Either way he'll probably feel like he did the wrong thing. If he throws the ball to third, he has failed to hit the cutoff man. If he hits the cutoff man they probably won't get the runner at third. The problem is the cutoff man has come out way too far. The outfielder knows he has a great chance of throwing the runner out at third. The runner is going to attempt to make it to third base. The outfielder in question has a strong arm. The following is a common example from an outfielders point of view. Don't overlook the positioning of the cutoff. When working on hitting the cutoff man in practice. Have your players use 'Cut' followed by a different base. During practice don't always have the ball go through to the base. But, unless you practice plays which require a decision to be made during practice, your outfielders may not really understand why it's important. Many coaches continually yell out to the outfield during the game, 'Hit the cutoff man', 'Make sure you hit the cutoff', 'Why didn't you hit the cutoff?'. This will give them a good foundation to build upon. Get them used to their roles on the basic plays from various positions. Same applies with a throw to home from center or right. Don't have your shortstop be the cutoff person simply because he is the best athlete. For example, on a throw to home from left field have your third baseman be the cutoff. Even if you simplify cutoffs for a younger team, try to instill the basics. The following pages have a number of diagrams of how you can handle cutoffs at the youth level. The way you handle cutoffs from the outfield will vary depending on age and skill level.

Baseball cutoffs diagrams