Young children may fall in love with baseball when they watch a major league baseball game on television, when they see older siblings or friends play or when they go to the ball park for the first time. Organized baseball programs for youngsters exist throughout the United States, and the best ones put much more emphasis on teaching the fundamentals of the game to the players than they do on winning youth league baseball games.
Step 1
Hold the bat the correct way. Choose a light bat that feels comfortable so you can swing it without feeling too much stress. If you are right handed, your left foot should be near the front of the batter's box, and you should focus on the baseball in the pitcher's hand as you hold the bat above your right shoulder. Your feet should be about shoulders-width apart, and your knees should be bent. Shift your weight from your back side to your front foot by taking a small step forward as the ball approaches. Swing the bat along the same path that the ball is traveling to hit it hard.
Step 2
Catch the ball with two hands. When you catch the ball in your gloved hand, put your throwing hand over the ball to make sure that it stays in place. On a ball that comes in at waist level or below, turn the glove so that the fingers are pointed down to the ground. On a ball that comes in above waist level, turn the glove so the fingers point to the sky.
Step 3
Place your forefinger and middle finger on top of the ball and your thumb underneath the ball when throwing. Bring the ball back toward your ears when preparing to throw. Step forward with your left foot -- when you are right-handed -- and then snap your right wrist in the direction of where you are throwing the ball.
Step 4
Run around the bases as fast as you can by hitting the inside corner of the base. Many youngsters step on the top of the base or the outer portion of it, but to run the bases correctly, you must hit the inside corner at top speed. Keep your head up, and look toward the next base while also watching the play as it develops. Learn to slide into the base on a close play to keep you from overrunning it. The only base you can overrun in baseball is first base.
Step 5
Hit the ball to get on base. Depending on how hard and where you hit the ball, you can get a single, double, triple or home run. Your teammates will follow you in the batting order, and they will try to get hits as well. When you and your teammates are up to bat, the object is to get as many hits as possible so your team can score runs. Each time your team gets up to bat, you get to score as many runs as possible until your opponent records three outs. At that point, your opponent will come to bat and then try to do the same to your team. The team that scores the most runs in the game wins the contest. In youth baseball, games are six innings long.
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