Free Baseball Practice Plan & Template

Running an effective baseball practice is critical to developing players' skills and keeping them engaged throughout the season. Whether coaching a youth team or working with more advanced players, having a solid plan ensures that each session is productive and focused.

A well-structured baseball practice fosters focus and skill development, enhancing players' abilities beyond the season. Each practice should include drills, repetitions, and engaging activities to improve your team and keep players motivated. In this guide, the Bat Experts at JustBats share some of the best drills and provide a practice template you can use for your next baseball session. Let's take a look.

Baseball Practice Plan

Before diving into drills, it's crucial to establish clear objectives. Think of it like constructing a building: without a blueprint, you work with scattered materials. The same concept applies to baseball practices. Start by identifying areas of the game that you want your team to improve at. With each drill, ask yourself, ‘What skills are we working on here?’ This approach ensures your team grows with intent and precision, not just by chance.

Structuring Your Practice

As a coach, you need structure going into each practice. Stay consistent with the format, so your team can take ownership of the processes. Begin with dynamic stretching along with light running and throwing. From there, it’s totally up to you. Most coaches like to start with fielding drills before going into baserunning, situationals, and hitting practice. But there is no one “right” way to structure your practice. The biggest key is to have practice flow comfortably for your coaches and players.

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Time Management

A typical baseball practice lasts one to two hours. The best teams maximize their practice time and limit the wasted time between drills. Therefore, allocating time before practice and focusing on key areas you want to prioritize is important. [Remember to include time for water breaks.]

Here's a sample 90-minute practice template that you can adjust based on your team's needs:

90-Minute Baseball Practice Template

Warm-Up (15 minutes)

• Dynamic stretching
• Jogging
• Throwing drills

Focus on maintaining concentration to maximize time efficiency.

Skill Development (30 minutes) - Rotate Groups/Stations

• Fielding Drills (15 minutes)

• Ground balls: Infielders practice fielding grounders and making accurate throws to first base.

• Fly balls: Outfielders practice catching fly balls and throwing to the cutoff man.

• Hitting Drills (15 minutes)

• Tee work: Focus on swing mechanics by moving the tee around the strike zone.

• Soft toss: Toss from the side or an angle, having players hit into a net.

Situational Drills (20 minutes)

• Base Running

• Lead-offs and stealing bases

• Sliding techniques

• Running through first base

• Rounding bases

• Going from first to third while picking up signals from the third base coach

• Situational Plays

• Practice game scenarios (e.g., runner on third with less than two outs, bunt defense, etc.)

• Emphasize pre-pitch communication and decision-making.

Team Drills (15 minutes)

• Infield/Outfield Practice

• Full-field drill with players rotating positions.

• Focus on making accurate throws and quick transitions.

• Relays

• Work on relay throws from the outfield to home plate.

• Emphasize quick and precise throws.

Cool Down and Review (10 minutes)

• Game/Competition

• Finish practice with a fun team activity.

• Example: Split players into two teams and have each throw the ball down and back in a relay race. 

• Reward/Punishment: The losing team runs a lap around the field.

• Team Meeting

• Review key takeaways from practice.

• Discuss upcoming games or events.

• Key things focused on the team here. Talk with “we” and “us” in mind.

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Adaptability and Flexibility

The best practice plans are adaptable to unexpected challenges. If it’s hot, limit the amount of running or physical exertion. If your team has injuries, modify drills to suit your players' capabilities. Flexibility helps keep morale high and ensures that your team continuously learns and improves, regardless of the circumstances.

Evaluate to Elevate

To track progress, regularly assess players and provide constructive feedback. This way, you're not just running drills—you're actively working to elevate each player's performance. As a coach, constructive feedback is necessary, but make sure you speak with growth in mind. It’s not that a player can’t hit the outside pitch; rather, hitting the outside pitch more effectively will make them more complete.

Fungo Bats for Baseball Coaches

While having the proper practice template is essential for growing your team’s skills, having the right fungo bats to hit is equally essential. For those unfamiliar, a fungo bat allows coaches to hit grounders and flyballs to their team effortlessly. The elongated design is more accessible to hit with accuracy, while the lightweight swing will enable coaches to use it without growing tired. As a baseball coach, you should consider investing in a new fungo from JustBats.

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We hope you found this baseball practice guide helpful. If you are looking for new baseball bats or want to buy in bulk for your team with Pick Your Pack, check out JustBats. We offer a full selection of the best baseball bats in the game, and every order includes free shipping. We're JustBats an we’re with you from Click to Hit!