How to Make Baseball Practice Fun

Running a youth league baseball practice is an important responsibility. When coaching young players, you want them to learn the fundamentals of the game, but you also want them to have fun when they are on the field. You don't want them to feel pressure or think playing the game is difficult. Help them enjoy the game by having fun every day you go to the practice field.

Instructions

    • 1

      Race around the bases. This is a great way to get your practice started and a way to get your players to work on one of the most underrated aspects of baseball: base running. Have all your players line up at home plate single file. Send your first player on his path around the bases with a sharp "go." Send each player on his or her journey with a go signal every five seconds. Once the players come home, have them repeat their base-running journey.

    • 2

      Play "piggy move up" in practice. Instead of just running your normal batting practice, divide your team into groups of three or four players. You should have at least three groups. Three players will come in to bat, and the rest of the players will be in the field. Coaches will pitch and catch. Members of the group at bat will get three at-bats each, unless the groups in the field record an out. If the first batter gets a hit, he will get a second chance up. However, if he hits a line drive that the center fielder catches, the batter has to go out to center field, and the center fielder comes in to bat. If outs are not made in the field, the group at bat will go into the outfield after each player gets three at-bats. At that point, the infielders come in to hit, and the outfielders move to the infield. This makes each at-bat exciting and helps players pay attention when their minds might normally wander.

    • 3

      Play knockout at the end of practice to work on pitching skills. The goal is for each child on the team to get a chance to pitch from the mound. Coaches catch and umpire. The first player tries to throw a strike. If he does, he is safe. If he throws a ball and the next pitcher throws a strike, the first pitcher is knocked out and is out of the game. Keep going in this manner until there is only one pitcher left. You might want to reward this pitcher by letting him start in the next game. It's a great way to build confidence and improve team morale.

    • 4

      Play "hit the barrel" as your team practices throws from the outfield. Put a barrel or a crate on its side facing right field. Give each player a throw from right field, and ask him to put the ball in the barrel. If he does, he gets three points. If he hits the barrel but the ball doesn't stick, he gets one point. Do this from center field and left field as well. The outfielder who gets the most point wins the competition.