Happy Thanksgiving!

All of us at Baseball By The Yard (actually it’s just me) wish you and your family a great Thanksgiving holiday!  The next post will be Monday.  For those of you who are subscribers that received the free eBook called Stuck Inside! : A baseball coaches guide to KILLER indoor practices, I hope you are […]

Video: The Drop-Step Pitching Drill

Today’s video tip was a request from a reader who asked about a post a few weeks back.  In the post, I showed a video of Peyton Manning teaching quarterbacks how to drop back and throw a pass.  As I mentioned, the drill is also good for pitchers with regards to staying on their line. […]

What was with the hoodies?

NOTE: Yesterday, I sent out to subscribers the free eBook called Stuck Inside: A baseball coach’s guide to running KILLER indoor practices.  If you are a subscriber and didn’t see the email, be sure to check your spam folders.  Sometimes email accounts put it there. Happy Thanksgiving Week everyone!   This was a post I […]

800 posts and counting!

Hello everyone!  Little bit of a milestone today.  It’s the 800th post for Baseball By The Yard.  Wow.  It seems like yesterday I clicked “publish” for the very first time.  For those who are avid readers and viewers of the site, I am very grateful.  For those who are new to the site, I hope […]

Leads and snap throws to third base

When you see a major league catcher attempt a snap throw pickoff  to any base, you can assume somebody saw something that led to the play.  The third baseman may have noticed the type of lead the runner on third took during the pitch.  Someone on the bench may have noticed something else.  Whatever the […]

Go minimalist!

In the last few years there has been a growing trend towards minimalist and even barefoot running.  This is due to research involving the effectiveness of the technology that goes into the shoes that we wear.  Unfortunately, the results are not good. In a nutshell, here is the theory … Human beings are born with […]

Checking the runner at third base

For some reason, I screwed up this tip more times than I can remember.  I drove one of my pitching coaches nuts because I always forgot to do it.   Today’s video tip is a small detail but it can big consequences if you do it wrong.  Trust me.  I know. Tomorrow’s post:  Go minimalist! 

Knowledge vs Judgement

Let’s face it.  Teenagers can be tough to work with.  Most parents of teenagers struggle to deal with one or maybe two.  Coaching 15-25 isn’t always a box of chocolates either.  On that note, try being a high school teacher who has to deal with over 100 per day.  Every school day.  I love it […]

Pitchers – Glide, don’t fall towards the plate

If I had to make a list of the most important aspects of pitching mechanics, this video tip would probably be among the top five.  Mastering this part of pitching allows so many other aspects to the pitching process to correctly fall into place.   Balance, body control, getting to the proper release point at […]

Five great baseball apps

With the emergence of technology like smart phones, iPads, and other devices, coaches are starting to see the time saving advantages and versatility of using them.  To be honest, even though there are hundreds of thousands (maybe millions) of apps for these devices, I have been less than blown over by the amount produced for […]

Footwork on cutoffs for middle infielders

In yesterday’s post, I showed in a video how to make the footwork of 1st and 3rd basemen more efficient on cutoff plays to home plate.  Today, it’s the two middle infielders that are going to get my focus. Like 1st and 3rd basemen, shortstops and second basemen need to develop efficient footwork.  However,  also […]

Footwork for 1st and 3rd cutoffs

A cutoff play is one of those little things that is a thing of beauty when it is done well.  When it’s not, it’s pretty much a train wreck.  Very painful to watch.  Unfortunately, it is not often practiced and even when it is, the footwork involved is often under addressed.  Like most everything else […]

The biggest mistake baseball coaches make

In the field of psychology there is a concept called the “curse of knowledge.”  The curse of knowledge is the mistaken assumption that others share our expertise and will behave as we would in the same situation.  In my opinion, the curse of knowledge and the assumptions that go with it result in the biggest […]

The slide step isn’t just for runners

In my opinion, the slide step is one of the most overused pitching strategies at the lower levels of baseball.  By lower levels I mean high school and below.  On top of that, when it is used at a proper time, the mechanics performed are often wrong and counterproductive. However, that does not mean the […]

What is your baseball IQ?

Last year I read a book called Intangibles by a guy named Geoff Miller.  He is a sports psychologist who has worked with a few major league teams including the Pittsburg Pirates and the Atlanta Braves.  His approach to working with players is very down to earth and his writing is along those same lines. […]

A big tip for helping pitchers stay on their line

One of the quickest and easiest ways to improve a pitcher’s accuracy is to get him to stay on his line.  The line I am referring to is the imaginary line that runs from the middle of the pitcher’s back foot (when it is up against the front side of the pitching rubber) to the […]

Post-game self evaluation sheet

One of the many challenges a coach faces is how to get players to focus on the statistics that really matter.  For a hitter, it is easy to put your attention on a batting average but “hits” can be deceiving.  Was the pitcher good?  Would a good infielder/outfielder have caught the ball instead?  Was it a […]

Lefty pickoffs Part 3: Never get picked off by a lefty again

In Part 3 of this lefty pickoff series I help out the base runners.  I wrote a post on this a while ago but thought a video would be helpful to go along with it.   Basically, if you are not stealing on the pitch then there is absolutely no excuse for getting picked off […]

Lefty pickoffs Part 2: Fake with the eyes

Probably the biggest mistake runners at first base make when lefties are on the mound is focusing on the pitcher’s eyes.  Even lefties with a sub-par move to first base can pickoff a lot of guys if they have good eye/head movement on the fake.  In today’s video tip I show how pitchers do it. […]