Fun things to do at practice - Tons of softball drills, softball tips, and advice on softball hitting, softball pitching, coaching softball, softball training, and more.

sluggers · 08-04-2008, 10:04 PM

how about some ideas for fun activities during practices?

My personal favorite is a game called "shotgun". There are three teams, 4 or 5 on a team. One team bats, one plays infield and one plays outfield.

Three outs an at bat.

The coach pitches. The only way to make an out is if you are put out prior to getting to 1B. (Caught fly-ball, thrown out at 1B, strike out).

Otherwise, the team gets one point per base. Once you are tagged, you get back in line for hitting and you cannot score any more runs. If you are tagged, it is not an "out". After 3 outs, everyone changes (team at bat goes to infield, infield goes to outfield, outfield goes to bat).

E.g., if a kid hits a double, her team gets 2 points. If she is tagged between 2B and 3B, it doesn't count as an out but she cannot score any more points for her team.

You want to keep the game moving. As soon as the batter gets to the plate, you throw the ball--even if the defensive players aren't in position or are talking or whatever. You can cut the number of strikes down to 2 or 1 before an out to encourage aggressiveness at the plate.

The team is working on base running skills and defensive skills (hitting the cutoff and relays) at the same time. The kids love it because of everyone being involved. They will play this game until the sun goes down.

Marc Dagenais · 08-05-2008, 06:47 AM

Over The Line

Split your teams in group of 3 or 4. Each time lines up next to each other. There is a team in front, one behind, the other one, etc.

The coach is standing 30-40 feet away and hit softies or whiffle ball at them hard enough and randomly.. and try to beat the wall of 3-4 players. They stay there as long as the ball doesn't go through them. As soon as the ball passes them... they go at the back of the line and each team moves up. The next team is in front and tries to stop every ball.

If ball is unreachable (too high or too far on the side), it doesn't count.

Players love it.

Marc

yoda1277 · 08-05-2008, 12:56 PM

We have been known to play Ultimate Softball. This is like Ultimate Frisbee but with gloves and a softball instead of a frisbee. The team is split into two teams and the rules that apply to Ultimate Frisbee apply to Ultimate Softball. This game takes them out of the normal softball environment but they still have to work on footwork since you cannot move after receiving a throw, catching since the ball cannot hit the ground, accurate throws, communication, fake throws, etc. We usually play this indoors to break up the monotony & repetitive nature of our indoor practices. The girls enjoy the game and don't realize the workout they are getting until after the game is completed.

08-04-2008, 10:04 PM	#1 (permalink)
sluggers Senior Member Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 184	Fun things to do at practice how about some ideas for fun activities during practices? My personal favorite is a game called "shotgun". There are three teams, 4 or 5 on a team. One team bats, one plays infield and one plays outfield. Three outs an at bat. The coach pitches. The only way to make an out is if you are put out prior to getting to 1B. (Caught fly-ball, thrown out at 1B, strike out). Otherwise, the team gets one point per base. Once you are tagged, you get back in line for hitting and you cannot score any more runs. If you are tagged, it is not an "out". After 3 outs, everyone changes (team at bat goes to infield, infield goes to outfield, outfield goes to bat). E.g., if a kid hits a double, her team gets 2 points. If she is tagged between 2B and 3B, it doesn't count as an out but she cannot score any more points for her team. You want to keep the game moving. As soon as the batter gets to the plate, you throw the ball--even if the defensive players aren't in position or are talking or whatever. You can cut the number of strikes down to 2 or 1 before an out to encourage aggressiveness at the plate. The team is working on base running skills and defensive skills (hitting the cutoff and relays) at the same time. The kids love it because of everyone being involved. They will play this game until the sun goes down.

08-05-2008, 06:47 AM	#2 (permalink)
Marc Dagenais Peak Performance Coach Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Montreal, Quebec, Canada Posts: 305	Over The Line Split your teams in group of 3 or 4. Each time lines up next to each other. There is a team in front, one behind, the other one, etc. The coach is standing 30-40 feet away and hit softies or whiffle ball at them hard enough and randomly.. and try to beat the wall of 3-4 players. They stay there as long as the ball doesn't go through them. As soon as the ball passes them... they go at the back of the line and each team moves up. The next team is in front and tries to stop every ball. If ball is unreachable (too high or too far on the side), it doesn't count. Players love it. Marc __________________ Marc Dagenais, MHK, CSCS http://www.softballperformance.com Marc Dagenais is a softball peak performance coach that helps players be more confident, mentally tougher, hit with more power, run faster, throw harder, and be more dominant on the field. He also helps coaches win more games and get more out of their team. To get tons of performance-boosting softball tips, tricks, and advice by email, sign-up for his FREE softball newsletter. To quickly and easily boost your performance, check out Marc's powerful softball resources.

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08-05-2008, 12:56 PM	#3 (permalink)
yoda1277 Junior Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 11	We have been known to play Ultimate Softball. This is like Ultimate Frisbee but with gloves and a softball instead of a frisbee. The team is split into two teams and the rules that apply to Ultimate Frisbee apply to Ultimate Softball. This game takes them out of the normal softball environment but they still have to work on footwork since you cannot move after receiving a throw, catching since the ball cannot hit the ground, accurate throws, communication, fake throws, etc. We usually play this indoors to break up the monotony & repetitive nature of our indoor practices. The girls enjoy the game and don't realize the workout they are getting until after the game is completed.