tips to keep fielders engaged and prepared to reset between pitches.

This isn’t an everyday drill, but a good one to teach defensive separation pitch-to-pitch. Doing this for a total of 10 innings or so is a good building block for prep/resets between pitches.

Ask defenders to pick one consistent spot on or behind the outfield fence. It can be a number or letter on the wall. Tops of foul poles and tips of trees also work. As the player plays defense throughout a game have him turn his back to the plate and focus on this spot between each pitch. Stop the feet while focusing and taking a single breath.

To have more fun and effect, have players give themselves a score in their own player notebook waiting in the dugout. As they come off the field, they give a quantity score each inning. How many times did I focus (estimate of # pitches)? They also give themselves an A through F letter grade for overall quality of the focus on the spot throughout the inning.

Many defensive players will begin going to this focal point as a reset after an error or misplay.