Relay Throws

When practicing the “Relay Throws” drill you should have all the
players on the field. The drill begins with a runner or runners on first
and/or second. Be sure and have plenty of runners, because they are going
to get a workout. Now, hit the baseball in a gap to one of the outfields or
over an outfielder’s head. Everybody should be moving and the catcher
decides which base the relay should go to. He then yells that out to the
infielders.

The second baseman will be the relay man on hits to right field and
right-center field. On those plays the shortstop will cover second base. On
all other hits the shortstop will be the relay man, and the second baseman
will cover second base. If there is any doubt who is the relay man, the
shortstop is in charge and makes the call.

The relay man listens for the catcher to call which base the relay throw is
going to. He does this while running towards the outfield. He is running to
a spot where the outfielder can make the throw to him, and he in turn can
make the throw to third or home. Once he hears where the throw is going,
he starts communicating with the outfielder. All he needs to do is let the
fielder know where the throw is going, as in “home home home” or
“third third third”. This also lets the outfielder know where the relay
man is.

There may be times when you will have to use a double relay. In those case
the cutoff man (first or third baseman) needs to become involved as the
second relay.

It is the job of the third baseman or catcher, depending on where the ball
is going, to line up the relay man in a straight line between the base and
the outfielder. The main reason is for guidance to the outfielder if he
tries to make the throw all the way. Also, a straight line will make the
throws be the shortest in distance.

There probably is no need to work on this little league drill until the
players are at least 10. And even at 10 it is a tough task. Do this drill
several times without runners, and once everyone has the hang of it, bring
runners into play and try it live. Also, make sure you move the players
around to different positions. It is best that everyone gets some reps at
any position they might play.

Article Source: http://www.sportspracticedrills.com

After twenty five years of coaching little league baseball Vic Read shares all his baseball knowledge and experience on his website www.helpful-baseball-drills.com.

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