The SKLZ Reaction Ball is very easy to use and surprisingly effective. Roughly the size of a baseball, the Reaction Ball has six rounded sides that make it bounce unpredictably. Unless one keeps their eye on it all the way into their hands, they will not be able to catch it very well. It can be used individually, or with pairs or small groups. We use the SKLZ Reaction Ball as one of our defensive stations for Fast Pitch softball practice, in one of a couple different ways. One use is to have two girls about 15 feet apart roll it or bounce it back and forth. Each time a girl catches it cleanly, they get a point. When we rotate stations (generally about 2 minutes), the girl who has the least amount of points has to do pushups or kangaroos or some other light penalty. Because it is a fielding aid that can be used individually, when we have an odd number of girls, we will have one girl will toss it against a wall and field it herself as a fielding station. Either way works to help them become better fielders.
While the Reaction Ball works very well on concrete or asphalt, it also works pretty well on the infield dirt. In fact, we usually set up our station along the fence where the dugouts are. Similarly, when we use the station for individual use, we will often just have the player throw it against the wood of our backstop and catch it behind home plate.
My kids and I also play games with it at home. Our favorite is to roll it back and forth, and the first person who fields it without dropping it 10 times wins, resulting in a lot of fun and a lot of laughter! Trying to catch it also makes one break a sweat pretty easily – a fun way to burn some calories. Ours has been used *a lot* and the only wear it has shown is the logo has worn off.
The Reaction Ball is made of hard rubber (think lacrosse ball), so it can't be thrown too hard and be caught bare-handed comfortably. For the price, though, you can't beat it.
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