Backing Up Bases: The Most Important Job Kids Forget

In youth baseball and softball, most extra bases don't come from hard hits. They come from a throw that gets past somebody. The runner heads for first on a routine ground ball, the throw is a little wide, and it rolls to the fence while the runner goes to second, then third.

Every one of those is stopped by a player who was backing up. That's the kid standing 20 or 30 feet behind the base, in line with the throw, waiting for the ball that gets away. It's also the job that gets forgotten most, because on a good play the backup never touches the ball.

The rule

Every throw has somebody behind it. If you're not fielding the ball and not covering a base, you're backing something up. Nobody on defense stands still.

Backing up 1st

• Right fielder: on ground balls to the infield, runs in toward foul territory behind 1st. On a ball hit to the second baseman, back up the fielder first, in case it gets through, then keep going toward 1st.
• Catcher: with nobody on 2nd or 3rd, follows the batter down the line in foul territory. With a runner in scoring position, the catcher stays home.

Watch this play
Ground ball to short, nobody on. The catcher runs down the line and the right fielder charges in to back up 1st.

The pitcher: the most important backup

After the ball is hit to the outfield, the pitcher has one job: get behind the base the throw is going to.

Throw going to	Pitcher goes
2nd	Behind 2nd, in line with the throw
3rd	Behind 3rd, in foul territory
Home	Behind the catcher, toward the backstop
Not sure yet	Halfway between 3rd and home, then read the throw

Watch this play
Single to left. The pitcher backs up 2nd and the center fielder backs up the left fielder. Watch this play
Single to right with a runner on 2nd. The throw goes home, and the pitcher backs up the catcher.

Outfielders back up each other, and the infield

• The outfielder next to the ball gets behind the fielder, in case it goes through their legs.
• The outfielder on the far side comes in to back up a base: right fielder toward 1st or 2nd, left fielder toward 3rd.
• On infield ground balls, all three charge in. Standing flat-footed in the outfield is never the job.

How to make it stick

1. Praise the backup. When a backup stops an overthrow, stop practice and make a big deal of it. That's the play that saved a run.
2. Freeze and check. Hit a ball, yell "Freeze!", and ask each player where they are and why. Kids learn it fast when they have to explain it.
3. Show it. Put the play up on a screen and watch where everyone runs, then run it on the field.

Quick answers

Who backs up first base in youth baseball?

The right fielder on almost every infield ground ball (on a ball to the second baseman, the right fielder backs up the fielder first, then heads for 1st), and the catcher when nobody is on 2nd or 3rd. They run toward foul territory behind 1st so an overthrow doesn't roll into the fence.

Where does the pitcher go after the ball is hit to the outfield?

The pitcher backs up the base the throw is going to: behind 2nd on a throw to 2nd, behind 3rd on a throw to 3rd, behind the catcher on a throw home. If it isn't clear yet, go halfway between 3rd and home and read the throw.

What should outfielders do on a ground ball in the infield?

Charge in. The right fielder backs up 1st, the center fielder backs up 2nd or the fielder, and the left fielder backs up 3rd or the fielder on the left side.