Infield "Dirt Divas"

This is the place to check out Infield specific play.

READY POSITION

Many infielders have been taught the "ready position" which is bent at the knees, butt down, and glove on the ground. This is great for the younger ages as it gives them the feel for fielding groundballs. In the older ages it starts to hinder their movement.

Think about starting out in this ready position, if a ball is hit to the right / left / or in front, what has to be the first move? The player has to raise up to get the glove off the ground, and get out of the deep bent position in order to make a move toward the ball. This takes precious time that could mean a safe call.

We want our infielders to have the glove out in front of them, thumbs up, knees flexed in a good athletic position, and on the balls of the feet. In this position the fielder is ready to move forward or laterally as needed.

Here are some photos of glove on the ground ready position

When you start off in this position what HAS to be your first move? The first move is to begin to stand up; NOT what we want. At this level that is wasted time and wasted time might mean the difference between making a play for the out, or the runner being called safe!

What we want to see is the fielder in an athletic position and rolls to the balls of the feet on the pitch, glove out in front with thumb up, relaxed and ready to move in any direction.

PROPER FIELDING

In this section we will discuss getting into the proper fielding position. 

There are no absolutes when fielding (other than catching the dang ball). But these positions will give you the tools you need in order to make the play. Anticipate where the ball might go based on the batter's swing (also called getting a jump on the ball). Know what type of pitch and location is being thrown; balls inside (right handed batter) are more likely going to be hit to left side of field, whereas balls on the outside part of the plate most likely will be hit to the right side.

Once the ball is hit react. Always be moving through the ball to field. For balls where you can field them normally, you want to field the ball in front of you with your glove side foot in front. This allows you to get from fielding into a good throwing position.

Notice how all of the fielders have their non-gloved hand ready to secure the ball. Fingers straight and pointed away from the ball.

There are several techniques to fielding groundballs, two that come to mind is "soft hands", and "pushing". I have seen both work so it is individual preference which type to use. The majority of coaches are now using the push method, that is to push the glove away as your fielding. This will typically keep the ball in front of you in case of a mistake. One disadvantage of the "soft hands" method is you are pulling back with the glove as you field thus if a mistake happens the ball typically gets behind you.

As you receive the ball, you want to bring the glove and ball straight towards your throwing shoulder while taking the ball out of the glove.

Footwork is extremely important when fielding groundballs. If you have the proper footwork, you are then in a good position to throw the ball. Typically, you will use the "replacement" method. That is where the back foot will replace where the front foot was. The "cross-over" is another method but is usually done by the younger age groups. Where your back foot crosses over the front foot.

Here you can see how his back foot is replacing where the front foot was, then planting, step and throw

BACKHANDS

Playing in the infield you will be faced with having to do a backhand to get to the ball. First off let's take off the "last resort" for backhands. Backhands are part of fielding and do not be afraid to backhand a ball.

As you react to a ball hit to your backhand side, you need to make a cross-over step to get yourself in position. Make a full effort to get to the ball as fast as you can but you may have to angle yourself in order to reach it. STAY LOW when backhanding a ball. Two ways to field it; Ideally, you would want your glove foot forward. This way after the catch you only have to take one step, plant, and throw.

The other option is when your glove foot is behind. When this happens you have to take 2 steps instead of one. The important thing, no matter what position you end in you have got to get to the ball fast.

 Off-Balance Throws

The game of softball is very fast. In baseball, plays that are routine outs will be safe on the softball field. Many times you will find that you have to throw off-balance in order to get the runner. These have to be practiced (like we do), however to really gain proficiency you have to do it on your own time. These throws are typically done by the 3B, however all other positions may have to hurry their throws as well.

Notice that these players are throwing off their throwing arm side.