: Skills & Drills: Offense

Sliding
Once a runner realizes the play at the base will be close, or are instructed to ‘get down’ the player should begin a slide. This is not necessary if the runner is in a force situation, but it is common to slide into second to force the second baseman to move out of the basepath, making a double play more difficult. This skill should be practiced, as injury will occur if the slide is not executed properly. There are two common sliding technigues, the feet first slide and the head first slide. Due to the inherent dangers of sliding head first, we will focus on the feet first slide.

1. The player will begin the slide 8 to 12 feet from the base, depending on their speed and size.
2. The player should drop gently to the ground, by first bending both knees. The right leg should extend towards the base and the left leg should bend under the player, with the left toe pointing backwards. This position allows the runner to control the descent to the ground.
3. Land on the read end. There is much more padding that on the hips and prevents some nasty bruises.
4. Now sliding on the ground, the front foot should come up 6 inches to allow the foot to go over the bag. The hands should be up off the ground, as this will only slow them and possibly make them stop short of the bag.