BREAKING FROM TRADITION

Beginner and Youth Catching Instruction

“Practice, practice, practice will be replaced with
practice correctly, practice correctly, practice correctly.”

There is a great need for catching instruction.  Many coaches do not understand the importance of learning to catch correctly from the first time a young player picks up a glove.  Many of the youth coaches are just parents who are learning to coach the game and the skills needed to play the game, so many of the young boys get very little direction in learning how to catch correctly.

There is a void of instructional guidance to the coaches and parents on the type of glove that is best for young ball players, and instructions on how to maximize the true potential of both the athlete and the glove.  As it stands now many coaches let the young players teach themselves how to catch with the idea that what is important is that they catch the ball.  This emphasis on just catching the ball any way possible has long and lasting negative effects on a young ball player’s ability to progress.  This creates a tremendous need for instruction and guidance at the beginner level.

The Myth:  If you miss it with one hand you could have caught it with two hands.

The truth is that using two hands costs more catches than it helps.  There are so many catches that need to be made with one hand but because young players are inundated with the two-handed chant they grow to believe that every catch is a two handed catch.  So they are constantly battling to make two hands a part of every catch.  I have seen stretches with the glove shorten because the reach of the throwing hand is not as far.  I have seen the glove arrive late to a catch because it is waiting for the throwing hand to help with the catch.  I see player after player running around the field with their throwing hand attached to the glove. 

Catching and fielding is the most misunderstood aspect of playing ball for young players and shouting “two hands” just confuses the young ball players even more.  The answer to why young players miss the ball is not about shouting “use two hands” it is about teaching body mechanics and point of catch.  Each catch made has many points where the ball can be caught but for the higher level of play there is only one correct point of catch.   It is important that the players understand that for every catch made there is a best place to catch it and that a perfect catch is what they are striving to master.

I have put young player after young player to the test and all have proven my theory on teaching how to catch and field.  Teaching one-handed catching begins with body mechanics and a glove that will allow them to catch and field using the correct body mechanics and glove location.  It allows young players to master advanced plays early because of the mastery of one-handed glove control.  The key is to never let a young ball player believe it’s about just catching the ball.  It should always be about catching the ball with the proper body mechanics.  To that end the young players must have gloves that will allow them to catch the ball while still using the proper body mechanics.

When catching pop-ups or fly balls I teach that they are caught right above the glove shoulder.  I hear time and again two hands and right above the head or in front of the face.  The reality is that catching above the head is a high level play used only to speed up a throw to a base and should never be taught at the younger ages of youth baseball.  As for using two hands I only allow it on pop-ups and fly balls when a player has the time to settle under it and time to think about using the other hand to aid in the catch.  If the glove is not capable of holding onto a pop-up then the young player needs a new glove, not another hand.