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The Baseball Tryout Evaluation Form, Category by Category
A baseball tryout evaluation form scores every player on the same set of baseball skills, typically nine categories: athleticism, baseball IQ, throwing, catching, infield, outfield, hitting, and the specialist rows for pitching and catcher skills. One scale, one form per player, totals ranked at the end. This page gives you the full category list, a filled-out example from a 13U travel tryout, and how to define your scale so five coaches produce one comparable list. For the blank printable, grab the tryout evaluation form template; for stations, timelines, and check-in logistics, see how to run a baseball tryout.
The 9 categories that belong on a baseball tryout form
Score nine categories: athleticism, baseball IQ, throwing, catching, infield, outfield, pitching, catcher skills, and hitting. This is the same nine-category structure Rizzler uses as its default baseball evaluation template. Baseball is a position-specialist sport, so a form that lumps "fielding" into one row hides the player who fields grounders well but misreads every fly ball.
| Category | Skills to score | How to see it at a station |
|---|---|---|
| Athleticism | Speed, footwork | Timed run; footwork during infield reps |
| Baseball IQ | Rules knowledge, decision making | Situational rounds: where's the play with a runner on second? |
| Throwing | Strength, accuracy | Position throws: SS to first, OF to third |
| Catching | Mechanics, reliability | Soft hands or fights the ball; drops under fatigue |
| Infield | Mechanics, range | 5 grounders at, 3 to each side; glove-side backhand |
| Outfield | Read on hits, range | First-step read off live fungo, not machine-fed |
| Pitching | Mechanics, accuracy, composure | 15-pitch bullpen; strike percentage and reaction to a miss |
| Catcher skills | Blocking, catcher IQ, throwdowns | Block series in gear; glove-to-glove time to second |
| Hitting | Contact, power | 8 to 10 swings of front toss or live arm, not tee only |
Not every player gets scored in every row. Position players skip the pitching and catcher rows unless they volunteer for them. Leave the row blank rather than guessing a score; blanks keep the ranking honest.
A filled-out example: what a scored form actually looks like
Here is a completed form for one 13U middle infielder and part-time pitcher, scored 1 to 10 at the end of a two-session tryout.
Player: #7, middle infielder / pitcher Group: 13U Session: 2 of 2
| Category | Score (1-10) | Evaluator note |
|---|---|---|
| Athleticism | 7 | Second-fastest home-to-first in his group |
| Baseball IQ | 8 | Called the cut man before the coach did |
| Throwing | 6 | Accurate across the diamond, arm strength average |
| Catching | 7 | Quiet hands on short hops |
| Infield | 8 | Range both sides, clean exchange, feet always moving |
| Outfield | 4 | Late reads, drifted on two of five |
| Pitching | 6 | 9 of 15 strikes, composed after a barrel |
| Catcher skills | (blank) | Did not try out behind the plate |
| Hitting | 5 | Contact-first, line drives to the middle, power not there yet |
Total: 51 / 80 scored Projects: starting MIF, third or fourth arm on staff
Two habits make forms like this reliable: score immediately after each rep, not at the end of the station, and write notes with specifics. "9 of 15 strikes" ranks players; "decent control" does not.
Define the scale before the first ground ball
On paper use 1 to 5; in an app use 1 to 10. Five points is fast to mark with a pen between reps. The wider scale works better in an app: a big field bunches badly on five points, and 1 to 10 converts straight to percentages for a ranked list.
Then anchor the numbers for your most contested categories. For a 13U arm: a 7 means strikes with two pitches and composure after hard contact; a 5 means strikes with the fastball only; a 3 means the bullpen ran long. Before the tryout starts, have two coaches score the same three hitters and compare. Ten minutes of calibration turns five private opinions into one ranked list.
The scoring rubric: what each number looks like
A number only works when every evaluator defines it the same way, so print the rubric on the sheet. This is the 1 to 5 rubric from Rizzler's evaluation pack. Scores are relative to the age group in front of you.
| Score | What it means | What that athlete looks like |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Well below the level; significant gaps | A clear developmental need at this station today. Mechanics break down on routine reps |
| 2 | Below the level; heavy development needed | Flashes of the skill, but inconsistent even on routine reps |
| 3 | At the level; playable now | Age-appropriate and roster-viable. Handles the routine play reliably |
| 4 | Above the level; immediate impact | Above the pack for this age group, on this day. Routine plays are automatic, hard plays are competitive |
| 5 | Rare for the age group | Elite relative to the tryout pool. By design you should see very few of these on a full sheet |
Then anchor each category. Pick any of the nine categories below to see its full rubric, on the 1 to 5 paper scale or the 1 to 10 app scale, and read it to your evaluators before the first rep:
Seen in the timed run, footwork during fielding reps, and the bases.
| Score | What it looks like: Athleticism |
|---|---|
| 1 | Slow first step and heavy feet in fielding reps. Hesitates out of the box and watches the ball, not the coaches. |
| 2 | Average runner with a slow start. Footwork breaks down when the drill speeds up. Rounds bases wide. |
| 3 | Runs hard every time, mid-pack on the timed run. Feet stay under them through fielding reps. Rounds bases properly. |
| 4 | Quick first step and above-average times. Footwork holds up late in the session. Takes the extra base when it is there. |
| 5 | Fastest tier of the group. Explosive first step in every drill. Creates pressure on the bases. |
Seen in situational rounds: where is the play with a runner on second?
| Score | What it looks like: Baseball IQ |
|---|---|
| 1 | Does not know the count or the outs. Throws to the wrong base. Misses cutoffs. |
| 2 | Knows the basics but forgets in the moment. Late on backups. |
| 3 | Knows the situation. Hits cutoffs. Backs up plays. |
| 4 | Anticipates the play before it happens. Communicates with teammates. |
| 5 | Thinks an inning ahead. Directs teammates. Makes the smart play under pressure. |
Seen in position throws: shortstop to first, outfield to third.
| Score | What it looks like: Throwing |
|---|---|
| 1 | Ball dies before the target. Throws well off line. All arm, no body. |
| 2 | Gets it there but weak. Accurate short, wild on longer throws. |
| 3 | Reaches the target on one hop from the outfield. Accurate on routine plays. |
| 4 | Strong throws with carry. Quick release. Accurate under pressure. |
| 5 | Ball explodes out of the hand. On line from anywhere on the field. Throws out runners. |
Seen across every station: soft hands or fights the ball, drops under fatigue.
| Score | What it looks like: Catching |
|---|---|
| 1 | Fights the ball. Catches against the body. Drops routine throws. |
| 2 | Catches what is at them, but the hands are loud. Drops show up as the station runs long. |
| 3 | Soft hands on routine throws. Reliable through the whole station. |
| 4 | Quiet hands on short hops and off-line throws. No drops under fatigue. |
| 5 | Catches everything catchable. Turns bad throws into outs. |
Seen on grounders at, to each side, and the glove-side backhand.
| Score | What it looks like: Infield |
|---|---|
| 1 | Waits for the ball to come. Stiff lower half. Traps the ball against the body. |
| 2 | Fields balls hit at them. Bobbles the transfer. Will not charge slow rollers. |
| 3 | Gets to balls two or three steps either side. Catches out front, clean exchange on routine plays. |
| 4 | Good first step, ranges both directions. Soft hands on bad hops, the backhand is reliable. |
| 5 | Makes plays others cannot reach. Reads hops early. Smooth on every ball. |
Seen on first-step reads off live fungo, not machine-fed.
| Score | What it looks like: Outfield |
|---|---|
| 1 | Freezes on contact. Misreads most balls off the bat. Catches are an adventure. |
| 2 | Drifts instead of running routes. Handles balls hit at them, late on balls over either shoulder. |
| 3 | Solid first-step read off live contact. Direct routes on routine balls, secure catches. |
| 4 | Good reads and efficient routes in both directions. Runs down balls in the gap. |
| 5 | Elite first-step read. Takes away extra-base hits. Every catchable ball gets caught. |
Seen in a 15-pitch bullpen: strike percentage and the reaction to a miss.
| Score | What it looks like: Pitching |
|---|---|
| 1 | Cannot find the zone and the bullpen runs long. Mechanics change pitch to pitch. |
| 2 | Strikes come in streaks. Fastball only. Rattled by hard contact. |
| 3 | Throws strikes with the fastball. Repeats the delivery on most pitches. |
| 4 | Strikes with two pitches. Stays composed after hard contact. |
| 5 | Commands both sides of the plate with more than one pitch. Attacks every hitter. |
Seen in a block series in gear and glove-to-glove time to second.
| Score | What it looks like: Catcher Skills |
|---|---|
| 1 | Turns the head on blocks and balls get through. Throwdowns sail. |
| 2 | Blocks balls in front but not to the sides. Slow transfer on throwdowns. |
| 3 | Keeps blockable balls in front. Accurate throwdowns with an average release. |
| 4 | Blocks and recovers quickly to either side. Quick transfer, on-target throwdowns. |
| 5 | Nothing gets through. Glove-to-glove times that change the running game. Runs the infield. |
Seen in 8 to 10 swings of front toss or live arm, not tee only.
| Score | What it looks like: Hitting |
|---|---|
| 1 | Steps away from the pitch. Head pulls out. Swing is late or early. |
| 2 | Off-balance swing. Weak contact to the pull side. Chases pitches out of the zone. |
| 3 | Level swing, stays balanced. Solid contact on strikes. |
| 4 | Quick hands. Drives the ball to all fields. Does not chase. |
| 5 | Barrels the ball. Adjusts to different pitch speeds. Still dangerous with two strikes. |
Pro scouting's 20-80 scale works the same way: 50 is defined as major-league average and every tool is graded against it.
Adjust the form by age
At 9U and 10U, cut to six rows: athleticism, throwing, catching, infield, hitting, and coachability, and time home to first instead of a 60-yard dash. The specialist rows are mostly projection at that age. By 13U the full nine categories apply, and the timed 60 becomes worth recording as a number, not a score. For high school and heavy travel tryouts, add measured rows where you have the tools: exit velocity off front toss, pop time for catchers, pitch velocity from a radar gun. Measurements travel across years; opinions don't.
Two formats: one sheet per player, or the whole group on one page
The form comes in two formats. The per-player sheet is the format shown above: one page per player, categories as rows, a note next to every score. Use it at stations and for any player you are close on. The roster sheet flips it: one row per player, the nine categories across the top, a whole tryout group on a page or two. Use it to scan a big field from one clipboard and compare players side by side as they rotate through.
Group: ______ Evaluator: ______ Date: ______ Score each cell 1 to 5; leave specialist columns blank if not attempted.
| # | Player | Ath | IQ | Thr | Cat | IF | OF | Pit | C-Sk | Hit | Total | Rec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | ||||||||||||
| 5 |
Rec: Y = yes, B = bubble, N = no. Columns: Athleticism, Baseball IQ, Throwing, Catching, Infield, Outfield, Pitching, Catcher Skills, Hitting.
The roster sheet has no notes column, so pair it with per-player sheets for bubble players. The downloadable pack below includes both, plus a team sheet that totals each row automatically and a draft board that ranks the group from the scores.
From clipboard stack to ranked list
The form is the easy half. At a tryout with 100-plus registrants and 15 coaches, the hard half is turning hundreds of sheets into one ranked list before offers go out. Scored in Rizzler, every coach enters numbers at their station on a phone, the ranked board builds itself during the tryout, and offers go out and get tracked from the same place, with no transcription step. The Team Tryouts workflow covers registration through offers for up to 300 players on the Club plan, with the baseball template pre-loaded and editable on Coach and Club. The baseball tryouts page shows the whole flow. And if you run softball too, the softball version of this form covers the fastpitch-specific rows.
The scores are also your first practice plan: the skills where the whole group graded lowest are the blocks to schedule in week one. The baseball practice plans page has timed sessions by age, from 8U through high school.
Frequently Asked Questions
What categories go on a baseball tryout evaluation form?
Nine: athleticism, baseball IQ, throwing, catching, infield, outfield, hitting, plus pitching and catcher skills for players who try out for them. Score two or three observable skills inside each, and leave specialist rows blank for players who don't attempt them.
What scale should I use to score a baseball tryout?
Use 1 to 5 on paper and 1 to 10 in an app, and define the middle before you start. The single most useful rule: attach one sentence of evidence to each score. "9 of 15 strikes" ranks players; "good control" starts arguments.
Do pitchers and position players need separate forms?
No. Use one form with pitching and catcher rows that only get filled in when attempted. One form keeps every player comparable on the shared rows, athleticism, hitting, and defense, while the specialist rows sort your staff. Separate forms make the final ranking a merge problem.
How do I keep 15 evaluators scoring consistently?
Anchor and calibrate. Write one sentence per number for the contested categories, then have pairs of coaches score the same players for the first ten minutes and reconcile gaps. At scale, also rotate evaluators across stations between sessions so no player's total depends on one coach's hard grading.
Get the full template pack: player sheets, team sheet, draft board
The forms above are free to copy straight from this page. The pack adds the print-ready and editable versions of all of it: individual player sheets, a full team sheet that scores your whole roster on one page with totals that add themselves, and a draft board that ranks players from the scores. Use the form below, mention baseball tryout evaluation pack in the message box, and we will email the whole pack to you.
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