It's important to do warm-up drills to get players ready to play baseball. Getting them prepared to face fast pitching, hard ground balls and running the bases can help players compete better and avoid injuries. Some of the drills can be enjoyable for younger players and get them ready to play their best game.
Throwing Warm-up
The arm should always be warmed up and exercised prior to playing a game. Start off by stretching out your shoulder muscles. Take your throwing arm and put it across your body at shoulder level. Take your opposite hand and grab your upper arm. Gently apply inward pressure to get your throwing arm as close to your body as possible. Hold that position for 10 seconds. Relax for five seconds and repeat the drill. Now have the players pair off and start throwing to each other from a distance of 40 feet. After each one has thrown three balls, have them move back 10 feet. After each one throws six balls at the new distance, have them move back 10 more feet and continue to throw for several minutes.
Batting Practice
Hitting a baseball takes athletic ability, hand-eye coordination and confidence. It is important to have a batting practice session before a game to get the hitter's hand-eye coordination where it should be and get his confidence level up before he sees a pitch in a competitive game. Prior to every game, make sure every player gets 10 swings at good pitches in order to warm up and prepare to face a strong pitcher.
Infield Practice
Get your infield prepared for the game by hitting ground balls and having the players prepare as if it were a game. On the first round of ground balls, all fielders will throw to first base after catching the ball. On the second round of ground balls, they will throw to second base and either the shortstop or second baseman will throw to first. On the third round of ground balls, all fielders will throw to the catcher as if they were trying to get an oncoming runner out at home. While this is going on in the infield, another coach will hit the outfielders fly balls in an attempt to get them ready for competition.
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