Hustle- what coaches should emphasize

Every coach has his own style. So, whatever you believe and you want to stress to your team you need to be consistent. If you are going to say "every time we step on the field, we are going to sprint." Well, you better be prepared to sprint everywhere you go too. When you go to the 3B coaches box you better be on the sprint. When your assistants take the field- same thing goes.

I also believe that the older players get the harder it is to make them hustle. They begin to understand that baseball is a long game comprised of short, focused attention plays. I coach hustle the same way. I don't expect a player to sprint in from the field. I don't expect a player to sprint to 1B after a walk. I do expect a player to sprint if it can impact the game itself.

Here are some examples that might get overlooked.

1- Groundball to an infielder with no one on base. The 2B and the C should be sprinting to back up. Both could impact the play with an overthrow.

2- All pop ups off the bat need to be practiced. It isn't that a kid doesn't know he should run, it's that he is disappointed and that emotion supercedes the knowledge that he should run. I have seen games lost because a player didn't hustle on a routine pop up. Convince them that the sun could be a problem. Convince them that dusk is a tough time to catch a ball. Convince them that this is a must run time.

3- Hustle off the field after an out. Not that you're going to affect the game in so much as what you are going to do. But, the game should be moving. The batter and base runners should be getting ready to pick up the sign. When you delay getting off the field, it allows the other team a focused opportunity to observe the signals being given. This is not what the offensive team should want. Get off the field so focus can be given to the base coach.

Hustle is such a topic among coaches. It is what the average fan can see rather easily. But, we need to be perfectly clear in that some instances demand hustle. Others are just a coaches prerogative.