The youngster learning to play baseball needs more instruction about conduct on the bases than one might suspect. Most are not aware of the fact that there are basic principles that can be applied to base running.

The base runner who flounders-makes a false start, back-pedals, starts again, then stops-usually does so for two reasons. First, he is inexperienced. Even if he’s played a full season, it’s possible, because of the nature of the game, that he may not have been confronted with a given situation more than once or twice-if at all! But the biggest factor of all is this: Our base runner has not analyzed the “situation” in ADVANCE. He should know, BEFORE THE PITCH, how many outs there are, the ball and strike count, and what he’s going to do if the ball is hit on the ground, or in the air. This is not as difficult as it sounds. Consider, first of all, the simpler possibilities:

With two outs, the runner should leave the base at the crack of the bat-on every batted ball. If the batter flies out to center field, the inning is over. If he grounds out to 3rd, the inning is over. But if he smacks out a base hit, the runner may be on his way to score! The runner has everything to gain, nothing to lose.

If a runner is on 1st base with less than two out (or on any base in a force-play situation), he MUST run on a ground ball. His objective is to beat a possible throw to the base ahead of him, defeating any bid for a double, or even a triple play. If the runner hesitates in this situation, he makes it easy for the defense to execute the DP. On the other hand, if the ball goes through the infield, he could pick up an extra base-the one directly ahead of him and one more. And, again, that last one may be home plate! So, with no ifs, ands, or buts, we now have two MUST situations, as they are called. Baseball Training - Read More.