How to Teach a Seven Year Old to Field a Baseball

From this you will be able to explain the art of fielding a baseball in a way that 7 year olds will understand.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. Place two strips of white athletic tape around an adult sized baseball bat and place it about 2 yards in front of the player.

2. Stand about 10 yards from the bat and roll a baseball towards the line on the bat created by the tape.

3. Instruct the player to field the ball with his glove facing up towards the sky. The brim of his/her hat should be over the tape on the bat. Have them bend their knees like they are sitting in a chair and receive the ball with their glove on the other side of the bat keeping their left/right arm straight.

4. Add more variations by having the player start about 2 yards to the left/right of the bat. Instruct them to cross over with the opposite leg (left foot if moving right and vice versa) in order to get into a position where their hat is over the tape before they receive the ball. We like to make small games out of this drill ex: roll 10 balls and count how many times the player fields the ball cleanly without having it touch the bat. Keep track of scores and have a prize for the winner (candy is best). Also use relay races, split the team up and have them receive and throw back to the coach. Do 3 times through and see who wins.

Tips & Warnings

• Approach ball in the middle of your body (brim of hat over ball)
• Knees bent (Sit in a chair)
• Receive ball in front of your body (arm straight)
• Place other hand over ball to secure it (alligator)
• Pull glove towards chest
• Stand up
• This age group tends to get frustrated when they don't field the ball cleanly.
• Offer plenty of positive encouragement
• They will catch on after 2-3 days of this drill