Top 5 catching stances every catcher needs (Revamp your game!)

A bad stance makes everything harder. And a good stance makes everything easier.

If you don’t know who I am, my name is Anj Bourgeois and I’ve helped hundreds of catchers fix their stance and learn the fundamentals of the position.

I transitioned from an infielder to a catcher my Junior year of college having never caught before, so I had to learn the fundamentals and nuances of the position really quickly, and now love teaching them to others.

By the end of this article, you’ll learn when to use each catching stance, the 5 best catching stances every catcher needs, plus if young catchers should use a single knee stance or not.

When should you use each catching stance? Why do catchers use different catching stances?

Catchers use different stances for different situations:

1. Sign stance - when giving signs to the pitcher
2. Primary Stance - when there are no runners on base
3. Secondary Stance - when you’ll need to block or throw (2 strikes or runner on base)
4. Single Knee Stance - for younger kids, this functions as a primary, for older catchers, you can use this in both primary and secondary situations
5. Modified Kickstand - for younger kids, this functions as a primary, for older catchers, you can use this in both primary and secondary situations

Top 5 catching stances every catcher needs

Take a quick look at this video to overview the 5 most important catching stances and see them in action:

@catchingmadesimple The 5 catching stances you need: sign, primary, secondary, single knee, modified kickstand. Whats your favorite? #baseball #baseballcoach #baseballtiktoks #catching #baseballtips ♬ Roxanne - Instrumental - Califa Azul

1. Sign Stance

The sign stance is the stance you use every pitch. This makes it very important.

Having a good sign stance is the foundational piece you need in order to begin working on the other stances.

Here are a few keys for your sign stance:

• Toes should be “hang loose” distance apart: Make a “hang loose” sign with your hand- the distance between your thumb and pinky is the same distance that you want your heels apart
• Heels should be off the ground
• Twist toes into the ground to bring your knees closer together
• Glove next to your leg, touching the ground as a kick-stand
• Signs up high by your cup

Here’s a short video on how to “hang loose” in your sign stance:

@catchingmadesimple Hang loose brah 🤙🏼 3 steps to fix your catcher’s sign stance #baseball #baseballcoach #baseballtiktoks #catching #baseballtips ♬ original sound - catchingmadesimple

2. Primary Stance

A bad primary stance will leave you uncomfortable and at risk of injury. Catchers are known for having bad knees but it’s only because they have bad stances. Tight hips lead to “caved in” stances and put all the pressure on the knee joint rather than the muscles.

Here are a few keys of a good primary stance:

• Flat feet
• Vertical shinguards
• “M” shape when you trace the legs
• Shoulders are rolled forward
• Right hand behind your right food
• Low target with a flat glove

@catchingmadesimple Stop looking uncomfortable and small in your stance. Fix your stance in these 4 easy steps 🙏🏼 #baseball #baseballcoaching #baseballtiktok #baseballtips #catching ♬ Roxanne - Instrumental - Califa Azul

3. Secondary stance

A poor secondary stance will make it harder to block and throw, meaning runners advance at their will and you eventually get benched! This is a really important stance.

Here are some keys to get into a good secondary stance

1. Feet athletic distance apart (just wider than shoulder width)

2. Knees out (think up and back)

3. Butt just below 90 degrees

4. Shoulders rolled forward

5. Low target

@catchingmadesimple Quit being a ballerina in your catching stance - get your feet flat! #baseballcoach #catching #baseball #stance #baseballtiktok #ballerina ♬ original sound - catchingmadesimple

4. Single knee stance

A bad single knee stance means you’re unathletic and look like an amateur.

Here are a few keys to getting into a good single knee stance:

• From a sign stance, put your left knee down in front
• Kick your right foot out
• Spin your left foot behind your butt
• Sit your butt back and down
• Roll your shoulders forward
• Put your right hand behind your leg
• Give a nice, low, flat target

@catchingmadesimple Your target’s up in the clouds @RobertAnthony Cruz. Get it down. #baseballcoach #baseballtiktoks #catching #baseballtips #stance ♬ Sunroof - Nicky Youre & dazy

5. Modified kickstand stance

If you watch a big-league game, you'll see catchers in a modified kickstand all the time... but why?

Why a Modified Kickstand?

There's a few reasons:

1. Gets shoulder closer to the ground

2. Saves the catcher's legs

3. More comfortable

4. Often they aren't mobile enough to get into a big/open primary stance

Keys to a good modified kickstand stance

• Get your hips in the middle
• Get your outside foot in front of your knee
• Play around with toe up vs whole foot down
• Copy the big leaguers
• Get reps
• Think athletic thoughts

What’s the best catching stance?

In my opinion, the single knee stance is the best catching stance because of 3 main reasons:

1. It helps them get lower, so they can receive the low pitch better
2. It saves their legs, so they can play longer and focus on catching the ball, rather than their stance
3. Now players are blocking and throwing from this stance

Many coaches will say they don’t like the single knee, so let’s get into why they don’t like it below.

Should young catchers use a single knee stance?

Yes, I believe strongly young catchers should use a single knee stance because it helps them conserve energy, be more athletic, and focus on catching and blocking the ball rather than how uncomfortable they are in a stance.

The reality is, a two-foot primary stance is difficult to get into and often distracts from a catcher’s focus on the ball. On top of that, their stamina is drained quickly.

But with a single knee stance, you can be athletic, conserve your energy, and still block and throw.

Is catching from a single knee stance lazy?

This is often the biggest criticism I’ll hear from people on my instagram posts teaching the single knee stances:

“Back in my day, we squatted in a secondary stance for days!”

“Catchers are lazy if they’re in a single knee!”

And if you listen to the real reason they don’t like this, it’s usually 1 of 2 things:

1. They don’t like how the game is changing because they don’t understand it.
2. They don’t think catchers can effectively block and throw from a single knee stance

But, if a catcher can effectively block and throw from a single knee stance, while also getting the benefits of being more athletic and conserving energy, is it possible it could be a good option for many young catchers?

I think so.

The death of the secondary stance?

In the big leagues, many catchers are moving away from a secondary stance and are instead becoming more comfortable blocking and throwing from all the other stances.

This can make sense, if the other stances are more comfortable, why wouldn’t we just learn to block from those stances and save the energy in our legs?

Keep your eyes out and watch what kind of stances big league catchers are in with runners on base (especially 3B) and when they throw.

Should young catchers get in a secondary stance?

Yes, young catchers should learn to get in a secondary stance because they need to learn to block consistently!

As they get older, they should learn to block and throw from all stances!

If you’re not confident how to get into every stance, check out the 7-Day Stance Challenge, where you get a 5 minute video explaining every stance each day for a week.

Next steps to getting your catcher in the best stance possible

You came wondering what the best catchers stances were and how to get into them.

Now you know the top 5 catching stances, if young players should use a single knee stance, and what situations to use the stances in.

My name is Anj Bourgeois and I’ve helped hundreds of catchers fix their stances and learn to catch with confidence.

Book a free 15 minute Catching Consultation call today if you’d like to talk to me about how you can improve your game.

If you’re not yet ready to have a conversation, you may be interested in these other resources:

• 7-Day Stance Challenge
• 5 most common blocking mistakes
• 8 best hip mobility drills for catchers