Offensive Practice Orgnization
Video Podcast with Mitch Gaspard
, Assistant Baseball Coach
University of Alabama
Putting together a practice plan for your baseball team takes several things, knowledge of your resources, an understanding of the team you have and the desire to do things the way they should be done. Coach Mitch Gaspard covers how to organize an offensive practice plan for your baseball team. (in conjunction with Alabama Baseball Coaches Association)
Your Plan - Coach Gaspard covers building your practice plan, and building a great plan takes more time than you get on a short walk to your ball field.
Your Resources - When you build your practice plan you must have an excellent grasp of the resources you have available, from your equipment to your assistant coaches.
Your Team Concept - You have to know what kind of team you have and you're trying to build. Are you a hitting team? Do you want to run bases or be a team that no one can hit the ball against? Your plan must incorporate your baseball teams philosophy in order to be effective.
Baseball Practice: Your Live Batting Practice - Grouping your baseball players into groups lets you as a coach manage your time and other resources more effectively to get the most out of your limited time.
Practice Plan: Cage Work - Your plan should know what they should accomplish from their trip to the batting cages. By having a set routine, you insure the pitches that need to be worked on will get covered, and still have the option to add extra pitches. Use batting tees, short toss, front toss and other tools you have available.
Baserunning - Just like hitting, you must have a baserunning plan. This segment covers the baserunning group during practice.
Practice Plan: Being Competitive - Your team is made up of various types of baseball players and your job as a coach is to combine them into one team that is competitive in everything they do.
Team Drills: Practice Planning - You've got to practice your baseball team as a team. It's important to cover play situations and you should be able to work everything you have in your baseball team's arsenal.
More Baserunning - Baserunning is often overlooked, but you must incorporate baserunning into your batting practice section, because being able to run bases makes the difference between winning and losing.