Backyard Baseball 2009

Knock one out of the park with Backyard Baseball 2009. Play hardball with David 'Big Papi' Ortiz and other MLB superstars as kids: A-Rod, Jeter, Ichiro, Griffey, Howard, and many more. Choose your favorite MLB team or create your own. Backyard Baseball 2009 features season & single game options, create-a-player, Home Run Derby mini-game, and unlockables. It also includes wireless multi-player and let's you use the touch screen to hit, field, pitch, and run-all with strokes and taps of the stylus. With outrageous game play and awesome power ups mixed in with authentic baseball action, Backyard Baseball 09 is the most fun you can have outside the ballpark.

Power Ups with Meter Enhanced Hitting and Fielding Controls New Player Capabilities
Customer Review: Very good game
Great job! Well worth picking up. I purchased for my 8 yr old son and he has not stopped playing it. Great graphics (remember this is a DS not a PS3), sound is better then what one of the review sites suggested, nothing fantastic, but good enough. Well thought out game attributes such as the base overlay. Being a veteran baseball video game junkie, I gave it a whirl, and found a challenge to be had at the hard level. I still would like to see a port of the old triple play for the Genesis, or even Baseball Stars would be great too. But for now this is the only baseball game in town and worthy of a purchase.

Fastpitch Softball - Shortstop Positioning

When there is a runner on 1st base, move your shortstop about 5 feet towards 2B. More if need be. Depending on your age group, the odds are probably between 50% up to 95% that there will be a play at 2B. On the other hand, the odds of the ball being hit to SS are much lower. You might even get lucky and have a ball hit up the middle which the SS can field and tag 2B or even turn a double play.

Make a mental note to yourself, after each batter look at your shortstops positioning. This is a chess game. Think about what you expect your opponent to do in this given situation, and position your shortstop appropriately.

Fastpitch Softball - Shortstop Positioning

Runner on 1st Base

In 10U & 12U it's almost a given the runner is going to steal. In 14U and up, the odds are still pretty strong that at some point the runner will try to advance, either on a straight steal or on a bobbled pitch. We KNOW this is going to happen a very high percentage of the time.

Situational positioning of the Shortstop may be the most common coaching oversight in Fastpitch Softball. My guess would be 95% of the teams put the shortstop in the middle of 2nd and 3rd and never move her. Okay, that's great with no runners on base, but what about all the other situations.

So why is your shortstop still in the hole? How many times have you seen the shortstop have to cut the corner to get to the throw in time, and therefore be two or three feet in front of 2B and unable to make a tag? Aaaaggghhh!!! I hate that! And there is no reason for it to happen.

By placing her in the optimal position before the pitch is thrown, you also avoid her breaking to the bag while the pitch is on the way. Huh? I'm sure you have seen shortstops break to the base as soon as the pitch is thrown, and then have a ball hit right where she should have been standing. Since she is breaking on the pitch, her momentum increases the size of the hole immensely. Whereas, if she is positioned correctly before the pitch, she can hold her position longer before making her break to cover the steal.

Lead Runner on 2nd Base

If you use SS to cover 3B on steals, the same philosophy applies. Move her about 5 feet from the hole towards 3B. It's a very tough play for SS to cover 3B on steals. She has to get their, find the base, catch the ball, and make a tag. How many throws to 3B have you seen wind up in the outfield because the runner and SS got tangled up at 3B? Too many. Take the precision timing out of the play by getting her in a better position before the play starts.

The Hardest Play for a Shortstop Runner on 1st and the batter shows bunt