Little League baseball drills help you improve fielding and hitting fundamentals and techniques. While select baseball drills can be performed individually, most Little League baseball drills must be performed with a team, a partner or a coach. Little League baseball drills range from infield drills to bunting drills.
In, Out and Up the Middle
This in, out and up the middle drill improves your players' abilities to hit the ball to all parts of the field. Have a player step up to the plate while you stand behind an L-screen with a bucket of balls at the pitcher's mound. As you throw each pitch across the plate, have the batter call out if the pitch is an inside, middle or outside pitch. From here, your player must hit the ball to the part of the field that corresponds to the pitch location. An inside pitch must be pulled down the line. A pitch down the middle should be hit up the middle, and a pitch to the outside should be hit to opposite field.
Pitching Defensive Number Drill
By forcing your pitchers to call out a number after each pitch they throw, this drill reminds young pitchers to get in a defensive stance after a pitch. Have one of your pitchers stand at the pitcher's mound with a catcher behind home plate. Stand directly behind the pitcher so you can indicate a number to your catcher without your pitcher seeing it. After your pitcher throws the ball towards home plate, have him call out the number of fingers your catcher is holding up. Oftentimes, kids get caught up in the mechanics of pitching and forget to defend the position. Being forced to call out a number after each pitch reminds your pitchers that they must move into a defensive stance after a pitch.
Strike Zone Drill
Stand a few feet in front of the pitcher's mound and have a catcher get behind home plate. Have one of your players step up to bat and get into a normal hitting stance. As you throw the pitch towards home plate, have the batter load up as if he is going to swing at the ball, but instead of swinging, have him follow the ball with his eyes until it hits the glove. After it hits the mitt, have your batter call out if the pitch was a ball or strike.
Sun Ball Drill
This sun ball drill helps infielders and outfielders on your team learn how to shield their eyes from the sun while catching a ball. Have two players on your team stand 15 to 20 yards away from each other. Have one player stand in such a way that the sun is directly behind him. From here, have her throw a fly ball towards her partner, placing enough arc on it for the ball to line up with the sun. Once the ball is thrown, the other player should bring her glove up at eye level to block out the sun and allow him to focus on catching the ball. Have her partner throw her several fly balls before switching roles.
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