“The Big 3”: Athleticism, Adaptability, and Decision-Making

“I need to create an elite training environment,” said no coach ever.

Coaches have traditionally designed practices around the players, personnel, time, and resources available to them. But what if I told you it is possible to create an elite training environment—even with limited time, resources, and staff?

The answer begins with what I call “The Big 3”: athleticism, adaptability, and decision-making.

Athleticism

One of the most important elements of an elite training environment is giving players opportunities to display and develop their athleticism.

As coaches, we must recognize that there is not only one way to field a ground ball, throw a baseball, or swing a bat. We can agree that certain movements may be more efficient than others, but the game rarely presents players with the same situation twice.

Before fielding a baseball, a player must process numerous variables: the speed and direction of the ball, the runner’s speed, the number of outs, the hitter’s handedness, and much more.

When we promote athleticism and encourage players to explore their physical capabilities, we help them understand what their bodies can do. They can then evaluate whether a particular movement or play was appropriate based on the situation and its outcome.

Adaptability

At some point, nearly every baseball coach has told a player, “You need to know what to do if the ball is hit to you.”

During my time working with the great Darren Fenster, I learned a more effective way to communicate this idea:

“Know what you can do if the ball is hit to you.”

When players understand what they are physically capable of doing to field a ball—regardless of where or how it is hit—they gain more options for deciding what to do with it.

There is one thing that ultimately determines a player’s response: what the baseball is doing.

Players must adapt to the speed, direction, trajectory, and location of the ball. Sometimes that requires them to move differently from what they anticipated before the pitch. The better players understand their physical capabilities, the easier it becomes for them to adjust, solve problems, and make plays more consistently.

Decision-Making

Guilty as charged: I was once a firm believer that mass fungo work and a high volume of repetitions were the best ways to develop elite infielders.

I was wrong.

Repetitions still have value, but the best way to develop athletic and adaptable players who make quality decisions is to train with context and constraints.

Situational context can be added by giving players information such as:

• The number of outs
• The score
• The inning
• The locations of the baserunners
• The speed of the runners

For example, imagine Elly De La Cruz is on first base with one out and Billy Hamilton is at the plate. Because of their speed, the chances of turning a double play are minimal.

The infielder must read what the batted ball is doing before deciding which play is available. If the ball is hit hard on the ground and fielded cleanly, there may be an opportunity to turn two. If it is hit softly, the only realistic play may be at first base.

That is decision-making within a realistic game context.

We can then add a physical constraint to increase the difficulty and challenge the player both mentally and physically. Using the same scenario, the constraint could require players to field every ball with a backhand, regardless of where it is hit.

Now the player must adapt physically while processing the situation and selecting the appropriate play. This creates opportunities for problem-solving, teaching, learning, and—most importantly—failure.

Failure is not something we should remove from training. It is an essential part of learning.

Conclusion

Athleticism, adaptability, and decision-making appear in every game. If we want players to perform effectively under pressure, these qualities must also be present in their training.

By creating challenging environments that include realistic context, purposeful constraints, and opportunities to solve problems, we prepare players for what the game will actually demand.

Train “The Big 3” in practice, and players will be better prepared to apply them when the game is on the line.