Coaching 3rd

[Greg Robinson]

What about things you watch for when coaching 3rd base against a team you dont know, like in travel ball. Like the catchers arm on her throw down, does 3rd charge a bunt when a runners on second? How deep is SS with a runner on second? Give me your ideas.

[Jeffrey Davis]

We were an aggressive baserunning team; challenging nearly every pitch. We would gauge the catcher on their reaction throw to second; those with sharp arms forced us to wait for an easy opportunity, those catchers who lobbed it or left it short meant that we would green-light the girls as soon as they got on base.
We were not the only team like this of course, and some teams, realizing that we were turning routine singles into a runner at third on 2 pitches even tried to adopt the strategy mid-season. To combat a team with a similar strategy we would not allow our catcher to make the throw to second at the beginning of the game, gambling instead on the throw out at 3rd. ( We were fortunate to have an outstanding young catcher with a cannon for an arm :) and an ultra-reliable 3rd baseman) After the first trip through the batting order we would let our catcher try them at second---we didn't get many pick-offs at 2nd but we certainly kept them from running on every pitch because the plays were so close.
On defense, with a runner at 2, 1st and 3rd were to charge a bunt--2nd covered first and SS covered third. 2nd and Short would start the play about 1 step behind the normal baseline in case of a slap. Our CF charged the play to be as close to 2 as possible to prevent any crazy overthrows. With a runner at 3 the alignment was the same but both 3rd and Catcher were made aware of the runner coming and told to check her first ---even got a few tag-outs that way!
I believe in small ball and have absolutely no problem bunting with a runner on 3 as long as my players are prepared and aware. A bluff start at 3 might get my runner on at 1 and a team that doesn't look back at 3 will find themselves giving up another run.

Don't know if any of that helps but it was sure fun to share!

[Greg Robinson]

good information thank you. greg

Jeffrey Davis said:

We were an aggressive baserunning team; challenging nearly every pitch. We would gauge the catcher on their reaction throw to second; those with sharp arms forced us to wait for an easy opportunity, those catchers who lobbed it or left it short meant that we would green-light the girls as soon as they got on base.
We were not the only team like this of course, and some teams, realizing that we were turning routine singles into a runner at third on 2 pitches even tried to adopt the strategy mid-season. To combat a team with a similar strategy we would not allow our catcher to make the throw to second at the beginning of the game, gambling instead on the throw out at 3rd. ( We were fortunate to have an outstanding young catcher with a cannon for an arm :) and an ultra-reliable 3rd baseman) After the first trip through the batting order we would let our catcher try them at second---we didn't get many pick-offs at 2nd but we certainly kept them from running on every pitch because the plays were so close.
On defense, with a runner at 2, 1st and 3rd were to charge a bunt--2nd covered first and SS covered third. 2nd and Short would start the play about 1 step behind the normal baseline in case of a slap. Our CF charged the play to be as close to 2 as possible to prevent any crazy overthrows. With a runner at 3 the alignment was the same but both 3rd and Catcher were made aware of the runner coming and told to check her first ---even got a few tag-outs that way!
I believe in small ball and have absolutely no problem bunting with a runner on 3 as long as my players are prepared and aware. A bluff start at 3 might get my runner on at 1 and a team that doesn't look back at 3 will find themselves giving up another run.

Don't know if any of that helps but it was sure fun to share!

[Greg Reece]

one thing I can't help to look for is anything in the pitchers motion that gives away the change up (or whatever her "out" pitch is) such as a different foot placement, change in the motion, etc. Anything that I can tell my batters to look for.
Maybe the third baseman gets in position for the bunt, but do they look confident in doing it? Are they leaning forward or back on her heels? How much does the SS adjust when third is playing the bunt?
Does the catcher look like she is looking to hold you on base or is she actually looking to get the runner out? That half a second of indecision can easily make the difference.
Just a few things I look for, hoping to find something that will help us....

[Greg Robinson]

very good tips coach. thanks

Greg Reece said:

one thing I can't help to look for is anything in the pitchers motion that gives away the change up (or whatever her "out" pitch is) such as a different foot placement, change in the motion, etc. Anything that I can tell my batters to look for.
Maybe the third baseman gets in position for the bunt, but do they look confident in doing it? Are they leaning forward or back on her heels? How much does the SS adjust when third is playing the bunt?
Does the catcher look like she is looking to hold you on base or is she actually looking to get the runner out? That half a second of indecision can easily make the difference.
Just a few things I look for, hoping to find something that will help us....