i recently changed positions from infield to outfield. im having a really tough time getting a good jump on the ball. i can read where its going to go, but i just cant seem get a good jump on it. are there any drills i can do for this or any tips?

A good jump is reading the ball off the bat. There are no drills that can simulate this. You simply need to take as many fly balls off live hitters and fungos as possible.

During BP, take your position and tell everyone to stay away so you can work on your reads.

When I was a kid, during the wood bat era, you could hear the sound from the batted ball. To some extent you can tell today even with the aluminum sound. It is certainly not as good as seeing the ball off the bat, but put your head down during practice and see if you can hear the direction of the ball. My children (4) did this as a routine. 1 couldn't see at night, the sound of the bat helped him with that 1st step. All of my 3 sons started in the outfield in HS for 3 years and the single most important factor was not moving the wrong direction with the first step. My lone daughter played the outfield in college for 4 years also. Just remember no reaction is better than a negative reaction. Practice what you see and hear!

Redbird gives good advice. Repetition, repetition, repetition. Stay after practice, get out on the weekends. Have someone hit you fungo after fungo. Hundreds.

Watch the bat, not the pitch. If the ball & bat don't contact, you've lost nothing. If there is a hit, you will have been watching the bat and gotten the quickest possible read on the contact.

A hard ball hit straight at you, take a step back to give yourself time to judge the ball. For the first one to two seconds of flight, it is extremely difficult to judge whether the ball is going to be a fly in front of you or a liner over your head. [Adair's book on the physics of baseball has a good discussion of this.] It is easier to come up on a ball than to go back.

Learn how to do a proper turn & sprint for the ball hit over your head. This can really make you look like a pro. And it will allow you to play a little shallower, so that you can come up & get more of those Texas leaguers while still being able to go back for the long hit.

On the ball hit in the gap, immediately start moving to that direction. If you can't judge the hit's distance, start moving laterally and then you can come up or angle back as you get a better read.

Be ready when the swing starts. Weight on the front half of your feet. Knees bent some, leaning forward a little. A good athletic position from which you can explode.

And did I mention - repetition, repetition, repetition?

You need to put in the time---as noted above repetition is the key--- and trust me some never get it down---instincts play a lot into as well