samflamont:

The tag up is something that is very important to the game of baseball and something I see that gets messed up all to often.  Coaches tell players half way but if the guy is under the ball get back and give yourself a chance to tag.  I think there are times you can completely change the rules of the tag up and doing these may help you by forcing the team to throw the ball around a little.

First thing I am going to talk about is tagging up with multiple runners on base.  No matter the situation or where the ball is hit I use a one tag all tag rule.  For example if there are runners on 1st and 3rd and there is a routine fly ball hit to right field, the guy on first should be tagging automatically not waiting to see the outfielder get under the ball.  This should be done for a few different reasons.  First of all is because the guy on 3rd is tagging and the rule is one tag all tag, making sure your players know this will help minimize mistakes.  Also, if the guy on first is tagging he will be able to take advantage of any mistakes made by the outfielder.  If the throw is high he is off and running, and since the first baseman is going to be the cutoff man more than likely at lower levels there will be nobody keeping him close on any fake take offs.  *Just so you know the second baseman should be covering 1st in this situation, the pitcher is backing up home, and the shortstop is covering 2nd so your player should not be standing around.  But since this gets missed a lot you can take advantage of it.  Also, if the runner on 3rd is important you can have your runner on 1st take off no matter what hoping to draw a cut and allowing your run to score, trading the out for the run.  Also, if your player is already at the bag ready to tag up he will still advance on a dropped ball.  I have seen players that get lazy getting back to the bag, the ball gets dropped and they do not advance.  Yeah you can pull the kid and teach him a lesson but that does not help the fact that your runner is still on 1st.  Be proactive and make sure you kids understand this rule.

This rule works in any situation not just first and third.  If your runners are taught to tag up if the lead runner is tagging up then your team will be able to cause havoc by getting teams to worry about multiple runners moving at one time.  You will be surprised how often you will force teams to make mistakes when using this rule.  If the ball is being thrown to third from center field and it is high both of your runners have a chance to move up by tagging up.  Also, if it is a ball a little high and the cut man sees your runner on 1st moving he may try to jump and cut the ball, this sets up all sorts of potential mistakes, including a tipped ball, a ball that is cut and thrown off balance, or a ball that is missed but the 3rd baseman was shielded and it gets passed him.  There are so many things you can make happen with this one simple team rule.

The other time I break the half way rule is with high school age players.  If I see the ball is routine right away I want my kids on the bag ready to draw a throw and then take advantage of a mistake.  Why?  Be honest and ask yourself how many times a routine fly ball gets dropped with players 15 and up.  Yeah it happens and when it does you can still advance using this rule, but way more often than not this ball is caught.  After it is caught the outfielder throws it in lazily because he hears all of his teammates yelling NO TAG, NO TAG, or at least they should be.  Your runner jogs back to the base and nothing happens.  Instead have your runner tag from the get, (this does not allow him the chance to mess up the tag) the outfielder’s  teammates are yelling 2nd base and your runner is ready to go and even if he does not run he can put on a serious fake.  You have just opened up chances for mistakes, and I have seen more mistakes made with throws at this level than catching routine fly balls.  Also, you put pressure on the outfielder who may take his eye off the ball trying to throw your runner out before he catches.

One thing you must remember is baseball is baseball but somethings work at certain levels that won’t work at others, but putting pressure on the other team is always a good idea.  Try these out, I think using these methods will help and it takes the pressure off the kid as to when to go half way, when to get back, and when to just tag up.  Again my rule with multiple runners is one tag all tag, and if the ball is routine off the bat (which is very obvious) there is no half way and get back then tag, I want my players to tag from the start.