Tee Ball Baseball - Beginners Tips for a Better Glove and a Stronger Arm

Good Morning. I hope that all is well with you and yours. Young baseball players love to throw and catch. The more they practice these baseball skills, the stronger their arm will become, the better their glove will become, and the more accurate their throws will be.

It is important that you teach your child the correct ways to throw and catch a baseball. When you are confident that your child knows the correct baseball fundamentals, the next important thing to do is to provide some means for your child to practice these skills alone. Many people ask me what is the best way for a parent to provide a way for their child to practice alone.

I always recommend two things to help young baseball players build skill and arm strength. There are two great objects for practicing alone; 1) A Wall and 2) A Toss Back Trainer. The absolute best thing you can have for young kids to use for skill development is a "solid wall". This wall may be of brick, cement block, or heavy duty wood construction. On this wall, you will need to draw a "strike zone" or target.

I happened onto this method by chance. When my oldest two sons were 4 and 6 years old we rented a house with a 2 1/2 high wall around the patio. The wall was fronted by a grassy area. Those two boys spent hours and hours playing with rubber or real baseballs being thrown against that wall. The walls low construction seemed to teach then to keep the ball low. They would throw the ball and field a ground ball. They soon learned to bounce it off the ground into the wall to return the ball in the air.

So, if you have a brick wall show your child how to use it. If you do not have one, you may want to build one. If you know your child will be a baseball player and you know that you are not going to move anytime soon, this is a great addtion to your backyard training area.

Of course there are toss back trainers on the market that do the same thing. Toss back trainers are device made of elastic netting and metal,
and they return the ball to the thrower when the net is hit. One such trainer is the Derek Jeter Strikeback, a toss back with interactive targets that kids love to throw at.

Good luck till next time, Nick