Baseball AcademicsBASEBALL INSTRUCTION & THEORY
BY RICHARD PACE
Baseball Academics is here to help you become a better baseball player or coach. The practical easy to understand content of this website represents many years of on-field experience and study of the game of baseball.
This site will provide players of all ages with clear instruction in all aspects of the game, specifically BATTING, BUNTING, BASERUNNING, PITCHING, CATCHING, FIRST BASE, SECOND BASE, THIRD BASE, SHORTSTOP, LEFT FIELD, CENTER FIELD, RIGHT FIELD, THIRD BASE COACHING and FIRST BASE COACHING. Baseball Academics encourages you to visit Coach’s Corner where baseball coaches submit and share their personal insights, stories and philosophies on the game of baseball. This is an added opportunity to learn from others who are dedicated to the game of baseball. Players can submit their favorite action photos at the Baseball In-Action photo link. Provide a photo of; turning a double play, a slide into a base, a diving catch, etc. Baseball Academics would like you to also share your favorite out of the ordinary memorable baseball moments at the Memorable Baseball Moments link. The rare triple play, that defensive shift that anticipated correctly, the perfect bunt that made the difference, the diving catch that saved the win and so on.
WHAT WORKS
Over the years, hundreds of different styles, methods and theories of how to hit, field, pitch, and base run have developed. Unfortunately, some baseball instructors and instructional baseball websites for that matter, speak in absolutes as if their way is the only way. Baseball Academics will occasionally instruct in absolutes, but it will not stress one absolute way, hitting in particular. What this website will do is stress the importance of fundamentals while considering the fact that every player is unique in their ability and should be instructed in concert with that ability and given potential.
QUESTIONS
Players, coaches and parents will find the Question-Answer link very helpful. When you ask Baseball Academics a question, please provide as much detail in your question as possible. Detail is important from the perspective of the player’s level of natural ability. For instance; he or she may be a player who is either gifted with a strong arm and a fast pair of legs or isn’t. If the player doesn’t have these assets, he or she may be able to compensate for them in other ways. My answers will be more fitting knowing this information.
PRACTICE & THE MODERATE GAME SCHEDULE
Fielding and hitting can be improved by practice and proper instruction. The finer points of a player’s game will improve with experience and practice and more practice. But it is of course important to practice correctly. Many players go out on the field and perform and play incorrectly repetitively, simply because they were never instructed properly. This is not just singling out the little “guys”. Adult ball players as well never have shed some bad habits.
Little League Baseball has come a long way since the 1960’s and 1970’s. Better organized better equipment and uniforms, better ball fields to play on and well financed. I, like many others in the “old days” played on poorly maintained baseball fields on a minimum budget. And it always seemed on those fields, it was always10 degrees hotter in the summer than any where else in town. It was a rare treat when we played on a ball field that had grass in the infield. The team waited in anticipation all winter long for this “venue”. Never the less, it was our little heaven on earth. It turned out that those ball fields and limited game schedule was not a disadvantage for us. We learned “old school” baseball in those days, no frills, nothing creative. In my opinion, it is still the best approach for Little Leaguers today. Many of my old team mates continued on and played successful High School ball as well as College ball. Some of us still continue to play to this very day. Unfortunately, when it comes to youth baseball these days, a great emphasis is placed on the season’s schedule of games and less on practice. The ratio of practice to games is disproportional. Little Leaguers require more time on the practice field. Today’s Little League schedule numbers well over 50 games a season and then add to it a “traveling team” schedule and Fall baseball. I have interviewed players and parents on this subject. Not all, but an alarming amount of players have suffered a certain degree of “burn out” from an excessive game schedule (and so have the parents). It is therefore justifiable to say more games is not advantageous in making a better ball player and could very well be a detriment. A distressing result of a high volume of scheduled games has compromised recuperation time for young fatigued muscles especially for pitchers between the ages of 8 and 14. Little League coaches should be very conscientious of this issue. Instead of pressing for more games every season they should be working toward a moderate schedule. But the pressure to play 50 to 100 games a year is too great. More games and less practice will not improve a player. It can result in the formation of bad baseball habits. The potential for injury also becomes greater. When I was a young ball player, the specialty of Sports Medicine did not exist. Now obviously, Sports Medicine is much in need for young and adult ball players alike.
