Tee ball is often a child's first taste of the game of baseball. In tee ball, it is important for players to have fun, learn the game and develop skills to play baseball down the road. Tee ball coach Kevin Litzinger says baseball is a game of repetition and that reinforcing fundamentals is important. You should focus your tee ball teaching efforts on the fundamentals of batting, throwing, catching and fielding.
Batting
Tee ballers must be taught basic fundamentals, including their stance, holding the bat and the mechanics and motion of the swing. Hopedale Youth Baseball says you should make sure each player is comfortable in his stance and shows consistency in his swing. The player should be balanced in his stance with his feet a little more than shoulder-width apart. The hands and bat should be held in a comfortable position and the middle knuckles should line up on the grip or be close to lining up. A player should have balance during the swing, keep his eyes on the ball, take the bat straight to the ball and roll the wrists over with a full follow-through that takes the bat to the player's back. Setting up practice drills with three or four tees so players can have dozens of swings is an efficient way to work on fundamentals of hitting.
Throwing
Learning the proper way to throw is vital for a player's improvement and safety. Improper throwing mechanics can lead to injury, even at a young age. Players should practice throwing during warm-ups and practice. There are drills you can employ to work on proper throwing mechanics. Teaching players to throw in a set cadence is a way to enforce mechanics. Starting with the hands together, players should take the ball out of their glove and make a small arc from the back leg to a high point, with the ball facing straight behind them. Then, with the hip opening to lead the way, the arm should come forward and release the ball in front of the body, with the weight on the opposite knee. You can pause the motion at any time to ensure players are in the proper position. Hopedale Youth Baseball says to focus on making sure the elbow is bent and above the shoulder for a proper follow-through.
Catching
Catching the ball may seem like a simple task that everyone has already mastered, but this is not true in tee ball. Players could have little to no experience with the game and for development and safety reasons, learning to catch might be the most important skill at a young age. Practice on throws from different areas to teach players how to turn their gloves to make those catches. For instance, the fingers should be down for low throws and up for high throws or catches. In addition, Hopedale Youth Baseball says to teach the players to use two hands and close the glove with the off hand to seal the catch.
Fielding
As players develop, teaching the fundamentals of fielding will help them down the road. Ground-ball and fly-ball drills will teach players how to field and catch. For grounders, let players get experience playing each position. Instruct them on how to approach the ball, get the glove to the ground and seal the ball in with the throwing hand. For fly balls, focus on teaching how to judge the ball, turn the glove and use two hands to catch.
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