Pregame warmup routine

[Country Boy]

I would like to hear what others do to warmup for a game. We are an 18U team.

We start about an hour before the first game of the day. We will do about 10 minutes of dynamic warm up as described by Marc Dagenais on You Tube. Then we throw for a few minutes. After that, we go to hitting. If space allows, we use front toss of softie balls. Also, our players will hit about 20 balls off the tee into Jugs net. Are trying to incorporate 5-6 hits of the TCB from a front toss. Finally, we ask that each girl spend about 15-20 swings on her own. These are supposed to be slow, perfect swings while she is remembering/ imaging her best at bat and how it felt for a little visualization impact. By this time, we have about 15 minutes to get in the dugout, do some groundballs and pop flys, get a drink and get moving.

If we have breaks during the day, we will not repeat the entire warmup. Often we will allow the girls to pick out their own hitting drill. We will usually use just 30-40 minutes later in the day and that includes the time getting into the dugout, etc.

Anybody doing anything different that they really like?

 

[Sparky Guy]

As that old-timer ump told me: "There are only so many hits in that bat today.

Apparently the "old-timer" has never tried to warm up a team at a tournament. You're luck if you get enough room to do hitting at many of them. There is never a spare infield to ground balls on. You may find some room to do fly balls. You have to get creative when space is tight. You do what you have to do. BTW... The best hitting teams I've seen usually do much more pre-game hitting than fielding.

I have a set routine with my teams. It starts out much like CB's with running, stretching and throwing to get everything warmed an loose. I will do soft toss and bunting at the same time splitting the kids up into two groups. The pitchers and catchers for the game go first. Once they are done they go off to get the pitcher warmed up for the game. Everyone else finishes the hitting. If we're lucky enough to get time in the infield we'll do ground balls and fly balls if there is enough time.

 

[starsnuffer]

Don't just do "throwing". Have them throw pop ups and one hops to eachother. Have them make two lines facing eachother, one line has the ball, the other no ball, they run towards eachother and throw/catch on the run, then circle to the back of the line. Line them up and run through various fielding drills. .. short hops, rake through, shuffle step, ect. You want to pump them up but not tire them out, the idea is to bring the energy level up through the course of the warmup and finish with them ready to play their best.

-W

 

[Country Boy]

Boy that's a long hitting warm up. Too long. An ump, as I have posted, wondered why all this stuff to me at a game. As that old-timer ump told me: "There are only so many hits in that bat today." I agree; I've said that myself even in slow-pitch now. The hitting is the least like what they will face visually (your eyes and motion 'get stuck' at too close a distance), and the muscles for it are easily warmed up.

Spend more time on fielding. That's where the nerves affect the process most.

I have found very few umpires appreciate it when I try to tell them how to do their job. So, maybe that old timer should stick to what he knows!

JK. I agree that it sounds like a lot. But in reality it is less than 40 full hard swings. After last season, we analyzed where we fell short. It wasn't our fielding or pitching that failed us. It was our hitting. So we revamped our warmups. No more soft toss from side. All pitches approach from the front so they are swinging in an actual game situation. Hitting off the Tee was introduced because I saw many of the better hitting teams doing it. (imitation is flattery)

Our hitting is much improved. I am certainly not willing to say it is because of our warmup change, but, I won't go back to what we were doing before! (I'm dumb but not ignorant.) I won't say the time is not an issue, though. Most of these girls have been playing ball since January. 200 swings in practice is not uncommon. I have rationalized that 40 or so in warmups makes sense. I will keep an eye on it though.

Concur with the lack of good environment to warmup fielding. I am reluctant to do too much in the roadsides, ditches, etc that we use to warm up. 1 bad hop and I can have a gun shy SS or CF all day.