Better Coaches Coaching Drill: Football Patterns

The purpose of this drill is to get players (outfielders) to practice picking up a ball in the air while on the run.

Divide players into groups of 6 or 8 (each group will need 3-4 baseballs).
Players line up behind coach and (one at a time) get ready to take off on a sprint away from the rest of the group.
While the player is running, he/she listens for one of three verbal cues from the coach. These consist of stop, break left, or break right.
Immediately after giving the cue, the coach throws a fly ball to an area respective to the direction called out. For instance, a player instructed to "break right" turns to his/her right and gets a visual on a ball in the air. A player instructed to "stop" turns around and gets a visual on a ball directly above them.
After the fielder has retrieved his/her baseball, they run to the back of the line. There is no need to have them throw the balls back in.

Do not try and fool players. The easiest way to teach this is to have them all go through it once following the same cue (everyone stops, breaks left...etc). After they get the hang of it, mix up the signals each time.
Timing is everything. The purpose of this is to pick up a ball that is already in the air. The coach should try and release the ball while they are giving the cue.
Teach players to "get to the area they think the ball will land" as quickly as possible. This helps them avoid "drifting." Remind them to run on the balls of their feet, making it easier to focus on the fly ball.
After getting to an area, players should try to catch the ball on their throwing-arm side (the hands are positioned thumb to thumb above the shoulders).
This allows for a faster exchange from the glove to the throwing hand, therefore getting the ball to the cut-off man sooner.
To make the drill harder and more interesting, throw the ball into the sun and have the players practice using their gloves to shield their eyes. You can also have the players take off in pairs or teams of 3 or 4 and allow them to compete for the ball (tell each player to run a certain pattern and break on a general cue).

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