Baseball is a sport of short bursts of energy in any direction. How many times have you seen an outfielder go from a stand still position into an all out sprint to catch a fly ball at the fence? This definitely doesn’t happen every single play, but players must be prepared for anything, at any given moment during a baseball game. Therefore, agility training should be an important part of your coaching process. There are a few tools that i recommend you should incorporate into your early spring practices, especially when players are just returning to the field from the off season. You can also find ways to utilize these tools for pre-practice and pre-game warmups, to help get your players moving.
Agility Cones
Agility cones are an inexpensive tool that every coach should have in their equipment bag. There are so many footwork drills that can be utilized within just a few seconds of setting some cones out. For this I wouldn’t get to crazy with what cones are truly the best cones. Any small, light weight and low profile cone will work. I like these from GoSports because they are inexpensive and come with a mesh bag to carry them around.
Agility Ladder
Agility ladders are a great tool for really challenging your players on their footwork. They are also a tool that you can have put down in just a matter of minutes. What’s great is that you can push your players as east,or as hard as you want to. You can keep it simple with just a few different agility moves and then ramp it up when they become more skilled and confident. This one from Manta even comes with some agility cones, carry bag and instructional cards.
Plyo Hurdles
Plyo hurdles are great about getting players to move explosively while staying under control. Many beginner baseball players, when they are first introduced to plyo hurdles, have a hard time controlling their bodyweight as they move through hurdles. Most of the time their upper body starts to move faster than their lower body. The hurdles teach them to move explosively through jumps and hops while maintaining control. These from Trademark Innovations are a great product.