Stretching:

• Players put arm across chest and pull with other arm.
• Players put bent arm behind head and use other arm to pull on elbow.
• Players stand cross legged and bend at waist touching shoe strings
• Players stand and drop down to catchers squat and then return to standing position.
• Players stand and bend leg behind them grabbing with hand and pull leg toward butt.

Running:

• High Knee Kick Drill – have players jog and kick their knees up towards their chins.
• Kick Butt Drill – have players jog trying to kick themselves in the butt.
• Sprint Drill – have players run between two points only running at 50% of their normal speed. Continue rotating through the players with each making 2 rounds. On the second set increase the 3rd and 4th round to 75%. On the third set increase to 100%.

Note: A good distance for these drills is about the distance from 1st to 2nd base. After a short rest have the players make 2 laps on the base paths making sure they are touching the bases.

• Base Drill – have the players start at 1st base. Make them sprint ½ way to 2nd base and stop and return to 1st base. Next, have them sprint to 2nd base without stopping and continue towards home jogging after 2nd base.

Note: This drill should help in base coaching if a player needs to be called back to a base in the event of a close play on the field. A good idea is to have a coach start and stop the players. Coaches should also be instructing base contact with proper foot and proper base-to-base paths.

Fielding Drills:

• Pop Flys – Using tennis balls have the players make a short toss in the air. Without        catching the ball see how close the ball can come to their chin past their chest. Do this until the player is comfortable with the ball passing close to their face. Next, allow the players to catch the tennis ball with their glove over their head. After they are comfortable with tennis balls use regular softballs.
• Pop Flys (2) – Two players face each other. The 1st player turns and jogs away from the other player. The 2nd player tosses the ball over the 1st players head simulating a pop fly.
• Noodle Drill – Two players hold a swimming noodle about 3’ above the ground. Have another player toss a grounder to a player on the other side of the noodle. The fielding player must scoop up the grounder and continue under the noodle. This drill helps players stay down on a ground ball.
• Ball, Ball, Ball Drill – have 4 players stand in square formation about 30’ apart. Rotate the throws clockwise between players with the next player calling Ball, Ball, Ball to let their teammate know who to throw it to. This drill helps with communications between the players while playing.
• Relay Drill – have about 5 players in a line about 40’ apart. Each player raises their arms to simulate a cut-off person in the line. Continue throwing through the line until the end, then repeat in the other direction. This drill helps getting a ball relayed to the infield.

Hitting Drills:

• Bunt in the Bucket- Using a 5 gallon bucket have a player soft toss a pitch to the batter. The batter should try to bunt the ball into the bucket. Coaches should check hand position on the bat and better squaring to the pitcher with their shoulders. This drill helps with bunting accuracy and control of the bat.
• Swing Drill- All the players line-up on the foul lines facing the pitching circle. All players should have a bat. Make sure the players are far enough apart to swing the bat without hitting another player. Have a coach simulate a pitch from the pitchers circle and players should be swinging at pitch. Coaches should be checking for front foot step, hip turning to start swing and full follow through of swing.

Tee Drills:

• Concentration Drill: Players place ball on tee and gets into batting stance. Batter now swings at ball on tee in slow-motion stopping bat just before contact with the ball. The player then pushes ball off the tee with bat. Once ball is off tee players use full speed to complete full swing. Coaches should be checking front foot step, hip turn, arm extension and follow through.
• Power Drill: Using a tee and three balls each player gets 3 swings. The first swing is for the player to hit the ball off the tee from the kneeling position. The second swing is for the player to place the bat across their hips and using a turning motion of the hips hit the ball off the tee. The third swing is a regular stance at full motion. The 3rd swing should go further than the 1st two swings combined. Coaches should be checking the 3rd swing using foot step, hip turn, extension and follow through. This drill shows the players that they can hit the ball farther and harder if everything is used together and not just swinging with their arms.
• Control Drill: Placing a ball on the tee a player hits the ball with only using one arm, usually their leading arm. This drill shows that the leading arm is for bat control and the following (rear) arm is used for power.

Fun Drills:

• Survivor Soft Toss- All players make 2 rows to toss a ball between them and their partner. They continue tossing to their partner until the pair drops the toss. Once a couple has dropped the ball they sit and are considered out of that round. The remaining players continue until only one team is left and they are considered the winners. This drill helps in concentration along with throwing and catching improvement.
• Marshmallow Game- Place a full team in the field like you would for a regular      game. The remaining players are used as batters. Have a coach soft toss a pitch from the opposite batters box. The batter hits the ball and runs all the bases until they reach home plate. The fielders must retrieve the ball and throw it back to the pitchers circle. The player that is in the pitchers circle, after they catch the ball, must eat a marshmallow before the batter reaches home plate. The second coach at pitchers circle gives the pitcher the marshmallow after they have the ball and makes the call when the pitcher has swallowed the marshmallow. If the pitcher finishes the marshmallow before the runner crosses home plate the batter is out. This drill teaches the team not to throw the ball around the infield and return the ball to the pitching circle.