How to Play Baseball: Box Jumps

Start with down-ups. From the top of the box, drop down, jump right back up on to the box. This puts the stretch of the loading phase into the muscles. It is not jump up then down, it is down-up. Stretch and explode. Three sets of 10 will do great for this drill.

Now do runs, put one foot on top of the box, one foot on the ground. Basically switch feet. Get the running rhythm, bounce and pop off the ground. Just touch the box, do not out weight on it. Touch and go, touch and go. Count your right leg 10 times. That would be one set. Do three sets.

Side to side, place one foot in the middle of the box and simply work laterally, push and go, push and go, side to side as you touch the box. We are looking for the weight to be on the outside leg. We want to get great cutting and change of direction out of this drill.

Now it is the multiple boxes, we can vary different heights or we can have the same size box. Basically what we want is a quick response off the ground. We are finishing here with our highest box to get one big explosive jump at the end. Use both feet at the same time. Bounce, pop off the ground, pop off the ground, keep your course stable. Suck-in, your belly button tuck in the back, that helps deliver more force to the ground for better speed and quickness.

Now let us go to single leg. You got to really work to have body control here. Bounce off the ground, lift your heel up, we got to make sure you are safe in your training. Do not hook any toes on the edge of those boxes or you will scrape a shin.

Drop in lateral slide, here we want to use the stretch reflex of the drop off the box and go right in to a lateral slide and push. This teaches that quick muscle response that we need, drop and push, push, push. Push away from the way you want to go. Drop and push, push, push. Push away from the direction you want to go. Make sure that you balanced out the body by working each direction. Try and stay on the front part of the foot. Pick up your toes; pull them up towards your shin, so that you bounce off the ground. Do not reach with the heel that makes a slow, long lever. Pull the toes up and push. Keep your back flat, suck in your belly button, tuck-in the lower back for a solid core.