Chapter 3: Position By Position (continued)
Section Three: Shortstop
A coach's dream short stop player would be:
- Quick from side to side (not only to make the play on a hit ball, but also to cover 2nd and 3rd bases as the situation dictates)
- Moves to the ball to save time (not waiting for the ball to come to her)
- Able to keep the ball in front of her and "dig out" the hard hit balls at her feet
- Exceptionally accurate and fast thrower (able to make accurate throws to any base including home plate)
- Good decisionmaker (know when to throw the ball, hold the ball, and how to check the runner)
- Not afraid to talk loud enough for other fielders to hear her
Coaches consider the short stop to be one of their key defensive postions.
The short stops area of direct responsibility is shown in the picture. This is a large area that causes coaches to look for a player who has quick side-to-side as well as front to back reactions.
On pitches before strike two, 1st and 3rd base players are positioned closer to home to cover a possible bunt. When 1st and 3rd base players are in this position, the short stop drops back because she is responsible for the entire area from 2nd to 3rd and wants to be able to get to any balls hit in this area while making certain the ball stays in front of her. Since most batters are right-handed and because most of the balls they hit are to the left side of the field, the short stop player controls a very busy portion of the field.
Short Stop Responsibilities:
- Know the situation at all times (this includes where the base runners are located, how many outs, and what the count is on the current batter -- the possible combinations of all these elements is what makes softball so much like chess. There are literally hundreds of possible moves while you only have a second or two to make the right decision.)
- be in a ready position as soon as the pitcher begins each pitch
- cover 2nd base for the throw from home to 2nd on a steal attempt
- cover 3rd on throws from catcher to throw out a runner stealing 3rd from second (usually on all pitches before strike two is called)
- back up throws to pitcher
- be a communicator with the rest of the team
Since third base is closest to home, much of the action takes place along the third base foul line. Cooperation and communication between the third base player and the shortstop is important to stop steals from 2nd. The same close understanding and communcation is necessary between the 3rd base player and the catcher.
This picture shows the area the 3rd base player is generally responsible for covering. Like the 1st base player your area requires being able to move foward and backward along the base line quickly.
Third base fielding is a busy is frequen during each game. This means the 3rd base player frequently throws the ball to first base to catch the hitter/runner. This is one of the longest common fielding plays. Accuracy and speed is critical.
Successful third base players realize they don't have time to wait for the ball to come to them. When a ball is hit in the direction of third base, the 3rd base player moves to the ball. The quicker she can retrieve the ball, the better her chances of throwing the runner out at first. In addition, if she has more time to throw, her throw will probably be more accurate. Overthrowing 1st base is a coach's nightmare.
3rd Baseman's Responsibilities:
- cover bunts along the 3rd base line
- cover foul pop ups outside the 3rd base line
- cover 3rd base on most forced out plays
- back up return throws to the pitcher
- decide when to let a ball go foul and when to field a ball that could go foul along the 3rd base line
- catch shallow fly balls that are falling just behind third base (depending on where the 3rd base player is positioned when the ball is hit, this responsibility is shared with the short stop)
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