I don't know how to play 3B

[GunnerShotgun]

Isn't it true that what you gain in angles you lose in reaction time?

You are correct. Perhaps I am reading starsnuffers post wrong but the closer you play to the batter the less range you have.

Make a "V" from home plate to shortstop. The closer you get to home plate the less range you have.

 

[starsnuffer]

Isn't it true that what you gain in angles you lose in reaction time?

Yes, but bats have a pre-set speed limit, so it's easier to train at the max speed for reaction time then it is in baseball where there is no speed limit (at the professional level).

The closer to the batter the less range is needed. If, for instance, 3B was a ninja (who played softball instead of flipped out and killed people), and they could stand 5 feet away from the batter with their superhuman reflexes, then they could field any ball hit to the entire left side of the field and you wouldn't even need a shortstop, simply by extending their arms.

Like I said in my first post, it depends on the range of the shortstop. The greater the shortstops range, the further back 3B can play. The weaker the SS, the closer 3B has to play to make up the ground.

-W

 

[starsnuffer]

Agreed 100% Cannonball. I'll also say that the better the batters get, the more of those inside pitches go up the line.

A better shortstop is always the better and safer solution. That said, a line drive to 3B's facemask taht knocks her down is probably a single and not a triple had she not been there

-W

 

[MsDinosaur]

Third is DD's secondary position and she's not quick side-to-side so she plays fairly close to the line (SS is going to need to get just about everything in the 5/6 hole, but they know that going in). She sets up her spot by seeing where she needs to start to be able to make a backhand stop at the baseline after one crossover step. Unless it's some sort of strange miss-hit dribbler, one step in either direction is all she's going to get at the hot corner anyway.

From what I can see her coaches really want 3rd crashing bunts and charging slow rollers/slaps for outs. If she stops some hot shots for outs and/or holds them to singles instead of extra base hits, that's icing on the cake.

 

[CycloneSoftball22]

We rarely have our 3B guarding the line and I can only recall only one ball that has really been hit by us down the line. We typically stay toward the outer half of the plate with our pitching , so we play 3B off the line and SS a step or two towards the middle.

 

[IACoach]

Runner on 1st, no outs - how far in do you like 3rd?

 

[riseball]

Runner on 1st, no outs - how far in do you like 3rd?

Close enough to help the hitter change her socks.

 

[obbay]

Great insight- Thanks very much!
DD was playing in a LL (Senior League)All-Star game.
She was concerned because the clearly negative reaction of the coaches made her think she had made an error.

Later that game when she was pitching, the same coaches told her to "stop throwing the changeup, just throw fastballs".
The other team could not hit the changeup which was so effective, the 1B coach was even laughing at it - "that pitch should be illegal..it's so good!" DDs coaches were getting angry so she eventually stopped throwing it. Glad that's over!

Thanks again!