WebBall.com - Know Your Role

It's why they call it the Hot corner

This essential advice defnes why this fielding position demands a certain kind of player:
Expect the worst. Be aggressive, go for function over form.

Ready for anything

Before the pitch...
- Get off the line, check runners, think about bunt.
On the windup...
- Balls of your feet, glove down, butt down, head up.
On contact...
- Be aggressive, go straight at it. (Don't let the ball play you.)
On catch...
- Short hop - scoop it on the glove side or use a backhand stab on throwing side.
- Long hop - get behind it, plant back foot for throw.
- Chopper - hustle, short strides (to anticipate bad hop).
- Line Drive - get in front of it. Stop it at any cost!
To throw...
- It's a long way to 1st!
- Find your balance
- Get the arm extended.
- Put your body behind it.

Skills to work on

Hard Smash...
- Practice with whiffles then baseballs.
- Do the 'bobble drill' in which you learn to stop the ball, let it drop, then quickly recover - picking it up to make the throw.

Slow Rollers...
- Charge, field ball off front foot, and throw low, elbow bent.

Hard Throws...
- Throw across the diamond, work with catchers.

Pick Offs...
- Work work with all pitchers.
- Practice signals and cues, not just the mechanics

Tag Technique...
- Glove down, ret the runner come to you.
- Swipe tag - don't freeze.

The Rundown...
- Work on coverage and technique.

Drill work

All drills help, these are especially important if you play first. Put extra effort into them when the coach runs these during practice.

Double Play Drill... practice cross-coverage with shortstop.

Round the Bags... you won't be at 3rd much in this drill, but you can practice position and swipe tags as if you were.

Bunt Loops... work on your first reaction steps, charging hard, getting glove right to the ground. Also work on communication with pitcher, short, catcher.

Goal Post... at both the end and middle spots you can work on your alignment

Pre-Game... primarily an outfield drill, but 3rd has special duties including relays from left field to home and from second or short to your bag

Cut-Two... work on footwork, body angle, listen for catcher calls.

Special Situations

Double Plays
- Work on communication - who's got 2nd?

Bunt defense
- Communicate with pitcher (especially if he's LH).
- Hard bunt - two hand scoop or off the front foot.
- Soft bunt - put the brakes on. Catcher might send you back (he can see the play developing).

Ball at the fence...
- Feel for fence with throwing arm, get there early.
- Test the warning track before the game - count the running strides.
Runner on third...
- You don't need to camp on the bag, just be close and move in on pitcher signal or aggreesive lead.
- Feet behind the bag, low target, break with pitcher's arm in window.
- Get back for throw from catcher, or pitcher - right after throw back to mound.