#greatplays

Professional baseball players use this same split step to get ready to field groundballs and pop ups. The players execute the split step as the pitched ball enters the hitting zone. In practice, the split step can be executed just before the fungo hits the ball. Watch the St. Louis Cardinals infield practice and notice the split steps utilized by every infielder.

After the split step, the fielder is to look in the zone and react to the swing of the hitter. This means that even though a hitter may swing and miss or foul a ball off, the fielder reacts by moving to the space where the ball would have been hit. In other words, it's anticipating where the ball would be. For instance, if a hitter fouls a ball off to the right side, every infielder should have taken a step or two towards the ball. The key is not to be passive, but to expect the ball and attack it. When fielders are reacting to the swing, they are showing that they are ready to attack the ball. The reaction to the swing is just another reason that major leaguers seem to be at the right place at the right time.