One of the most frequently asked questions that I receive from coaches around the country is how you teach your players to defend the short game – more specifically the left-handed slapper.  Well, I have been blessed to have had some of the best slappers in the game during my 25 years at Arizona and feel that having the opportunity to defend them in practice everyday has been a key to our success of defending our opponent’s short game skills.  I have always felt that if you cannot defend the slap and bunt in softball, it is hard to win! 

The element of speed

One of the major keys in teaching the defense of the slap is the ability for your players to handle the element of speed.  Having to field a ball and get rid of it quickly, but under control, is key.  If you would ever watch one of our practices, the one factor that you will see is the quickness of our fielding drills.  I want to push the envelope and make our infielders uncomfortable at times so that when the game comes, the game is slower for them than practice.  We play the slap straight up, meaning that we do not choose to play any special defenses.  We try to play the percentages of how our pitchers are going to attack a left handed slapper and what most slappers are trying to do to the defense.  Basically, most slappers will try to put the ball in the hole between the third baseman and the shortstop to require the longest throw to first base. 

Infield positioning

We play our shortstop towards the 5/6 hole (area between the third baseman and shortstop).  We also play our third baseman off the line which allows our shortstop to not be too far out of position. We play our shortstop in towards the baseline depending on the speed of the slapper, and the most important fielding principle that must be taught to your shortstops is the ability to charge the ball and throw on the run.
If we have a runner at 1B with speed and a slapper up, we will cover the steal with our second baseman.  Basically in a short game situation, our shortstop covers any steal attempts if the batter shows bunt, which frees the second baseman to cover 1B.  If the slapper runs through the box, we will always use our second baseman to cover second on a steal attempt.  A very important element in defending the short game is pitching into your defense.  Get your infielders familiar with the pitches that are called and the location to better prepare them for where the ball may be hit. Get more diagrams, tips and explanations and on basic skill development covering throwing, fielding a ground ball, and more!

How fast is effective

Another question that I get is how fast a slapper has to be to be effective.  This depends on the level you play but I will give you some general numbers.  We time our slappers from the time they touch the ball until they touch first base.  At the Division I level, if you can run under 2.9, you have the ability to put pressure on the defense.  Some of the best that I have seen at the Olympic level and college run anywhere from 2.65 to 2.8.  These are the Caitlin Lowes and Natasha Watleys who are the very best in the game.  I always tell coaches at the high school and travel ball level that if you have a left-handed slapper that can run under 3.0, they will be effective.  Over 3.0 and they will always get thrown out by a step or two unless they can make the ball bounce or place it in the right area of the infield.

Timing

Another way to teach your players the timing factor of defending the slapper is to use a stopwatch in practice.  Have a coach hit a variety of high hoppers and ground balls. Start the watch on contact and stop the watch when the ball reaches the glove of the first baseman.  This will establish an internal clock for them to feel how much time they can take or not take to throw out a slapper with speed.  The key is to get comfortable with the speed and stay under control.

Next month, I will give you some short game strategies that can help you put more pressure on the defense and generate scoring opportunities for your team.  Remember, speed kills in our game!

Don’t forget to check out my podcast answering some of the questions you left me from last month’s newsletter. There were so many great questions, and I would like to see what else you what to know. Listen and submit your question today for me to answer next month.

Until next month,

Coach Candrea