Baseball drill

Glove squeeze and hold drill

Name: How to Teach a Young Baseball Player to Catch a Baseball (WITHOUT BEING AFRAID/SCARED OF THE BALL!)
Channel: YouGoProBaseball
Description: Players throw a ball into their own glove from a foot away, then squeeze the glove shut and hold it upside down at arm's length without the ball falling out. It teaches young players where the pocket is and builds the grip to keep a ball in the glove.

Players throw a ball into their own glove from a foot away, then squeeze the glove shut and hold it upside down at arm's length without the ball falling out. It teaches young players where the pocket is and builds the grip to keep a ball in the glove.

Video by YouGoProBaseball on YouTube. The write-up below is ours.

At a glance

Sport: Baseball and Softball
Skill: Catching the ball
Ages: 6U to 10U
Players: Any number, one ball each
Time: About 5 minutes
Level: Beginner
Equipment: Gloves, One ball per player (a tennis ball for the youngest)
Indoors: Yes

Plenty of young players get the glove to the ball and still drop it, because they do not know how to close the glove, or their hand is not strong enough to keep it closed. This drill works on both without any catching from a partner. The player throws the ball into their own glove to find the pocket, then squeezes and holds.

It takes five minutes, needs no partner, and is a good check on the glove itself. If a player cannot keep the ball in at all, the glove may be too big or too stiff for their hand, which is worth knowing before blaming the player.

Setup

Give each player a glove and one ball.
Spread players out at arm's length so they can work at their own pace.

How to run it

The player holds the ball in the throwing hand and throws it firmly into the glove's pocket from about a foot away.
Repeat several times, so the player feels where the pocket is and how the glove closes around the ball.
Next, with the ball in the pocket, the player squeezes the glove shut and holds the arm straight out in front.
The player turns the glove upside down, pocket facing the ground, and squeezes hard enough to keep the ball in.
Hold for three to five seconds, relax, and repeat five to ten times.

Coaching points

Aim for the web, between the thumb and first finger, not the palm of the glove.
Close the glove by bringing the thumb and pinky together, not by curling the fingers in the middle.
If the ball drops right away, check the glove's size and stiffness.
A young player can put two fingers in the pinky slot to get more leverage on the glove.

Common mistakes

Throwing the ball into the heel of the glove instead of the web.
Curling the glove's fingers down instead of pinching thumb to pinky.
Holding the glove close to the body instead of out at arm's length.

Printable drill card

Take this drill to the field: the setup, steps, coaching points and equipment on one card, with the video's address to find it again. Free, no account needed.

Print the drill card

Smaller: half page or quarter page (PDF).

By age

Tee ball

Use a tennis ball and a soft, broken-in glove, and skip the upside-down hold until the player can close the glove at all.

Coach pitch and 10U

Hold the glove upside down for five seconds and count how many holds in a row without a drop.

Next: Free defensive lineup generator.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does my child keep dropping the ball out of the glove?

Often the ball is landing in the palm instead of the web, or the glove is too big or stiff for the child to close. Practicing throwing the ball into the web and squeezing thumb to pinky helps, and so does a smaller, softer glove.

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