Head first slide. Like or dislike

[Silver 2200]

Just a random thought. Do you teach your players or daughters to slide head first? Personally not a big fan of the head first slide in softball. In baseball, the head first slide is used much more due to leading off. It is much more common to slide back into a bag on a pickoff move.

It just seems like injuries to the wrist and fingers are much more likely on head first slides that I am not a big fan of the move.

 

[Eric F]

I'm okay with a head-first dive back to the base, but I don't like it for a full-speed slide.

 

[GunnerShotgun]

It's a no teach in my book but some players do it anyway. I do mention field conditions prior to the game for sliding (offensive and defensive) purposes.

Some venues I advise my players not to slide/dive period (unless they are the game winning run).

The juice isn't worth the squeeze...

 

[The Man In Blue]

May be an odd position ... but I think some kids do it because it is easier to learn and more instinctual.

Just be aware of what code you are playing under ... there are times when a head first slide can be illegal. (Looking at you Little League.)

 

[robertc3]

When I played baseball I slid headfirst any time I was sliding except into home. When the catcher is there with hard equipment I wanted to protect myself. Head first is definitely faster and I found it hurt less than knee raspberries I often got sliding on hard infields.

In softball I have taught the players how to slide headfirst and we definitely work on diving back to the base on a pick off, but I let them slide as they are comfortable. Almost all of them slide feet first every time. There are one or two who occasional slide head first, but it is rare. Boys have different anatomy than girls and I think that plays a role in girls choosing to slide feet first while boys love to get beyond little league so they can slide head first.

As for injuries to the fingers, they should be sliding with their hands in loose fists to protect their fingers from getting jammed. With breakaway bags I don't expect wrists to be much of an issue as long as they keep their arms almost fully extended.

 

[Vertigo]

I cringe when I see players do it. To me it’s just not worth the risk of a hand getting stepped on with metal cleats or a head crashing into a defensive player’s leg and causing them to injure their neck or jam a shoulder. Just my 2 cents.

 

[djcarter1966]

Yeah not a fan baseball or softball really...

 

[murphdog]

DD headfirst slides way more often than she foot first slides. She’s always been that way and she steals a lot of bases. I think a lot of it is instinctual and she doesn’t really think before she does it.
She did have a catcher collision last year as a college freshman but it looked far worse than it was. She ended up with a bloody nose but literally shoved a tissue up her nose and on to the field she went. She was pretty mad that her nose ring broke but other than that she was fine.

 

[Cagman]

I don't mind it with my older/HS girls. But not all of them are up for it. I went to a few 12U tournaments this summer where I saw some 12 yr old sliding head fist into home. I thought that was a horrible thing to teach girls at that age. I thought there was a rule against going HF into home, but was told there wasn't.

Going HF was all I did from about 14 on in baseball. Once I learned how to dive, I never wanted to go back to feet first. But my old man made me watch pete rose dives - and I was hooked, lol.

 

[MadBandit22]

Just a random thought. Do you teach your players or daughters to slide head first? Personally not a big fan of the head first slide in softball. In baseball, the head first slide is used much more due to leading off. It is much more common to slide back into a bag on a pickoff move.

It just seems like injuries to the wrist and fingers are much more likely on head first slides that I am not a big fan of the move.

Head 1st slide is fine except for 1st. Actually proven faster to run through the base.