Fly Ball to the Left (Footwork and Tracking) #baseball #youthbaseball #outfield #baseballcoach #win

Added: 2026-05-22

[00:00:00]We're going to be a Labrador retriever essentially. All we do is go chase after balls. For today, we're talking about the one to our left. So to our left, when I'm setting up, either that's going to be obviously a lefty pull side hitter or righty that's going Oppo gap, okay?

[00:00:12]If I kind of know too what the pitch is, which we'll talk about too in a later video, I can also kind of set myself up that way when I talked about pre-pitch, right? What we want to do. So I'm checking everything, talking, nobody's on right now. We got one down. I'm in here. There, the wind's blowing a little bit this way. So if it goes in the gap, I move a little bit more towards me as I run that way. Now, one thing we got to make sure we do, especially when there's guys on base that are in potentially scoring position at this point. As soon as I'm getting back behind the ball, remember I always said we got to beat the ball. We don't let the ball play us.

[00:00:40]We play the ball. So I get to the ball, I'm running, right? And then I'm going to get right here in front of it. Get that glove up and give myself the ability to kind of work through that thing as I catch it, okay? Again, gloves out in front of me. All right. Which allows me to work towards the base I want to go to. So I almost get around the ball and then I already angle myself towards whatever base that is. So if it's to my left, as a center fielder, right? Let's talk about that. As a center fielder, to my left, I know the guy's at second. He's going to be going to third. So I'm going to be going this way. See it? I see it. I'm going to get around it. From there, I'm going to catch it and then work back through towards third base. You see that? That's what we want to actually make sure we're trying to do every single time. We don't want to just catch it and keep running.

[00:01:15]That's why I said we don't just try to glide with the ball. We have to beat the ball to the spot. All together, it'll look like this. But again, it's going to be a drop step here. So even if I'm squared up cuz it's a lead-off hitter, I get here. Wham, that's my first step. Is that drop step there.

[00:01:29]As I keep my head forward reading that ball because even if he hits it and he has for example what's called a slice on it. Let's say it's a lefty. I'm going this way. The slice, all I do is switch the hips to get this way. But what I never do is I never take my eyes off that baseball as I go run to track that ball. I don't want to be doing this one where it's here and then here. Now all of a sudden when I turn that head, I just lost it for a second. And now I have to re-establish my route and re-establish where I'm running, okay? Here's one of the other things too about playing outfield. It's all angles. So, if you guys those of you that are good at math, it's all about set me angle to beat where the ball is going. If the ball is going here, my angle starts here. Better we get with our angles, the better we'll be at tracking, too. Okay? So, now let's see it all the way through on how I get a ball to my left. Okay? So, I'm here. I come set. Ball's up.

[00:02:14]Bam.

[00:02:15]So, first step though was there. Drop step. I read the angle of it. It sat a little bit in front of me, right? And as soon as I saw that, I dropped down I broke my feet down, but I stayed low. I didn't break my feet down nice and high like this and back pedal. That's where I trip and I fall. I got to get low and stay within my legs.

[00:02:31]Now, let's do one more that's a little bit more to my left and I got to kind of run for it a little bit.

[00:02:35]Up. Back.

[00:02:38]Bam.

[00:02:39]I got to round that and I'm still working back through it a little bit, but see I still caught it out in front of me as I went to go get that ball. I never want to let that ball get too much over my head to where I'm doing this if I don't have to. All right? That's how we catch them over our left.