Do not forget first base..."Anyone can play that" (not one of our coaches btw, this was a parent).
This is what I am saying.
I think 1st is the most difficult in some ways. And probably touch the ball more often and consistently than anyone after the P and C. So how anyone can marginalize that position is a mystery.
On every play everyone has somewhere to be. It is that simple. And the more a player understand this concept and where EVERYONE is going ot be on a given play the better they will be.
I talked to a guy who has coached ASA 18U Gold teams in the past and he was telling me that when he coached he would go to early season tournaments and rotate every player in every position every inning. INCLUDING P and C. They would just have a set rotation and let it rip. He said he had some teams that competed at a very high level and I think won some Gold tournaments...........(details missing,I was tired.........at Worlds). At any rate, every position is important. Especially when the ball is hit to that position orrrrrrrrr they are not backing up a throw and things go bad.
A good example was during the college WS last year when the CF was too close to the 2nd basemen and the Catcher air mailed one to the fence.....that was **** poor positioning. Actually I would have to see it again but in my experiance the OF always have a tendency to creep up too far when they should be about 10-20 feet farther back.
