The most important thing to remember about fielding bunts is that the catcher must field the ball with his momentum and body lined up toward the base that we're going to throw to. When the catcher picks the ball up, his body should already be lined up to the base that he is going to throw to. The ball should be fielded with two hands. The throwing hand should rake the ball into the glove to assure the ball doesn't get bobbled. The only time the ball should be fielded bare handed is when the ball has stopped rolling. The ball bunted down the third base line is the one that gets thrown away most often because the catcher tries to spin and throw at the same time as opposed to gathering his feet underneath him and letting his momentum work through his target. Catchers should practice fielding bunts and throwing to all bases, not just first base.

Chapter 1 - Pre-Game Routine

Before we play at a new stadium, our catchers will roll bunts down each of the foul lines. Some fields are crowned, and balls have the tendency to roll foul. Some fields are cupped, and balls that start in foul territory will roll fair. Also, some fields are fairly flat and the ball will have a true roll. If the base paths are dirt, there may be a grass lip that would push the ball foul, or tend to keep it fair. These are important things to know before the game so that we can make a smart decision for our team to either field the ball, or let it roll foul.

Chapter 2 - Bunts Down the First Base Line

Here, our coach/partner will roll bunts from the first base foul line to the second baseman. It is important that after we field the bunt we take a step back to clear ourselves of the runner when throwing to first.

Chapter 3 - Bunts Back to the Pitcher

Now, our coach/partner will roll bunts from the shortstop to the second baseman. These bunts can be fielded one of two ways depending on where the ball is bunted and what is most comfortable, and most natural for the catcher. The catcher can either round the ball with his back to the first baseman, or the third baseman. Either way, when the catcher picks up the ball, his body weight/momentum must be going toward the target that he is throwing to!

Chapter 4 - Bunts Down the Third Base Line

This is the bunt that most often gets thrown away into right field. The mistake that is most commonly made is that catchers try to spin and throw the ball at the same time. Make sure that we round the ball, gather our feet, and make a good balanced throw.

Chapter 5 - Blocked Third Strikes

For this drill we will start in our blocking position and practice getting up, fielding the ball, and throwing the batter runner out at first base. If the ball is blocked into fair territory we will field it with our same mechanics that we would if the ball were to be bunted. If the ball is blocked into foul territory on the first base side we must make sure that we scream "outside, outside" to let our first baseman know that we want him to receive the throw in foul territory. Similar to the ball bunted down the first base line, we must again clear ourselves of the runner and take a step further into foul territory. The runner is supposed to run in the "runner's lane." The runner's lane is 3 feet wide and starts halfway down the baseline (45 ft.). Therefore, we must do a very good job of creating a lane to throw the ball to the first baseman.