FOCUS SKILL- BLOCKING
It's interesting to observe the boys and girls that come in for evaluations. Nearly every single catcher does the exact same thing with a pitch in the dirt. They try to catch it! (This is usually all they know to do) They may swipe at the ball, scoop it (which is what my DD used to do) or attempt to trap it in the glove. Most do pretty well. What we try to explain is that as they face faster pitches, it becomes extremely difficult to be proficient with these techniques. My own DD discovered that scooping a pitch in the dirt many times led to her tossing the ball back to the pitcher or one of the infielders! She found this to be rather embarrassing as her teammates scrambled for the loose ball and runners advanced. Not to mention that some of the methods listed above are dangerous to various parts of the body!
We ask how many of our catchers are told to “BE A WALL” by their coaches. (Nearly all coaches do) Then we ask how many are told how to be that wall or giveninstruction on how to be that "wall" (hardly any...)
At ACC we break down true blocking (stopping the pitch in the dirt with the body in manner that leaves the ball directly in front of the catcher ready to throw out any runner unwise enough to run) into basic easy-to-understand steps. We explain each step to our catchers so that not only do they know how to block correctly, they know why and they have the tools to know when it's not right an correct it on their own.
It is important for our catchers to understand that as they learn "blocking" that it is an ongoing process that takes months to become proficient at. Once proficient, ACC's catchers shine behind the plate. We have seen 12U catchers and 18U catchers alike block the pitch in the dirt and proceed to gun the runner down attempting to steal a base on them!
ACC catchers have discovered their blocking skills come in handy for more than pitches in the dirt. I watched one of our catchers take a low hopping throw in from right field that would have been very difficult to get a glove on, catch and attempt to tag the runner. The catcher dropped to block once they recognized the throw was low, recovered and waited for the runner who had rounded third. That runner put the brakes on hard, and had second thoughts about coming home. Good blocking can demoralize the opposing team! Especially fastpitch teams that have a “Small Ball” offense. The catcher is one of the biggest defensive weapons against such a team.