Lewis River Little League

T-Ball Instruction Series

What:

  • T-Ball is a great time to teach our beginners the basic fundamentals of hitting, fielding, throwing, and base running. Kids who learn these things at an early age develop the skills and muscle memory that clearly shows when they are older.
  • T-Ball should be more than simply playing games, it’s an opportunity to properly introduce “America’s game” to our kids and have them develop confidence in their new found skills.
  • Lewis River Little League will focus on player instruction and development for T-ballers, culminating in game experience.
  • Repetitive drilling and instruction is critical for early development of baseball skills.
  • Don’t expect perfection, or even for players to master drills the first day they learn them.
  • Player development will be a journey, not a destination.

Instructional Series #2–Throwing – Proper Throwing Techniques

Start:

  • Line up all players single file, 3 feet apart
  • You will need at least 1 parent/coach per 3 players. It is critical to keep drills moving and repetitive or T-ballers will quickly focus their attention elsewhere

The Grip:

  • Provide each player a baseball
  • Show the players the “horseshoe” or “C” of the seams. Have all the players place their first two fingers across the seams. T-Ballers can use 3 or even 4 fingers to get a good grip on the ball, as players get older and/or bigger they will want to use only 2 fingers.
  • This is a “4-seam” grip, because all 4 seams of the baseball will catch the air as the baseball travels to its target. That makes this grip the most accurate throwing grip on the ball and the one we want to use in the field.

The Body Position

  • Have all players sit on the ground with their non-throwing knee up as shown in the picture (Figure 1)
  • Front arm should be bent in a 90 degree angle (Figure 2)
  • Throwing arm should be straight back behind the body with a slight bend (Figure 2)
  • Both elbows should be at the same elevation (Figure 2)
  • The ball should be gripped in the 4-seam grip with fingers ON TOP of the ball (Figure 2)
  • Have players throw the ball and let arm travel across the knee (Figure 3)
  • As the player is throwing, the glove should tuck into the armpit. This allows the glove arm/hand to keep the body in balance vs pulling the body to the side
  • Head should finish down as the back flattens out (Figure 3)

Basic Drill

  • Either have players pair up, or pair up players with a parent/coach for expediency
  • Ask all players to get in throwing position (Figure 2) and freeze
  • Walk around and make sure all players have the proper glove arm angle (90 degrees), elbows are at same elevation, and fingers are on top of the baseball in the proper grip
  • Ask each player to look at their target and throw the ball
  • Remind players to come across their front knee with throwing arm (Figure 3) and as they throw to tuck their glove into their armpit
  • Ask players to freeze when they are finished throwing. See who has finished with the proper follow-thru (Figure 3) and remind players to flatten their back and head comes down.
  • Repeat 10-15 times.
  • This is a great drill to repeat the start of EVERY practice and game warm-up. Even big leaguers still use this drill!

Advanced Drill

  • This drill is similar to the basic drill, but starts from the standing position
  • Have players get in the throwing position (also known as the Power Position, or T Position)
  • Have players hold this stance (Pic Below) and make sure glove hand is at 90 degree, elbows at same elevation, and fingers are on top of the ball in proper grip
  • Have players rock back slightly on back foot, then taking a small step towards their target and throwing
  • Glove should tuck into the armpit area, back leg should come up and over, back should flatten out, and head should go down
  • Ask players to freeze at various points of the drill to gauge proper technique and reinforce the fundamentals
  • It’s very important that the players step directly towards their target in this drill. You can draw a straight line in the dirt or use a string to help them stay on-line with their target.