I have always been a center fielder since 6th grade but now (my Junior year in High School) I am being moved up to varsity. We already have a heavily-recruited center-fielder and coach has been trying to get my used to playing third ever since he first saw me play my sophomore year (there was a coaching change after my freshman year). I have trouble getting a good jump on the ball in left and i dont have a strong enough arm to play right so i'm stuck with 3b for the rest of high school... since i havent played the position since little league, what are some tips or natural abilities that every 3b should have? I have been working on shortening my throwing motion when throwing to second but my longer throwing motion seems to be more accurate when throwing to first... should i try to keep it short going to first as well? i've also been slowly falling into a 3/4 delivery, is that common/uncommon for an infielder?

anything would be appreciated.

Ted,

The biggest thing to keep in mind at 3B is to keep the ball in the infield. You don't have to catch everything cleanly...just knock it down and throw him out at 1B. If I were you, I would take twice as many GBs as anyone else on the team. If you haven't played there since LL, you have a lot to learn in a short amount of time.

As for the arm slot, a high 3/4 arm slot is fine. I wouldn't go any further south than that unless it is a slow roller.

practice quick feet and reaction. Such as extremely hard hit ground balls because it's important to always be ready at 3rd base.

im just wondering, but which position do u guys think is toughest to play?..i know that each position is difficult, but just out of curiousity which do u guys think is the toughest?..i play shortstop for my high school JV team.

I find this a to be an odd switch---Centerfielders are usually players who can run like antelopes and cover ground

Third basemen are normally quick reaction players with a big body , good bat and limited speed and mobility