Below are the best videos I’ve come across on fielding, footwork and throwing mechanics for infielders. These were put together by Matt Antonelli, an infielder in the Washington Nationals organization who also runs touchemallball.com . Matt very thoroughly breaks down the fielding mechanics of gold glove caliber infielders like Derek Jeter, Starlin Castro, and Evan Longoria and this instruction will make any infielder better if they can master these mechanics. What’s shown below is the proper way to field ground balls and the proper footwork to make strong, accurate throws. This is exactly what coaches and scouts are looking for when evaluating an infielder so to pay close attention, watch them over & over, and master these mechanics…
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Proper IF fielding mechanics
-Rhythm as you approach the ball: right foot, left foot, field the ball (1:30)
Proper fielding position:
-feet wider than shoulder width apart to get low (2:15)
-feet roughly squared to ball…right foot slightly ahead of left or vice-versa is OK, but don’t stagger them too much (2:40)
-sink the hips, get the butt down, knees bent, (3:30)
- flat back (4:40)
-soft hands out in front of the body, glove in front of your eyes (5:00)
-open glove angle…imagine an “eye” in the palm of your glove that can see the ball (don’t flip or turn-over the glove) (6:10)
-field the ball from the center of your body or towards your left eye or ear (field slightly on the left side your body, but not all the way to the left foot) (8:50)
-get your body into this proper position early and see the ball into your glove (11:15)
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Proper IF footwork for throwing (once you have fielded the ground ball)
-right foot replaces the left foot (3:05)
-left foot strides towards target (3:15)
-shuffle step to get momentum/something extra on the ball if you have time (shuffle step involves right foot replacing the left foot again) (3:30)
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Ready Position
This is out of order (should be before the first video), but very important in terms of getting yourself in the “ready” position as the ball crosses the hitting zone at the plate
-entails the pre-pitch movements to get in the proper position
-get in sync with the pitcher so you are ready on time (1:10)
-rhythm: left, right, hop and land on the balls of your feet as the ball crosses the hitting zone at the plate
-land in an athletic, balanced position with knees flexed like playing defense in basketball (3:05)
-thumbs up so you can quickly run in either direction (3:18)
