How to Teach Catching a Fly Ball in Little League

Catching a fly ball is something that some children are capaable of at 6 years old, but most start to get the hang of at around 8 years old.

It's not my years as a college baseball player (UCLA 1988 to 1993) that help me coach/teach baseball; it's my years working at the UCLA baseball camps and my teaching experience since 1996 that helps me coach little leaguers.

Here are my tips for making the process of catching a fly ball go a little easier.

Instructions

    • 1

      Explain to the kids that it is easier to catch a ball that is in front of you than drifting over your head, so you always want to stay a step behind the ball. This will also put them into proper position to throw the ball; they should not be flat-footed if they need to throw the ball into the infield quickly.

    • 2

      Have the kids use two hands when they catch a fly ball. The non-glove hand can either be right behind the mitt helping close it when the ball goes inside or the other hand can be slightly under the mitt.

    • 3

      Make sure the kids are not doing "basket catches" on balls that they can get under.