Practices

Schedule

Practices are held at Haxtun Baseball Field on the days/times below. Check the news page for changes.

What to Bring

• Glove
• Bat (11" softball-rated)
• Helmet with face mask
• Cleats (no steel cleats — 9-12 only allows molded/rubber)
• Water bottle
• Hat or visor
• Catchers: full gear (mask, chest protector, shin guards)

This Week's Plan

12:30–12:40 (10 min) — All-team warm-up

Why: bodies and minds need a switch from school/home to softball. We compete from the first throw.

Both coaches lead together.

• Attendance + Grant walk-off recap — one thing we did well, one thing to clean up (2 min)
• Jog foul pole to foul pole (1 min)
• Dynamic stretch: high knees, butt kicks, lunges, arm circles (5 min)
• 10 jumping jacks to finish — energy up (2 min)

12:40–12:55 (15 min) — Throwing program

Why: where your feet go, the ball goes. Footwork is what makes a strong, accurate throw — not the arm.

Pair off (8 pairs). Both coaches walk the line.

• Knee throws ×10 — elbow up, "L" arm, four-seam grip
• Short partners 20 ft ×10 — square hips, glove tucks to chest
• Long partners 40+ ft ×10 — crow-hop, follow through across body
• Quick exchange ×5 — receive, transfer, throw in one motion

Cue: "Throw THROUGH your partner, not at them."

12:55–1:20 (25 min) — Situational fielding stations

Why: catching the ball is half the play. Knowing where to throw it is the other half. We made zero errors at Grant — let's lock in the where.

Three stations, ~8 min each. Groups rotate; both coaches float to coach the decision, not just the catch.

Station 1 — Infield with a runner on

• Coach hits a grounder. A baserunner is on 1B.
• Fielder must field clean, call it out loud — "Two!" or "One!" — and make the right throw.
• If the lead runner can't be retired, take the sure out.
• 5 reps per fielder. Rotate fielders + runners.

Cue: "Look the runner back. Then throw to the out you can get."

Station 2 — Outfield: hit the cutoff

• Coach hits a fly ball or line drive to LF, CF, or RF.
• Outfielder catches (or charges + scoops), hits the cutoff (SS or 2B on the dirt).
• Cutoff makes the relay throw home — full play through.
• 5 reps per outfielder.

Cue: "Eyes up — find your cutoff before you catch it."

Station 3 — Catcher block + throw down

Catcher in full gear. Coach throws pitches in the dirt.

• Block the ball, pop up, simulated throw to 2B (5 reps, no runner).
• Live: runner takes off from 1B on the pitch, catcher receives a strike, pops up and throws down (5 reps).
• Rotate catchers — every girl gets at least 1 round of blocks.

Cue: "Smother it first. Get up, then throw."

≈1:20 — Water break + transition (3 min).

1:23–1:38 (15 min) — Baserunning

Why: outs are gifts. Never give one away — run hard until the play ends.

All 16, both coaches splitting the line.

• Home → 1B run-through ×3 — drop the bat, full speed THROUGH the bag
• Home → 2B turning the corner ×3 — bank the turn, head down to 2nd
• 1B → 2B reading a base hit ×3 — eyes up, find the ball off the bat
• 2B → 3B reading a ground ball ×3 — freeze on contact unless it's behind you, then go
• 3B → home tagging a fly ball ×3 — tag the bag, sprint on the catch

Cue: "Eyes up. Read the ball, then react."

1:38–1:50 (12 min) — Learning Game 1: "Bases loaded, 1 out"

Why: the hardest read in the game. Every defender has to know the play before the pitch.

What it teaches: pre-pitch awareness, defensive priorities, communication. Before the ball is even hit, every girl in the field should know where she's going with it. This is what wins close games — Sidney scored 5 in the 1st on us because nobody knew where to go with the throws. We fix that here.

Setup:

• Full defense at starting positions (game-speed alignment, no shortcuts).
• Runners on 1B, 2B, and 3B. Coach (or assistant) at the plate with a bat.
• State the situation out loud before every pitch: "Bases loaded, one out."
• Pitcher delivers (or a coach soft-tosses if no live pitcher) and the coach at the plate hits a ground ball, line drive, fly ball, or pop-up — varies it.

How they should react:

• Ground ball to P / SS / 2B / 3B: check the runner at 3B. If she's breaking for home, throw home. If she's holding, get the lead force at 2B (or 1B if 2 is gone) and try to turn two.
• Ground ball to 1B: step on 1B for the easy out, then fire home if the runner from 3B is going, or to 2B for the force on the trail runner.
• Fly ball: catch it first. Then come up throwing — the runner at 3B has to tag to score, so the throw home matters most. Runners at 1B and 2B have to tag back.
• Line drive: catch it, then look at the closest runner — she's almost certainly off her base (line drives freeze nobody at this age). Double her off.
• Pop-up on the infield: infield fly rule applies (batter is out automatically) — defenders still call it, runners still have to tag.

How we run it:

1. Before each pitch, coach asks the defense: "Where do you go on a grounder? Where do you go on a fly ball?" Wait for verbal answers from at least 3 girls. Then pitch.
2. Hit the ball. Play it out — runners must run.
3. Stop. Ask the fielder who got the ball: "What was your read? Why that throw?" Then ask one other girl what she did.
4. Reset. Run another rep.
5. 6–8 reps total. Halfway through, swap the infield — bench girls in, infielders out — so more players get reps at decision-making.

Cue: "Before the pitch — say your job out loud. After the pitch — play your read, not the script."

1:50–2:00 (10 min) — Learning Game 2: "Runner on 2B, read the ball"

Why: the runner has to read the ball off the bat in real time. The defense has to play the actual ball, not the scripted play.

What it teaches: baserunning reads (the second-hardest skill in the game, behind hitting) and how the defense responds to a real swing. This is the most common in-game scenario other than runner on 1B — every game has it.

Setup:

• One runner on 2B. Full defense in positions.
• Hitter at the plate. Coach pitches live (or soft-tosses from the front of the mound if no live pitcher).
• State the situation out loud: "Runner on second, ___ outs." Vary the outs each round — the read changes.
• One coach stands behind the runner at 2B to coach her read in real time. The other coach watches the defense.

How the runner should read it:

• Ground ball ahead of you (to SS, 2B, 1B): the ball passed you — go. Hard 3B, look at the coach for "send home."
• Ground ball behind you (to P, 3B): freeze. Only go if it gets past the fielder. Stepping off too soon = pickoff.
• Line drive anywhere: freeze, then tag back to 2B immediately. Line drives are easy double plays if you're caught off.
• Fly ball to the outfield: tag up. Read the depth — if it's deep enough, you go on the catch. If it's shallow, hold.
• Pop-up to the infield: stay on the bag. Pop-ups are caught.
• Strikeout / foul / no swing: reset. Don't drift off — there's no play.

How the defense responds:

• This is not a scripted drill — the defense plays the actual ball off the bat. Same priorities as Game 1 (read first, throw to the right base).
• If the ball is in play, the cutoff has to be ready (LF / CF → SS, RF → 2B). The throw home is the runner-stopping throw.

How we run it:

1. 4–6 full cycles. After each play, the coach behind the runner asks: "What did you read? Why did you go (or freeze)?"
2. Rotate the runner every 2 cycles so more girls get reps at the read.
3. If the runner makes a bad read, replay the same scenario one more time so she fixes it on the next rep.

Cue: "See the ball, then move. Don't guess off the swing."

2:00 — Huddle (final 2 min on the clock if we're running on time)

• One thing each coach saw a player do well today.
• Reminder: next game is Thursday.
• "Bulldogs on 3 — 1, 2, 3 — BULLDOGS!"