How to Develop Your Game to Become a Five-Tool Player

• By Brandon Ogle

The term ‘Five-Tool Player’ gets tossed around frequently in baseball circles. While it does come up often, this doesn’t prove the true rarity of this type of player. Each year come draft time, scouts are looking for these unique prospects that can do a little bit of everything. After all, don’t the skills of power hitting and speed seem to be quite different? It’s difficult to find a guy that can steal a bag and then a hit a homer his next at-bat. Here, I’ll show you what makes up a true ‘Five-Tool Player.’

Speed

I think it would be fair to say that some players are born with great speed, while others might have to make adjustments to see improvements. In terms of baseball, speed has various implications. The statistic most will look to first is stolen bases. Yes, this is part of it, but five-tool players utilize their speed in many other areas. First off, on offense, they take advantage of the speed to beat out groundballs in the infield, turn doubles into triples and just run the bases more efficiently. Depending on the position they play on defense, the speed attribute comes into play as well. For infielders, there will less opportunities to display it, but outfielders have plenty of chances. Five-tool outfielders will catch balls in the alleys that the average outfielder would let drop. Speed is just the start to a five-tool player, but is still important. It can be developed through improving form and quickness off your first-step.

The nice thing about speed is that it isn’t real difficult to practice. One simple method for improving it is sprints. Just doing 10-20 yard sprints can pay significant dividends. Likewise, this can be done running forward, laterally or backwards to enhance the various movements that can be utilized on the baseball field. Remember, with speed, it doesn’t mean you have to possess pure speed, sometimes it just means you are the smartest with your steps and always take the best route to the ball!

Arm Strength

Arm strength is a trait that all players will need. On a side note, arm endurance should be included with it. Essentially, this is the ability for infielders to make all the throws across the diamond. Whether it be a short chopper you have to charge in on or a ball to your backhand, five-tool players must be able to fire it over to first with pace. Outfielders need arm strength to gun down runners at all of the bases as well as home plate. Suffering a dead arm is common amongst baseball players and is something you can avoid with arm strength. There are many ways to develop it. A couple common ones I encourage include weight training and long toss. However, one drill you could do requires just a ball and a partner. You’ll place your throwing arm upwards at a 90o angle. Then hold that elbow with your glove. Finally, just throw the ball to your partner while emphasizing the use of the wrist. This is just one of many potential exercises, but the key is to develop the ability to make all throws.

Hitting for Average

Every manager loves to have hitters at the top of the order who can consistently get on base. This means if you can hit for average, you’ll likely find your way onto the field. The trait of hitting for average requires the player to be able to hit the ball to all fields and potentially be able to bunt when the opportunity presents itself. In order to develop this trait, I believe you need great instincts. You need to understand concepts like what is going on in the game and what the pitcher is trying to get you to do. If the pitcher throws something outside, you need to be able to go with it and hit the ball to the opposite field. Likewise, if the infielders are back behind the bags, it might be wise to lay one down and beat it out. The best practice to improving this is game experience and plenty of time in the batting cage. Similarly, this course from former MLB third-baseman Luis Ortiz on CoachTube breaks down small things you need to think about each time you step up to the plate. Not only will this help you increase your contact rate, but it should simplify the overall process.

Hitting for Power

Power hitting is one thing that everyone loves to see. After all, these extra base hits usually bring in runs each time they occur. At the same time, when you have the talent to hit it deep, pitchers will start pitching around you and put you on base with a walk. With power hitting being included, isn’t it starting to become apparent that becoming a true five-tool player is a rare occurrence? Elite power hitters do possess some of the same abilities as average hitters, such as the ability to hit to all fields. In order to develop true power hitting ability, you need pure strength. Players that are top-notch in this category emphasize the use of strength and conditioning programs. To get to this level, it is important to put in plenty of work in weight training. However, just pure strength won’t hit home runs. Otherwise, we might see guys like John Cena manning first base for the Cubs! To be a great power hitter, you need a quick and fluid swing that doesn’t contain any hiccups. This can be derived from work with a manager and time in the cage.

Fielding

The final trait of a five-tool player is fielding. Without steady fielding abilities, you’ll rack up the errors and become a liability on the field. Truly, I believe good fielding is directly drawn from consistent reps at the position you’re playing. The more comfortable you feel at the position, the better you’ll perform come game-time. In terms of a five-tool player’s ability in fielding, they are going to be the type of players that can read the ball right upon contact. The best way to achieve this trait is through plenty of experience generated through game playing and practice drills. With this ability, they can take away base hits consistently. Along with this, they possess the ability to make the ‘spectacular’ play happen. Whether that be diving across the outfield or doing a behind-the-back flip to the second baseman, five-tool players are some of the best defensive players on the field.

Developing an All-Around Game

As you can probably tell, developing a true five-tool player is no easy process. Many of these traits don’t necessarily overlap on a consistent basis. You don’t usually see a player with immense power potential also have the talent to lay down a bunt and beat it out. However, a five-tool player has this possibility in his or her back pocket. For players looking to earn this five-tool status, I recommend putting in the work to reach it. Despite being in a different sport (soccer), I was able to interview a professional athlete, Shea Groom, and one of the things she stressed was learning from her teammates and opponents. While everyone has a unique game, there are many ways you can look to improve each of these five skillsets.

Best Five-Tool Players to Study

As I’ve made clear throughout this article, there isn’t a ton of five-tool players. However, there are a couple that are worth analyzing to see what a true five-tool player looks like.

-       Mike Trout – The Los Angeles Angels is already arguably one of the best players in baseball despite only being 24 years old. Speed isn’t a question, based on his 49 stolen bases in the 2012 season. He’s an all-around hitter that can hit to all fields, as well as knock it out of the park. For fielding and arm strength, just check out Baseball Tonight each night and I’m sure you’ll see a few web gems.

-       Bryce Harper – A second player worth studying is fellow youngster, Bryce Harper. The Nationals’ All-Star has put together a 2015 season that displays each of the five-tools on a nightly basis. From enormous power potential to an average well over .300, Harper possesses a similar skillset to Trout.

Practice!

While you might think five-tool players are just blessed with enormous ability, this is not entirely true. Yes, many of these players with five-tool status have enormous talent, but that doesn’t mean you can’t develop your game to improve each of these skill attributes. With this being the case, the best way to get to that point is practice. Each of the five tools can be improved for any baseball player if they are willing to put in the time in the weight room and field to achieve it!