Coach › Running a practice
Running a practice
Good rec practices keep every player moving, keep instructions short, and end with a game. Here's a plan you can copy.
Practice plans by age
6U and 8U: about 60 minutes
| Time | What to do |
|---|---|
| 5 min | Warm-up game: tag, follow the leader, or a relay around the bases |
| 10 min | Throwing and catching with partners |
| 30 min | Three stations, 10 minutes each: fielding, hitting off a tee, base running |
| 10 min | Team game, like a fielding race or a short scrimmage |
| 5 min | Quick team huddle, then a cheer |
10U and 12U: about 75 to 90 minutes
| Time | What to do |
|---|---|
| 10 min | Jog and dynamic stretches |
| 15 min | Throwing progression, starting close and backing up |
| 40 min | Four stations, 10 minutes each: infield, outfield, hitting, pitching and catching |
| 20 min | Game situations: coach calls the runners and hits ground balls |
| 5 min | Team huddle |
Shorter is fine. Young players learn more from 60 busy minutes than from 90 minutes of waiting in lines.
Stations keep everyone busy
One coach with twelve players means eleven players waiting. Split into groups of three or four, with one adult at each station, and rotate on a timer. Ask parents to run a station. Give them a card with the drill written on it.
- Keep lines to three players or fewer.
- Explain in under a minute, then show it once. Kids learn by doing.
- Use names and notice effort: "Nice job staying in front of the ball, Maya."
- Correct one thing at a time.
Simple drills that work
Throwing and catching
- Throwing ladder: partners start close. After three good catches in a row, both take a step back.
- Target throws: partners aim for each other's glove side chest. Count catches as a team.
Fielding
- Ready position freeze: coach says "Ready!" and players freeze in ready position. Check feet apart, knees bent, glove out.
- Alligator ground balls: roll balls to players who catch with the glove as the bottom jaw and the throwing hand as the top jaw.
- Pop-up calling: toss high balls and make players yell "I got it!" before every catch. Use soft or tennis balls with young players.
Hitting
- Tee work: one tee per two or three players, hitting into a fence or net.
- Soft toss: a coach kneels to the side and tosses into the hitting zone, with the batter hitting into a net.
Base running
- Run through first: batter swings at a tee, drops the bat, and runs through the bag without slowing down.
- Coach signals: runners round the bases while a coach gives "go" and "stop" signals.
Game sense
- Where's the throw? Place runners, call the outs, and hit a ground ball. Fielders shout where they're throwing before the ball arrives.
- Step or tag: call out a situation and have players answer "step on the base" or "tag her." The Think fast flash cards make good homework for this.
Practice safety rules
- Helmets on anyone hitting or running the bases.
- Bat safety: bats stay down until it's your turn, and hitting stations face a fence or net, away from other groups.
- Throwing lines: partners line up side by side in two lines, all throwing the same direction, so missed balls don't hit another pair.
- Catcher's gear on anyone catching pitches. Check your league's rule.
- Water breaks every station change on hot days.