BVSA Teaches: Fielding a Ground Ball

On this episode of BVSA Teaches, Frank Ramppen talks about fielding a ground ball. Hey guys, today we’re going to talk a little bit about the basics of defense and fielding ground balls. Remember, we’re talking about teaching kids of all ages, from little kids to big kids. The smaller, less athletic, and less informed some of these kids are, the more specific you have to be in your teaching.

When fielding a ground ball, we need to get down low into a position where we bend at our knees and waist. We should be able to see our glove out in front of us and the ball. It’s important to bend at the knees and waist enough so that when we get into this position, the kids can see the top of our head. This ensures they are low enough to see the ball and the glove. Forming a triangle with our body is often talked about. Most importantly, we need to have our hands out in front of us when fielding the ball.

Some people teach the “alligator” technique, where the glove is turned up like an alligator’s mouth. However, we don’t teach that here. When players use the alligator technique, their glove tends to turn up, which can cause the fingers of the glove to miss the ball or hit the heel at the bottom, causing it to bounce away. Instead, we teach players to put their glove down with the fingers pointing down slightly but not touching the ground.