Fielding Ground Balls - One Knee Block Technique

By Steven Michael

Ground balls can come off the bat, or from other players. The fielding techniques described here assume that the outfielder is behind the ball – the ball is between the infield and the outfielder. Fielding ground balls come in two varieties: Non-Urgent throws and Urgent throws.

Fielding: Non-Urgent Throw

While every throw an outfielder makes should be accurate and strong, not all throws are urgent. Urgent means the throw is used to put out a base runner.

Those throws where the outfielder has more time to field the ball are called Non-Urgent. These are throws back to an infielder or a base and are used to prevent base runners from advancing. The typical example is where a batter gets a base hit and the outfielder returns the ball to second base. This prevents the base runner from advancing beyond first base.
 

One Knee Block Technique

This is just like it sounds. The outfielder positions himself in front of the oncoming ground ball, drops one knee to the ground, and fields the ball. Sounds simple right? Not so fast, there’s more to it than that!
The outfielder should be ready to field the ball as it gets closer. He should be in an athletic stance:

• feet outside shoulder-width
• knees bent (not too far)
• head up
• torso bent slightly forward

Figure 2-1 shows the outfielder prior to the One Knee Block Technique. Notice that his hands are not on his knees, his head is up and alert, knees are bent, and his torso is slightly bent forward. This position gives the outfielder the best chance at not only fielding the ball cleanly, but also getting good jumps on the ball. As the ball approaches and the outfielder is sure he is positioned directly in front of it, he drops one knee to the ground. This reduces the size of the hole between his legs. It also brings his chest lower to help block the ball in case of a bad hop. The fielder’s glove hand should be extended out in front of his body, but his elbow should not be fully extended. The fielder should bend his wrist back just far enough to expose the glove’s entire pocket to the ball. Too many outfielders keep their wrist straight, which points the glove pocket skyward. Bad wrist position reduces the size of the pocket and contributes to the ball glancing off the heel of the glove. The other problem is not getting the glove out away from the body far enough. While keeping the glove closer to the body allows the pocket to be easily exposed, it also prevents the player from seeing the glove. A player can’t “look the ball in to the glove” if he can’t see his glove. Figures 2-2 (a) and (b) show the incorrect and correct ways to position the glove.

Figure 2-2 (a) Incorrect Glove Position Notice the three problems with this glove position: (1) the glove arm is fully extended; (2) glove position is nearly beneath his chin making it impossible to “see the ball in to the glove”; (3) the wrist is bent upward not allowing the pocket to be exposed to the ball.

His throwing hand should be two to six inches above his glove, facing out and open. His throwing hand will help knock the ball down and also help prevent a bad hop from striking him in the face.

The choice of which knee to drop to the ground is very important. The throwing-side knee should always drop to the ground. For right-handed throwers, the right knee should be dropped. The opposite is true for left-handed throwers. See Figure 2-3 for the correct positioning of the One Knee Block Technique.

Figure 2-2 (b) Correct Glove Position Proper glove position: (1) glove is extended in front of the player’s sight; (2) elbow is slightly bent; (3) wrist is bent back to expose the pocket to the ball.

Dropping the throwing-side knee down allows for an easier transition to throw the ball. The dropped knee should also be slightly behind the front knee – for varsity age players approximately four to six inches.

This will help the outfielder during the transition from fielding to throwing. But, if it’s too far behind, it turns the fielder’s chest sideways. Then, if the ball hits the player’s chest, it will glance off and base runners will advance. Always keep the chest square to the ball, and the ball in front of you as an outfielder.

Figure 2-3 One Knee Block Technique The right-handed outfielder’s correct One Knee Block Technique.

Steven E. Michael played seven years of professional baseball in the Montreal Expos, Detroit Tigers and Milwaukee Brewers organizations. He played collegiately at Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona earning All-Western Athletic Conference, All-College World Series, and Sporting News All-America honors.

 His new book, How To Play Baseball Outfield: Techniques, Tips, and Drills to Learn the Outfield Position is available at http://www.stevenemichael.com.