Something I see all the time with players and especially young players is pulling off or away from the ground ball when it is bouncing and the ball ends up going through the players legs.  Positive glove action goes along with moving through the ball but this post deals with short hops and unexpected hops.

When the ball is hit and the player is making their original read to set up and field the ball and they see it is a bouncing ball that they will have to go get they must be prepared and have it conditioned in their muscle memory that their glove goes to the ball.  What this means is when they approach the ball instead of pulling their glove up toward their body like you see so often with young players they need to extend their arm toward the ball making sure their glove is open (meaning their wrist is relaxed and hanging) then go get the ball.  Like I said at the top of the post this goes hand in hand with moving through the ball with proper right left footwork.  If a player has their feet planted and they are on their heels then positive glove action is virtually impossible because like always, even though you are extending your arm toward the ball your feet still field the ball.

Drill #1:

You and your kid or your kid and a friend should set up about 20 feet apart and on your knees, I suggest you get on your knees and do the drill to in order to actually feel how it is done.  What you will need is one ball and each of you need a glove.  You are going to work on throwing short hops to each other so the player gets used to using a positive glove action.  When you start off I want you to throw the ball to the players glove side so they get used to using this glove action comfortably.  As you throw the ball the player should be extending their arm with a soft wrist and meeting the ball with the glove going forward.  Note the player does not want to have a straight arm prior to fielding the ball because they won’t have their glove in the proper position.  As you progress through the drill start to throw the ball to the backhand side making sure the player uses the same positive glove action.  The back hand side is where players really begin to bring the glove straight up from the ground instead of forward.

Drill#2:

Same Drill, just on your feet, do not move your feet yet.  Make sure the player is bending at the knees and in a good athletic position.  On the back hand side make sure not to throw the ball to far over because we are not incorporating feet yet just hands for now.

Drill #3: Now we are moving

Throw the ball to the player and make sure it is bouncing and have him come through the ball with their feet and incorporate the positive glove action they have been working on.  At first just work on the forehand play.  You may stick with the forehand for a few practices before you ever try the backhand in order to make sure the player is comfortable with the glove action.  The backhand play on balls that are hopping are important but difficult for young players so for now lets just get the basics.  The back hand requires very precise footwork that will be better suited for a video post.   If their feet are moving properly and they are using the glove action they just worked on they should have no problem fielding these balls.  Also, mix in a few routine ground balls so the player isn’t always running after the ball.  This will also help the player make their reads.