Baseball Coaching Info

Organization of Practice

Coaches must construct a solid practice plan in preparing for training sessions. Players know when coaches arrive at the field unprepared, and their confidence and willingness to learn suffers. Players expect and deserve will-organized coaching. Practice plans can include a progression of exercises from simple and fundamental to more complex and match-simulating. Players need to understand the relationship between training exercises and the game. Teams train to play!

Fundamental: Begin with exercises for individuals or pairs.

Match-Related: Utilize exercises for small groups with game-like situations. Apply some restrictions such as confining the space or area.

Match-Conditions: End the progression by using exercises for larger groups. Add full teams. Restrictions should be lessened, or even dropped completely.

Quick Tips For A Productive Practice

• Try to incorporate the four basic components of the player (technical, tactical, physical, and psychological) in each session by defining a practice plan beforehand.
• Interrupt an exercise when a valid piece of instruction can be provided in a quick, succinct manner.
• If the exercise is not productive, then quickly change the conditions such as a size of field, number of players, or other restrictions.
• Add conditions to raise the level of performance and intensity. Challenge players to step up their games a level.
• Use competitive drills to liven up practices and conditioning.
• Notes or lesson plans are good to have, but do not look at them so frequently during practice that they become a distraction.
• If the coaches enjoy the training session, then the players will, too.