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How To Make The High School Team -- This is the fifth segment in our multi-part series on advice to help you make the high school team. The info and advice in these articles comes from the "experts." High school coaches from all over the country.



How To Make The High School Team



At Hamilton Southeastern we do what is basically a tryout similar to what players go through at a professional tryout camp. Our decision is based strictly on athletic related baseball ability.

Basically We Look For:

  • Athletic ability (running ability and overall strength)
  • Baseball ability (throwing, catching, hitting and the ability to make the routine play)
  • Coachability (hustle, attitude, attentiveness, listening ability and the ability to follow instructions)
  • Throwing - throwing is probably the number one reason players end up being cut from our program.

    The first day of tryouts we can watch kids warm up and immediately a red flag goes up on some players. These players stand out because of poor throwing mechanics which generally result in poor arm strength and lack of velocity.

    The mechanics they bring to the tryouts are because of improper techniques that went uncorrected for years at the lower levels.

Our Tryouts Consist Of:

  • Outfielders - Any player who thinks he might be an outfielder goes to right field. We hit them fly balls and they throw to 3rd base and then home. We put a radar gun on them to measure velocity. We look for ability to judge fly balls, arm strength and accuracy.

     

  • Infielders - Any player who thinks they are a 3B, SS or 2B goes to the shortstop position. We hit them a series of ground balls (at them, right, left and slow rollers) and they throw to first base. Again we put a radar gun on them to measure velocity. We look for ability to field ground balls, athleticism, arm strength and accuracy.

     

  • First Basemen - We do the same for these guys except they are stationed at first base and throw to third base

     

  • Catchers - We put them behind the plate and get a glove to glove stopwatch time on throws to second base. We look for timing and accuracy. We put them behind the plate during the hitting tryouts and pitching tryouts to judge their ability to receive pitches.

     

  • Pitchers - We put these guys in practice for a week all together. We are simply looking for arm motion, especially players who don't "shortarm" the ball. Obviously accuracy and velocity are a factor.

     

  • Hitters - We watch swing mechanics. We don't care if they touch the ball or not. Do their swing mechanics show that they have the ability to be a potential hitter


Coach Ken Seitz
Boys Sports Director
Hamilton Southeastern High School
Fishers, Indiana
Web Site

 


Baseball Checklist - Make The Team
Make The Team - Part 1
Make The Team - Part 2
Make The Team - Part 3
Make The Team - Part 4

 



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Revised February 09, 2003 .