How to deal with a ground ball that might bounce off the base?

[bbrages]

Hi folks.

My son (age 8) always seems to be playing 3rd or 1st. At both places, he's had a problem with ground balls that are going right down the line. I think he tries to play them from behind the base, then the ball hits the base and takes a crazy bounce that he can't handle. Yesterday, he was at third, set up for a grounder, and the ball hit off the base and struck him in the temple (!), causing much pain including writhing on the ground. (He tends to be a bit dramatic...)

So what's the "base-ic" technique here? I'm guessing the obvious answer is to cut in front of the base if you have time to do so and play well behind it if you don't.

What do you teach your kids?

[Jake Patterson]

Hi folks.

My son (age 8) always seems to be playing 3rd or 1st. At both places, he's had a problem with ground balls that are going right down the line. I think he tries to play them from behind the base, then the ball hits the base and takes a crazy bounce that he can't handle. Yesterday, he was at third, set up for a grounder, and the ball hit off the base and struck him in the temple (!), causing much pain including writhing on the ground. (He tends to be a bit dramatic...)

So what's the "base-ic" technique here? I'm guessing the obvious answer is to cut in front of the base if you have time to do so and play well behind it if you don't.

What do you teach your kids?

This doesn't happen as much on the big field. The only way to prevent it is to play in front of the bag.... otherwise wait till it stops rolling and pick it up

[tg643]

If the ball is rolling slow enough for the player to get behind it, he needs to attack it and field the ball before it can hit the base. As Jake said this doesn't happen often at higher levels. The ball is moving too fast.

[steddie]

Same thing happened a couple of times to my son when he was same age. Its been about 6 years since then. But we still talk about it from time to time. There we were- up by several runs in the championship game with two outs.. (I had them playing back to avoid the extra bases the batter would get if ball went to OF). Routine ball is hit on the line to first. This should be easy, thought I, as he approached to make the play. As he closed to within inches, the ball hit the edge and shot nearly straight up. In slow motion, It seemed to float momentarily in mid air -- suspended several inches above his glove, before it's momentum carried it over his glove. It seemed to be dangled by a mischeivious baseball god -- just out of reach. He stretched with foot on bag, but it was too far -- and when he moved to catch the ball, he was too far away to get back to the bag before runner arrived. That last out proved to be the most difficult to get for a few years afterwards. They eventually got the out that day, but that freak occurrence gave new life to the other team. Suddenly they were hitting balls, and we were missing or dropping them. We escaped that day by the skin of our teeth. From then on, he tried to stay out of no mans land at all costs. Get it if you can, but if not, get back quick.

[Baseball gLove]

This doesn't happen as much on the big field. The only way to prevent it is to play in front of the bag.... otherwise wait till it stops rolling and pick it up

I thought that was the proper technique for catching a knuckle ball pitcher