As I watched my son participate in infield drills at practice one day, I saw his throws going left and right, high and in the dirt, but rarely on target.
Honestly, I wasn't too worried; I never want to be the "drill sergeant" parent. Baseball should be fun!
But I also wanted to do my part to help his throwing mechanics improve so he could experience more success.
So later that night, I went to one of THE best sources for information and tips on youth baseball: YouTube.
Since that night, I've watched a lot of youth baseball instructional videos on YouTube that have helped me coach my son at home and in turn helped him become a better player.
So if you want to work with your child on a specific aspect of the game, here are my favorite youth baseball YouTube channels to help you become a backyard baseball coach.
Youth Baseball YouTube Channels
Ultimate Baseball Training
If you start searching for baseball training videos on YouTube, chances are you're going to run into Coach Justin at Ultimate Baseball Training.
They don't have more than 330,000 subscribers for nothing.
Ultimate Baseball Training has a MASSIVE catalog of instructional videos covering virtually all aspects of the game: throwing, fielding, hitting, pitching, and on and on.
The first UBT video we watched a few years ago was on how to throw a baseball. I found Coach Justin to be a great instructor: knowledgable, articulate and engaging.
His instructions were easy to understand.
The videos were a great length (about 5-10 minutes) to include plenty of information but lose my son's interest.
And Coach Justin's demonstrations of drills really helped my son (and me!) get a better grasp on the mechanics and techniques he was explaining.
yougotmojo
yougotmojo is the YouTube channel for MOJO, "a mobile app for parents and coaches to make youth sports training easy, stress-free, and fun," according to its website.
While the app's YouTube channel also has instructional videos on basketball, football, soccer and softball, you'll obviously want to focus on their selection of youth baseball videos.
And their selection is fantastic.
While many of their videos are geared more toward full team practices, they have several videos on individual drills.
But even the videos for full team practices can give you ideas of drills and exercises to do at home with your young player.
I love yougotmojo's videos for three reasons:
- They're short and sweet (most don't last longer than 1 minute 30 seconds).
- They're focused on making the game fun (many even have goofy names, like Pitcher's Poison, The Scarecrow, and Selfies).
- The video quality is first-class.
Antonelli Baseball
I've always wondered: how does a professional baseball player teach his kid how to play the game?
Well, Antonelli Baseball gives a glimpse into how one might.
Matt Antonelli played ball at Wake Forest University, was drafted in the first round by the San Diego Padres and eventually reached the major leagues before a recurring wrist injury forced him to retire.
Now, he's a rising baseball YouTube coaching star.
His channel has more than 175,000 subscribers, and his videos have more than 30 million views.
Antonelli's channel has something for players at all levels -- his videos giving advice to young players are especially great to watch.
But we found his series introducing the fundamentals to a young player to be really useful for learning the right mechanics and training methods.
Little League
What better source for learning the game than the channel of the world’s largest organized youth sports program?
Now, a lot of the content on Little League's YouTube channel won't be relevant to you. Many are short, goofy interviews with players from past Little League Classic games.
But check out the playlists section of the channel, and you'll find three categories for defensive, pitching and tee ball drills.
Much like the MOJO videos, Little League's videos are extremely high-quality, short and easy to understand.
The defense and pitching drill videos are led by Baseball Factory, one of the leading player development and college placement organizations in the country.
One of my favorite drills is teaching young players how to field ground balls -- with their hat!
YouGoPro Baseball
Coach John Madden puts the "pro" in YouGoPro Baseball.
Madden was (also) drafted by the San Diego Padres and played five seasons in the minors before turning to coaching and training in the sport.
Madden uses YouGoPro Baseball to "share his experiences to help baseball players of all ages achieve their goals and dreams of playing pro baseball."
He's the other heavy-hitter in the YouTube baseball game: YouGoPro Baseball's channel has more than 250,000 subscribers.
And the channel's catalog of instructional videos is extensive.
YouGoPro Baseball covers just about every aspect of the game, from hitting, throwing, pitching, baserunning, training aid reviews and so much more.
In fact, YouGoPro Baseball has videos on super-specific topics, like how to pitch from the stretch or how to hit a curveball.
So depending on your kid's ability and interest level, you can get as advanced as you want with instructional videos from YouGoPro Baseball.
Northern Baseball Training
Give this Canadian crew a look: Doug Clark, Chris Clark and Brandon Hunter are lifelong friends and played both in college (in Canada) and the pros (in Australia).
Now, they run Northern Baseball Training and share baseball instructional videos once a week on their YouTube channel to help parents new to the sport and first-time coaches.
And they know what they're talking aboot. (That's Canadian for "about" 😜)
First, their video production quality is among the best of the best.
Second, all their videos are a manageable length. Most are an average of 4-5 minutes.
They cram a lot of info into their videos, but it's not information overload. They're quick, concise, and memorable.
Pros Cave
The most popular series on Pros Cave's YouTube channel is the swing breakdowns by former MLB player Jermaine Curtis.
Curtis has several videos where he dissects the swings of some of the best hitters in the game, like Fernando Tatis Jr. or Mookie Betts.
Even better: each video has a bonus section at the end sharing drills that can help you replicate your favorite star player's mechanics.
So while Curtis has some pretty advanced instructional videos, I offer you his channel because you might not find a better resource for tips on hitting.
Is your son's timing at the plate a bit off? Curtis has a video for that.
Are they struggling to hit outside pitches? He has a video for that, too.
Or check out some of his videos where he finds professional players discussing their mechanics or practice routines and gives his own spin -- they're a goldmine of information.
GoDog Sports
If you're starting at the very basics, check out GoDog Sports.
No, they don't have a gaudy number of subscribers (just 567 at the time I'm writing this).
And GoDog doesn't even specialize in player development; they're a streaming service for youth and high school sports.
But their channel has about 15 excellent videos covering the basics of throwing, catching, fielding, hitting, and agility.
All the videos are short (no more than five minutes) and of top quality.
It doesn't seem like they'll be releasing any new instructional videos (the most recent one was published three years ago).
But, hey, that's the beauty of YouTube: the great ones they already have are here to stay. And you should check them out.
ProSpeed Baseball
ProSpeed Baseball is another one of the bigger channels in the youth baseball space, with more than 55,000 subscribers and 7 million views!
They have videos on all facets of the game, but where they really shine is hitting.
Michael at ProSpeed Baseball covers all the basics but also has videos that address virtually every aspect of hitting, from hitting inside pitches to adjusting with two strikes and everything in between.
You'll find plenty of drills to try with your youngster that are easy, fun and impactful.
You might even need a basketball.
Dominate The Diamond
There's no denying that coaches Duke Baxter and Steve Nikorak know their stuff: the two faces behind Dominate The Diamond are both former pro players and coaches who now run the Zoned Sports Academy in Bridgewater, New Jersey.
Maybe it's not surprising that two former coaches would have the most organized of all the youth baseball YouTube channels, but their playlist section is so easy to navigate and find videos on any particular skill set.
You'll find a list of tee ball drills for the youngest players up to more sophisticated instruction for older players.
But be sure to spend some time watching their videos on the "mental game."
The series of videos addresses more nuanced aspects of baseball, like holding players accountable or how to help players deal with failure.
They even have a great video on helping young players with one of the most fundamental parts of the game: not being afraid of the ball!
In addition, if you're thinking about getting into coaching youth teams, their Dominate The Diamond coaching course is a comprehensive guide to designing practice routines, motivating your team and having a fun and successful season.
Coach Dan Blewett
I plan to watch more of Dan Blewatt's YouTube channel if or when my kids advance further in baseball.
Because, yeah -- this guy is dropping advanced knowledge!
Now, don't think that means Blewett's instructional videos are confusing. I find them fascinating and insightful.
But these aren't videos for young players just getting into tee ball or the early levels of coach pitch.
These are videos for players with some promise and aptitude for the game looking to get to another level of performance.
But you also might like some of Blewett's "lighter" videos.
Like the series following his recovery from Tommy John surgery.
Or the video where you hear his pep talks to young pitchers during visits to the mound during games. ("You have a good arm. You have a good breaking ball. You have a good change-up. I just need you to throw the absolute piss out of all of them," he says to one of them.)
Last thing
Remember my son's wild throwing?
Well, after watching some videos about throwing mechanics and applying the lessons learned, my son's wild throwing days are nearly over.
Yes, it still pops up every now and then, but it's so rare now.
In fact, I barely have to say anything when it happens; he usually notices the error in his mechanics, calls it out himself and makes the correction on the very next throw.