Baseball Infielder Tips: How to Position Yourself Before the Pitch

To be a good infielder it’s imperative that you have concentration and discipline, and that starts with your pre-pitch fielding position. Anticipate that the ball will be hit to you on every play. You should be on the balls of your feet when the pitch crosses the plate. This will allow you to react to the ball off the bat, ready to move in any direction. Your position should not be too low or too straight up with your knees locked out. Keep knees flexed, hands loose, chest up and eyes on the batter.

One thing that you should keep in mind is that the closer you get to the home plate, the lower you need to start in your fielding position. This is to make sure the ball doesn’t get shot passed or through you, since it will be coming at you quicker.

To get into a proper ready position, take a couple of steps and then ease into your fielding position as the pitch nears the plate. Another option is to “hop” into your fielding position. As the pitcher completes their windup, take a few steps forward and then take a big hop, landing in your fielding position just as the ball gets to the hitting zone. Either way works, as long as you are ready to react.

Remember to track the ball with your eyes from the pitcher into the hitting zone. This is to make sure you can react quickly and be able to go back, forward, left or right.

Work on getting comfortable with this pre-pitch routine, so that it becomes a habit on every pitch.