One of the many challenges with winter workouts is having to do a lot of the work indoors. To accomplish this effectively and efficiently, coaches have to be organized and a little creative. One major problem with indoor hitting in a gym is slippery floors. Many hitting drills, whether using soft toss, short toss, or live pitching can be downright worthless if players are slipping and sliding on each swing. Of course, if you are blessed to have access to an indoor facility that has some sort of turf, than this is usually not an issue. However, hard gym floors can be a nightmare.
This common mat works well outside by not so much on a gym floor!
One of the best pieces of equipment a team that is forced to practice in a gym can have is a horse stall mat. Actually, several of them. There are many different types of mats that can be used but I have found that horse stall mats are the sturdiest and the most versatile. An example of one is HERE. This example comes from Tractor Supply but there are other stores that carry them as well.
The reason I like the horse stall mats better is that they are very rugged and can withstand a ton of stress. They also can be used indoors or outdoors as the list of uses below shows. If you choose to get some for your player or team, I’d suggest one that is ¾” thick. Anything thinner will tend to slide around when in use. ¾” versions are heavier and more difficult to move around but stay completely still even on a slippery gym floor. Another positive is that most measure around 4X6 which basically matches the dimensions of a batter’s box. Other rug-type mats are sold in baseball catalogs but most slide around on gym floors.
Below are some of the indoor and outdoor uses for the mats:
Indoors:
- To stand on while hitting to eliminate sliding around when striding and swinging.
- To protect the gym floor area right in front of the plate on balls hit downward.
- Provides a softer area for knee hitting drills
- Great for protecting the floor from balls and skin guards when catchers perform blocking drills.
- Better traction for pitchers doing flat ground drills in the gym.
- Great for base runners practicing their jumps in a gym.
Outdoors:
- Cover the batter’s boxes during practice to eliminate the holes in the dirt that develop during BP and defensive drills. Also prevents puddles from forming in those areas as well.
- Cover the down-slope of the mound during practice so pitchers do not tear up the dirt on PFP (pitchers fielding practice) drills. The mats also keep water off that section of the mound as well.
- Place in the bullpen for catchers to stand on/squat on to prevent holes from developing.
- Use it as an on deck area.
- Place several on the floor of the dugout to prevent players wearing spikes from slipping on the concrete.
Have any insider tips of your own for indoor workouts or out of the ordinary “must have” equipment? Share them in the comment section!
