Bunt Placement Drill ~ Work All Your Players, All Your Bunts, In An Atmosphere Of Friendly Competition!

This bunt placement drill provides skill work on the short game, as well as combining the element of team competition.

Set up is minimal, the activity moves quickly.

Equipment Needed

1. Field



2. Players with bats



3. Portable cage or large safety screen to stop balls from going to the backstop.



4. Basket of balls out in front, at whatever distance you wish to throw from.



5. Two pylons or bats, used to designate bunt zones.

The Drill

• Divide the squad into 2 teams, or let players pick.



• First team up goes to one side of the cage, the other team comes out in front to shag and keep balls picked up, and usually create some pressure on the hitter. That pressure directly transfers to the ability to focus in the games.



• Coach throws so all players can participate and the level of strikes is high.



• Set the pylons or bats out in front of home plate.



• Players must keep the ball fair, between the foul line and the pylon to receive a point.



• Balls popped up, or in between the pylons, receive no points.



• Sacrifice, squeeze, or base hits can all be worked on, or concentrate on just one on any given day. It's all flexible. You can work all of them in a very short time.



• Create a prize to play for at the end, or keep records for something larger later in the season, or just keep it as a skill drill only, what ever works best for you!

Bunt Placement Drill Tips ~ From the Dugout

• Pylon location can be adjusted to any degree of difficulty. It helps to let the players know that putting a ball on the ground, straight back at the pitcher, generally is not effective.



• Since for sacrifice and base hit bunts, players are supposed to select strikes, you can emphasize that point by subtracting a point for not picking a strike, even if it is successful.



• This is a great format for players to work on focus, blocking out all the outside noise, heckling or pressure put on by the other team.



• Provides an opportunity for players with exceptional "small ball" skills to dominate. This drill can be used to enhance the philosophy that it is a coaches responsibility to create an offensive philosophy within which every player on the team can be successful.



• Last, but not least, players can work on staying at the plate and concentrating on ball placement first. Just like real estate, success is all about Location, Location, Location.!