How to Teach First Basemen to Pick Balls Out of the Dirt

A first baseman who can pick a ball out of the dirt changes how an entire infield plays. When the shortstop, third baseman, and second baseman know a short hop still gets caught, they cut loose and throw with confidence instead of aiming.

That is why teaching the short-hop pick is one of the highest-leverage things you can do with a high school first baseman — it doesn't just save one out, it raises the throwing accuracy of everyone else on the dirt. This guide breaks down the first base short-hop pick progression drill and the technique behind it: how to pre-set, how to give with the pick, and how to read forehand and backhand scoop angles.

Why the short-hop pick works

The short hop is, counterintuitively, the easiest ball in the dirt to catch. The hard ones are the in-between hops and the long hops, where the ball has time to take an unpredictable kick. So the first lesson is not really about the hands at all — it's about the feet and the read. A good first baseman adjusts position so the ball short-hops them on purpose, turning a scary play into a routine one.

Former MLB infielder Doug Bernier, now the Colorado Rockies' field and infield coordinator and founder of Pro Baseball Insider, teaches an aggressive posture into the ball rather than a passive catch:

"Be aggressive... be aggressive with your glove and take it through the baseball, don't give with the ball and let it play you." — Doug Bernier, Field & Infield Coordinator, Colorado Rockies / founder, Pro Baseball Insider (source)

That single idea — glove moving up and through the ball, not stabbing down at it — is the technical core of the pick.

The "glove on the ground" principle

The most repeated coaching trick for short hops is to start with the glove already on the ground and work up from there. The logic is simple physics: it is much easier and faster to bring the glove up to meet a ball than to drop it down once the ball is already rising. As Bernier's Pro Baseball Insider explains, a trick commonly used is to "start with your glove on the ground and once the ball hits the ground start working up. This tends to be the height the ball will be kicking up." The same principle shows up in Dominate The Diamond's wall-ball pick drill and fungo short-/long-hop work: get low, get the glove down early, and let the pick travel up and through the hop.

Paired with that is the eyes. Coaches at every level harp on getting the eyes *behind* the glove rather than on top of it. When you stand tall and reach down at the last second, your eyes are looking down on the play and you read the hop late. Drop your hips, get your chest down, and put your eyes on the same plane as the ball so you can track it all the way into the leather.

Pre-set, give, and scoop angles

Three decisions make a clean pick:

Pre-set. Before the throw arrives, the first baseman is already in a wide, athletic stance with knees bent, weight on the balls of the feet, throwing-side foot anchored on the bag, and the glove low. You are not waiting to react — you are already in the position you'll finish in.

Give with the pick. "Give" here does not mean catching softly and letting the ball die in the pocket. It means a small, controlled absorb as the glove moves up and toward the ball so the ball stays in the leather instead of clanking out — while the glove keeps traveling through the hop. It's the marriage of soft hands and Bernier's "take it through the baseball."

Scoop angles. Balls in the dirt come three ways: straight on, to the forehand (glove side), and to the backhand. The backhand pick is the one players neglect, so coaches deliberately throw to that side. On the backhand, the glove turns over with fingers down and the player reaches across the body; on the forehand, the player can open the hips slightly and work the glove up the throwing lane.

How to run the drill

The progression layers the skill so nothing is overwhelming:

1. Barehanded on a knee. Take the glove off and use tennis balls. Kneeling slows the body down, forces the eyes to track the ball in, and builds soft, confident hands. Ten straight on, ten forehand, ten backhand.
2. Glove, athletic pre-set, no stretch. Stand in the ready position with the glove pre-set low and pick controlled short hops — grooving the up-and-through motion without footwork to think about.
3. Full pick with the stretch. Add the footwork: read the throw, stride to the ball with the glove-side foot, keep the back foot on the bag, and pick in the stretch. Randomize straight-on, forehand, and backhand.
4. Scoring round. Ten game-speed throws with a mix of true short hops, in-betweeners, and long hops. Count picks out of ten and compete to beat the number.

Common mistakes to coach out

• Standing tall and reaching late. Eyes end up on top of the glove; the hop gets read poorly. Cue: "chest down, eyes behind the glove."
• Stabbing down. The glove jabs at the ball instead of working up through it. Cue: "glove on the ground, work up."
• Leaving the bag early. The anchor foot comes off before the ball is secured, costing the out even on a clean pick.
• Forehand-only practice. Backhand-side hops never get rehearsed, then show up in a game. Force the backhand reps.

Where it fits in practice

This is a perfect daily warm-up block — five focused minutes before infield work groove the pick when hands are fresh. In the off-season, the barehanded and wall-ball stages can be done at home with tennis balls and a fence. In season, fold the scoring round into competitive infield/outfield so there is pressure and a number to chase. As players master it, raise the throw velocity, widen the angles, and finish picks into a transfer-and-tag or a feed to second to simulate a 3-6-3 double play.

Sources

• Pro Baseball Insider — Picking Balls in the Dirt at First Base — Doug Bernier (former MLB infielder; Colorado Rockies Field & Infield Coordinator) on attacking the ball, glove-on-ground technique, and lateral positioning.
• Dominate The Diamond — Top Five Drills for Your First Baseman — walking picks, wall-ball picks, and fungo short-/long-hop drills with eyes-behind-the-ball cues.
• Baseball Tips — First Base Picking Drills — ready position and scoop-up technique fundamentals.
• USA Baseball Develops — 1st Base Receiving Short Hops — short-hop receiving drill setup and footwork off the bag.