Wesley Hilliard Baseball

Sharing ideas and learning how to coach baseball.

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Darwin Barney to the right and Darwin Barney to the left.

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Masahiro Tanaka’s splitter is lethal. 

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I saw this drill last year. Since I don't have an ATEC machine, my outfielders got some practice hitting the cutoff man. 

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Mario Soto on the changeup | Cincinnati.com

The changeup is big pitch for Reds prospect. They learn from Mario Soto. He talks about it here.

The change-up may not be as sexy as a nasty slider or a big hook, but it can be the most deceptive pitch in a hurler's arsenal. 

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Beltran slickly grabs this one over the short wall.

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What every team needs- a big-time defensive play to stop the bleeding. 

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The defense in Game 5 has been sensational. 

DEFENSE!!!

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Alex Cobb is going all out in the postseason.

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PFP's matter!

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Is fielding overlooked?

I really haven't marveled at a defender since Rey Ordoñez played shortstop for the Mets in the late 90's. Ordoñez went 101 consecutive games without making an error while making both routine and plus defensive plays. 

Foto by Getty Images

One of the first questions I plan to ask my team this spring is, "How many of you take hitting lessons?...pitching lessons? fielding lessons?" I am guessing that most hands will shoot up at "hitting lessons." Fewer will go up for pitching lessons, and probably none will go up for fielding lessons. It is my impression that hitting the long ball and throwing 90+ (both important aspects of baseball) have overshadowed the need for being a great defender.

Defense can win or lose games, especially at the high school level. Time after time I will see great hitting/pitching teams lose because of failure to field and play catch. Faulty defense leads to extra outs which lead to big innings that even the best pitchers may not be able to overcome. 

My question is: How can I put an emphasis on fielding without neglecting the other areas of the game?

Brian Shoop at UAB tracks fielding percentage during fall practice and asks his team something like this, "What if I made the starting lineup based on your fielding percentage?"

Another great college coach, although I don't remember his name, said that the first drills done in practice tells the players what is most important. 

The Positive Coaching Alliance would suggest praising what you want to see more of. So, in my case, praise good defense. 

In closing, I want to mention that University of Kansas head coach, Ritch Price, was the best teacher of fielding that I ever experienced. After I went to the University of Kansas baseball camp the summer before my senior year of high school, I became 10x the defender that I was. Coach Price taught me how to get a good hop and field the ball to my glove side. This is the type of comment I want from my players after the Spring 2014 season. We'll most definitely work on pitching and we will take our cuts in the cage, but I want my players to really understand how to play great defense. 

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Omar Vizquel does amazing things with a ball and a glove. 

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Pitching Drills by Tom House

A little known fact about Tom House is that he caught Hank Aaron's record-breaking 715th home run while standing in the bullpen as an Atlanta Brave. A well-known fact about House is that he is a ground-breaking pitching coach who coached the likes of Nolan Ryan. 

I have compiled some videos of pitching drills that House emphasizes for proper mechanics. I am a big fan of the 'Hershiser Drill' which teaches pitchers to start their momentum to home plate with their hips. This is the only drill I know of that teaches this often overlooked part of pitching mechanics. 

Learn and Enjoy!

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The Change-up

When asked what role I should have on the pitching staff on my college baseball team, I immediately thought of myself as a closer. I didn't throw very hard, but I could locate both of my pitches in order to get three outs. I only threw a four-seam fastball and a change-up. That was the extent of my pitching repertoire. Although I pleaded to be a closer, my coach made me a starter. My dream of being Trevor Hoffman was short-lived.

Due to my success as a starter, I now consider the change-up as the best pitch in baseball. As a coach, I vow to have each of my pitchers value and master the art of throwing a change-up.  Here is a quick video on throwing a change-up from Memphis pitching coach Fred Corral:

  There are various ways to throw a change-up, but the key is to keep everything in the pitching delivery the same as if you were throwing a fastball. The best way to practice this is by throwing the change-up during long toss from a distance of 100 feet or more. Just grip the change and let it rip. This way, the pitcher will have to keep his arm-speed in order to get the ball to his partner. 

Change-up = Best pitch in baseball

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According to Tony Gwynn, there are two things you have to do every time you step in the batter's box...

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Coach Servais of Creighton walks through short hop progressions.

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TCU executing a drill to help infielders keep their glove in front of their eyes.

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Brandon Phillips talks about his favorite fielding drills.

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Wall Ball: Pelota de Goma

In my previous post, Ozzie Smith showed a simple wall ball game that he played as a child. This drill helped him learn to field and field and throw in one motion. I am going to show a variation of wall ball that can be made into a competition among players.

'Pelota de Goma' is Spanish for rubber ball. In this game, two players face off in a fielding competition. All you need is a wall and a rubber ball. Side Note: Dollar Tree sells rubber baseball for $1. Don't spend too much on equipment. A rubber ball is a rubber ball is a rubber ball. Players may use gloves, but it is recommended field barehanded.

The process: Player 1 throws the ball against the wall and Player 2 fields. Player 2 then throws the ball against the wall for Player 1 to field. If Player 1 makes an error, he gets a point. The more points you have, the worse your score. The scoring is like golf. Points are not a good thing in this game. You can play to 3 or 5 or 10 points, whatever is appropriate for your team.

As the coach you can give points for not fielding out front or not getting into the proper throwing position. As the coach you can give points for not following the proper fielding protocol. 

This video offers a small example of this game being played in Venezuela.

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Fielding Tips from the Great and Powerful Oz

Ozzie Smith knew how to field a baseball. His basic philosophy has never changed as you will see in the following videos. 

Recap:

1. Field ball out front

2. Field ball on inside of left foot

3. Always be moving forward

4. Field and throw in one motion

5. Field from low to high