How to Play Catch With Your Son

When your son wants to learn baseball skills, the fundamentals of catching and throwing a ball come with regular practice. Spending time playing catch accomplishes much more than just stronger sports skills, though. When you and your boy head outdoors with a ball and gloves to play catch, you̵7;ll be strengthening a bond between the two of you as you help your son learn baseball skills.

Things You'll Need

  • Tennis or plastic ball
  • Baseball
  • Baseball glove

Instructions

    • 1

      Show your child the ̶0;ready position̶1; so he knows how to stand in preparation to catch the ball. This position should be facing you with his knees slightly bent and his weight on the balls of his feet, according to a baseball fundamentals workbook on the Berkeley Baseball website. Tell your son that standing in this position gets him ready to move as necessary to catch the ball.

    • 2

      Initiate a relaxed game of catch using a tennis or plastic ball to help your son learn the basics of throwing and catching a ball without the threat of injury, advises Lenny Silva, author of ̶0;Nine Innings: Life Lessons Learned.̶1; Stand close enough to each other to enable you to toss gentle underhand throws to your son and keep working at it until he can catch the ball reliably.

    • 3

      Check your approach with your son as you play catch. It̵7;s likely that he̵7;s not catching or throwing perfectly, but he needs encouragement and motivation from you ̵1; not impatient criticism, warns Bill Geist, author of ̶0;Little League Confidential.̶1; Provide positive pointers and suggestions to help your son with his catching and throwing techniques.

    • 4

      Move up to playing catch with a baseball and baseball glove by the time your son reaches age 6 or 7. Sometime within this age span, kids are ready to work on more advanced throwing mechanics using a real baseball, according to the ̶0;Setting Reasonable Expectations̶1; pamphlet, published by the Highland Park Baseball Association, Topeka, Kansas.

    • 5

      Strive to spend 15 minutes a day playing catch if the goal is to develop and improve baseball skills, according to the Westside Cubs website. If your son does not have these goals, play as often as he desires. Keep the game of playing catch enjoyable and profitable for your son so he can learn skills and you can both enjoy spending time together.

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