Little League Digest - 10 Base Running Tips For Little League Baseball Players

Little League Digest - 10 Base Running Tips For Little League Baseball Players

By Nick Dixon

There are several important coaching points that need to be remembered when teaching Little League players to run the bases correctly. This article presents 10 coaching points for little league baseball runners related to first baseball.

Coaching Points related to base running at 1st base:

1. The batter must sprint out of the batter's box and take a straight line path toward first base. The batter base runner must "honor" the base running box. The base running box allows the umpire to determine if a base runner is inside the base line. If a runner gets inside the foul line and a throw ball makes contact with the runner, the batter base runner is out. If a ball is a slow roller in the direction of first base, the batter base runner must avoid contact with the ball. Stepping on, contacting or touching the ball in fair territory will result in an out.
2. When a batter hits the ball his approach to first base is determined by the location of the hit ball as it travels into the field. If the ball is a fielded grounder, the base runner will run through the bag at 1st.
3. If the hit ball gets by the infielder, either as a hit or error, the batter base runner should do a "hook" path as he approaches first base to give him a straighter angle to advance to second base if the first base coach sends him.
4. The batter base runner should run hard through the bag when he is attempting to beat a throw to first. The runner should concentrate on running to a spot about 15 feet past the bag. When the runner touches the bag, the runner's foot should land on the front 1/3 of the bag.
5. The batter base runner should always look to the right when he crosses the bag on a close play. This look allows the batter base runner to see if the throw was missed by the first baseman.
6. If the base runner is sent to second, the runner should only contact the inner corner of the base as he makes the turn toward second base.
7. The runner should always run everything out as if the ball is fair. The runner should hustle and assume that all fly balls will be missed.
8. The runner must run out all foul balls because of the "roll back" rule. If a foul ball hits and kicks back into fair territory between home and 1st base or between home and 3rd base, the ball is fair. The ball will be fair as long as the ball does not contact a bat, fence, dugout, or fielder.
9. The batter base runner that sees an errant throw should not immediately advance to second. The runner must listen to his coach. The coach will make sure that the catcher is not trailing the play.
10. Older or advanced runners may be taught to read the firstbaseman's footwork to detect a possible catch ad tag play. If the throw from the fielder pulls the first baseman off the bag, the only possibility for getting the runner out is a tag. If the runner sees the first baseman coming off the bag toward him, he should slide to avoid the tag.

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Nick Dixon is the President and founder of Nedco Sports, a sports training company established in 1999. Dixon is also an active and full time at Boaz High School in Alabama. Coach Dixon is better known as the inventor of the BatAction Hitting Machine, the SKLZ Derek Jeter Hurricane Hitting Machine, the SKLZ Target Trainer, the SKLZ Derek Jeter ZipnHit Pro, and the SKLZ Strikeback Trainer. Dixon is also a contributing writer for BaseballCoachingDigest, the Youth Baseball Digest, the Baseball Parent Guide, the Baseball 2Day Coaches Journal, and Blog4Coaches.

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Nick Dixon is the President and founder of Nedco Sports, a sports training company established in 1999. Dixon is also an active and full time high school baseball coach with over 25 years experience. Coach Dixon is better known as the inventor of the BatAction Hitting Machine, the SKLZ Derek Jeter Hurricane Hitting Machine, the SKLZ Target Trainer, the SKLZ Derek Jeter ZipnHit Pro, and the SKLZ Strikeback Trainer. Dixon is also a contributing writer for BaseballCoachingDigest, the Youth Baseball Digest, the Baseball Parent Guide, the Baseball 2Day Coaches Journal, and Blog4Coaches.

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Double Play Danger - Sliding at Second Base During a Double Play

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Article Title: Double Play Danger - Sliding at Second Base During a Double Play
By Mike Posey

I was recently watching a baseball game on TV between the Cardinals and Cubs. The Cardinal pitcher was running at first base with one out in the inning. A ground ball was hit to the second basemen in what looked like an easy 4-6-3 inning ending double play. But the throw from the short stop struck the runner in the hand of the pitcher as he was sliding into second base.

At first glance it looked like an inadvertent throw, but after the replay was shown several times it was evident that the pitcher extended his arm upwards with his palm out in an attempt to distract the throw. I was amazed at two things. First, that this occurred at the major league level and exposed the pitcher to injury. Second, that for some reason it was never called interference and ruled a double play by the umpires. In full speed it must have been hard to tell if the pitcher had his hand up on purpose or not.

I began to think about the hard slide at second base and how it's not taught properly at the youth level. There also is confusion about when interference occurs during the slide at second base. Youth players should be taught how to break up the double play avoiding injury or interference.

At the youth level the rule is simple. The runner must slide directly into the base. Sliding away from the base towards the infielder will result in interference and an automatic double play. Also, during the slide the runner can not interfere with the fielder throwing the ball by raising their hands or by popping up at the end of the slide. Doing this will also result in interference and the out at first is awarded regardless of the outcome of the throw.

Many coaches and umpires interpret this rule at the youth level to also mean no contact can occur. If the middle infielder turning the double play is in the middle of the bag when the slide is made there will be contact. A runner needs to slide hard directly into the base and expect the fielder to avoid the sliding runner by moving away from the bag or jumping over the runner.

At the college and professional level a little more flexibility is given in sliding away from the bag. Umpires will usually allow the runner to slide towards the fielder as long as the runner can reach the second base bag with their outstretched hand.

Youth coaches should not be afraid to teach the hard slide at second base. Teach your players to avoid raising their cleats up and to slide hard directly into the bag with their hands down.

Mike Posey "CP"
Expert Baseball Tips
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