In the hands of the receiver.

Everything in the catcher's large agenda hinges on his ability to win the pitcher's confidence.

Since a sloppy receiver will undermine the pitcher's confidence, the catcher must develop a comfortable, flawless positioning that will facilitate the transmission of the signals and ensure a smooth reception of the pitch.

Part 1 last month illustrated and described the signalling stance and then delved into the basics of the receiving style. To continue:

GLOVE HANDLING

The catcher should never put his left hand too deep into the glove, as this will often stiffen or tighten the wrist and slow up the hand action. The catcher should be taught to let the heel of the hand protrude from the mitt. Caution: He must always keep enough hand in the glove to control it.

The catcher can relax his glove hand by flexing his wrist, enabling him to catch more pitches.

Though some catchers like to open their hands a quarter turn to the left, they can get more pitches into the strike zone by breaking their hands straight down into a more natural position.

BODY SHIFTING

A good receiver will keep his body as still as possible. He will expand the strike zone with his hands and a minimal amount of body movement. Umpires tend to call balls on catchers who sway or move around a lot.

The point to remember is that the umpire is basically guessing on the outside pitch and any movement by the catcher can make some strikes look like balls.

In a non-running situation, the catcher can set up on the corner and turn his body slightly into the plate. This technique can open up a visual lane for the umpire and enable the receiver to catch the ball closer to the plate. This can come in handy whenever the pitcher is delivering away from his arm side. Whenever the pitch is delivered to the throwing-arm side, the ball will cross the umpire's line of vision.

If the catcher chooses to set up a little off the plate, he may often get a strike call on a pitch caught out of the strike zone - so long as he doesn't move his body.

The catcher must be sensitive to the umpire's strike zone, and it may pay him to expand it in or out (especially out) rather than up. He should keep pushing the envelope to see how much in, out, down, or even up that the umpire is going to give him.

With no one on base, the catcher should get the ball back to the pitcher quickly in order to maintain the tempo of the game. He should catch the ball, drop to his knees, and throw it back.

He should never walk the ball to the pitcher or stand up to throw. It will throw off the tempo and force the umpire to reset after every pitch.

The smart catcher will keep the ump in the stance as long as possible, as this will improve the ump's concentration - and keep him in a good humor.

DROPPED PITCHES

Blinking is a common cause of dropped pitches. Some catchers will blink as the pitcher releases the ball, or as it arrives at the plate, or every time the hitter swings.

Drops may also be caused by not picking up the pitch at the point of release. This can happen whenever the pitcher starts focusing on the point of release too early or too late, so that he doesn't actually see the release.

Fine-centering on the release point too long may likewise affect the vision negatively. The catcher should soft-focus (relax) on the pitcher's front shoulder until it closes to the plate, then move to a more intense focus at the release point.

HANDLING VARIOUS PITCHES

The low pitch. A fast ball at or slightly below the knees or a breaking ball at or slightly above the knees should be caught with the fingers up. The only exception would be for a hard-throwing sinker-ball pitcher. The catcher may be forced to turn his glove over or backhand the sinkers.

He should avoid turning his glove over and catching the ball palm up. Umpires don't call these low pitches strikes. The catcher should knock the high pitch down.

The high pitch is a fast ball just above the belt or a breaking ball at or slightly below the belt. The catcher should try to catch the top half of the high pitch, as his 13-inch glove from heel to tip will make the pitch look 13 inches higher than it really is if he catches the ball with the fingers up.

When forced to backhand the ball, he should catch it in the web of the mitt. This will keep the pitch in the strike zone.

The low mid-pitch should be back-handed and brought toward the body by hooking the wrist as the ball is caught. This will prevent the catcher from knocking the low ball down out of the strike zone.

The inside pitch should be "surrounded" - caught close to the plate with the glove facing into the plate. Many catchers get their glove over late so that the velocity of the pitch will carry the mitt out of the strike zone as they catch the ball. When the ball is caught squarely, most of the glove will wind up outside of the strike zone.

That's why the experienced catcher will beat the ball to the spot and frame the pitch, catching the ball with the glove facing into the plate.

It's important to beat the ball to the spot. Catchers who get their glove to the ball late will usually take the glove out of the strike zone when making the catch.

RECEIVING STYLE

In running situations, the priority shifts from the framing aspect to throwing people out. Instead of catching the ball close to the plate, the receiver must bring the ball back into his body so that he can load and throw.

In a non-running situation, it is critical to let the close pitch "sit" rather than raise up to return the ball to the pitcher or to throw to third base (if it's a third strike).

Whenever the catcher bounces up on a borderline pitch, the umpire isn't likely to call it a strike.

If, conversely, the catcher lets the pitch "sit," the more likely it is to be called a strike. And if the ump doesn't call that one a strike, he'll probably call the next one a strike.

Timing is critical. In letting a ball "sit," the catcher should hold the ball long enough to give the umpire a good clear look at it. But he shouldn't overdo it - make the umpire feel he is being "coerced" into calling it a strike.

Umpires are now taking more time to call pitches and the catcher shouldn't try to rush them by picking his glove up too soon. The umpires will call more of these pitches balls. So, with no one on base, the catcher should let the close pitches "sit."

If he happens to drop a pitch that is clearly in or close to the strike zone, he shouldn't rush to retrieve the ball (with no one on base). He should keep his glove right in the strike zone.

Umpires may not always spot the dropped ball, but if they have a perception of seeing it in the strike zone, they will make their call accordingly. Note: Dropped pitches always look like balls and the caterer should never add to the illusion by diving after them.

WITH NO ONE ON BASE

With no one on base, we allow our catchers to catch one-handed with their bare hand behind their back - the way major league catchers do it. If the catcher chooses to catch with his bare hand near his glove, we have him keep the hand open behind the glove with the thumb tucked behind the index finger.

As long as the catcher keeps his bare hand on the same level as the pitch, he won't run the risk of injury, as pitches are fouled up and down.

If the foul tip does somehow hit the hand, it will carom off the palm or the fingers, not hit straight on.

Catchers who like to keep the bare hand in a loose fist often wind up exposing their knuckles or fingertips to injury because of their tendency to extend the hand from its fisted position.

PULLING THE PITCH

With no one on base, the catcher should try to catch the pitch as close to the plate as possible. The closer to the plate he can make the catch, the more likely it is to be called a strike.

The catcher shouldn't try to dupe the umpire by pulling or jerking the ball into the strike zone.

Any time an umpire feels that the catcher is trying to fool him, he's likely to take the marginal pitches away from him.

Good framing technique - giving the ball the best possible showcase - will usually get the catcher the more marginal strikes.