Team Offense & Base Coaching

Make the sign clear

The batter and runner both look for the coach's signal before play resumes. A player who missed it uses the agreed reset request.

What is better than guessing?Copying the crowdAsking for the sign again through the team's routineStarting the play without the runnerChanging the signal alone

My practice notes (no personal details)

Coaching Points

Rehearse the reset request as part of the signs, not as a failure.

Common Mistakes

A missed sign can create a safety and coordination problem.

Alternative Considerations

Keep early-season sign sets small; add complexity only when understood.

Coaching exercise: not a national rule requirement.

Coordinate a live lead

Intermediate allows a runner to lead before the pitch. The base coach helps the runner choose a manageable lead and stay aware of a legal throw over.

What should the runner protect?Only the next baseThe chance to copy a professional's longest leadA fixed distance regardless of pitcherBalance and a controlled return while reading the pitcher

My practice notes (no personal details)

Coaching Points

Start with a smaller, repeatable lead and rehearse return footwork.

Common Mistakes

Field size alone does not determine a safe lead for every player.

Alternative Considerations

The coach can reduce the lead for a new runner without mislabeling it as a national prohibition.

Rules/safety: leads pickoff

Give a runner one decision

A third-base coach sees the ball, relay and runner approaching. The coach uses the team's agreed stop or send signal clearly and early.

What is the coaching priority?A visible, timely decision the runner can followA new signal invented mid-playWaiting until the runner is beside homeWatching the dugout instead of the ball

My practice notes (no personal details)

Coaching Points

Practice communication with a jogging runner before adding a live relay.

Common Mistakes

Conflicting voice and hand signals make the decision harder.

Alternative Considerations

Aggressiveness depends on score, outs and player readiness; it is not a universal send rule.

Coaching exercise: not a national rule requirement.

Name the contact-play plan

Before a situational rep, the coach tells the runner whether to read the ball first or act on a specific contact cue. Everyone repeats the instruction.

Which version is teachable?Tell the runner only to be aggressiveUse a different meaning every inningName the cue, the safe fallback and who communicates itAssume every batted ball has the same result

My practice notes (no personal details)

Coaching Points

Walk the scenario and then ask what changes on a line drive or a missed sign.

Common Mistakes

A slogan is not a complete base-running decision.

Alternative Considerations

Do not run a high-risk team play until the simpler read is reliable.

Coaching exercise: not a national rule requirement.

Run the uncaught-third situation

First base is empty with one out. Strike three is not caught. The batter must recognize that the play may continue.

Which response fits the rule?Assume every strikeout is deadRecognize eligibility to try for first and follow the playWait for a teammate to run insteadClaim first is awarded automatically

My practice notes (no personal details)

Coaching Points

Teach the outs and first-base check before a live catching drill.

Common Mistakes

Eligible to attempt first is not the same as being awarded first.

Alternative Considerations

With first occupied and fewer than two outs, the answer changes.

Rules/safety: third

Separate coaching policy from rules

The academy's bunt station does not practice a fake bunt followed by a full swing. This is a conservative coaching choice, not a claim that Rule 6.06 creates a blanket national slash-bunt ban.

How should a team policy be described?As a rule that every league must shareAs proof that all other choices are legalAs a substitute for reading local rulesAs a team choice, with governing and adopted local rules checked separately

My practice notes (no personal details)

Coaching Points

Write the practice restriction plainly so players know what this station permits.

Common Mistakes

Do not attach an unsupported rule number to a coaching preference.

Alternative Considerations

The actual league may have additional adopted restrictions; ask for those in writing.

Rules/safety: slash-citation

Rules and source notes

Little League International · Intermediate 50/70 · regular-season pilot. Sources reviewed 2026-09-06. No edition metadata displayed. Absence of a slash-bunt ban in this section does not prove universal legality under all other rules or local options. No edition/build metadata displayed. App origin user-attested; supplied source text, not independently acquired app session. This is not a complete rulebook or a tournament eligibility guide. Coaching suggestions are labeled teaching choices, not national rules.

eligibility: The national division age band is league ages 11-13; actual roster and tournament eligibility must be checked separately. (regular-season; national-rule) Little League Baseball Divisions
amendments: The 2026 update list was reviewed. Relevant changes include returning-pitcher visits, simultaneous courtesy runners, and either half of double first on an uncaught third strike. The corresponding full rule governs exceptions. (all-play; national-rule) 2026 Rule Changes and Clarifications Little League Baseball Rulebook app: Rule 8
geometry: Intermediate uses 70-foot base paths and a 50-foot pitching distance. (all-play; national-rule) Little League Baseball Divisions
leadoffs: Intermediate permits leadoffs, steal attempts at any time while play is live, and an on-deck batter. Do not import the Majors wait-until-the-pitch-reaches-the-batter restriction. (all-play; national-rule) Little League Baseball Divisions
balk: Rule 8.01 permits a legal step-and-throw pickoff from the rubber. A pitcher in contact must step directly toward the base before a throw. A feint to first from the rubber is not a legal throw over. (all-play; national-rule) Little League Baseball Rulebook app: Rule 8
eligibility: The supplied complete Rule 6.06 does not establish a blanket national slash-bunt ban. This does not establish universal legality. A no-slash training station is an academy coaching choice, with actual governing and adopted local restrictions checked separately. (all-play; national-rule) Little League Baseball Rulebook app: complete Rule 6.06
third-strike: On an uncaught third strike the batter can become a runner with first unoccupied or with two outs. With first occupied and fewer than two outs, do not manufacture a force by treating the batter as eligible to run. (all-play; national-rule) Uncaught Third Strike: No Catch

Saved on this device

Answers, self-assessed mastery, review flags and notes save in this browser. Mechanics checklist steps save too, but are not scored. Quiz/Coach view preferences and the hub's last-opened module may also be saved. No names, accounts or server uploads are requested. Avoid personal or medical details in notes. Browser storage may differ between files or browsers; if the hub cannot see a module's progress opened from disk, use that module's backup and import it into the hub. Browser data clearing removes local progress.

Download a backup before clearing data. Restore through this division's hub; a module backup can be merged without clearing other modules. Replace can clear absent modules and requires confirmation. Reset is limited to the labeled module or division. Speech uses your browser's voices; availability and whether a voice is local depend on the browser.