samflamont:

As a coach one thing I notice all the is the cut man goes too far into the outfield.  We will use the scenario of a base hit to right field with a guy on first.  The shortstop is the cut for this particular play and the second baseman should cover the base.  The throw from the outfielder should go toward third base and the shortstop must know the arm strength or he will get to close to him.  What you want to happen is the outfielder makes a strong throw to the shortstop that does not have a big arc in it but you want it to get there in the air.  So you must practice this play so the shortstop knows where to line up.  What you do not want is the outfielder throwing the ball 40 feet to the shortstop and the shortstop turning and making a 130 foot throw.  This defeats the purpose of a cut man.  You should practice having the outfielder throw the ball as far as he can in the air on a line.  Once you determine where he consistently gets the ball to in the air, you have your shortstop set up there.  This is for all your outfielders and cut men, not just your shortstop.  This should only take an infield outfield practice to figure out, it is not time consuming but it will save you runs and it will keep runners from advancing.

The reason it will keep a runner from advancing is, if the shortstop is deep he will see the runner on first and if the runner breaks he will cut the ball and make a play.  Also, it will stop the ball from going over his head and also allowing the guy on first to take second.  If the shortstop is to close his throw will be too long thus allowing the guy on first to take second because there is no cut man to hold him.  It seems like such a small thing but it is very important because the last thing you want is to give extra bases away due to a mistake this small.