Well, if you were looking for a concrete answer - there isn't one. But, as a former baseball player at a high level - and a catcher which helped - there are certain tendencies that will make it a "little" easier to be "lucky".
Okay, now here are MY general rules for getting lucky with these types of shots.
- Most hitters, minus a few specific situations or weird tendencies, PULL the ball. That means that a right-hand batter will usually hit the ball to the left side (SS, 3B) of the infield unless he catches it and hits a long fly ball or line drive. But, remember, we are looking for that "diving" play which really only applies to ground balls.
- Batters will hit the ball the OTHER way when there are less than two outs and a runner on second. This is more apparent the higher the level of play, but the idea is to hit a ground ball to the right side (2B, 1B) makes it easier to get the runner to third.
Get lucky. Seriously, either you have the focus reflexes of a superhero or you just pick a place to focus on. You'll eventually learn the differences in what a wood bat sounds like when it's coming your direction. I learned from playing - you may learn from just being there.
These shots were in totally different situations with completely different lens/camera setups. BUT, they followed those two simple rules.
The shot of Pedro Alvarez (R) was shot with a 70-200mm fixed on him since I was in the third base pit and there was a right-hand batter (who needs a shot of the back of the hitter). I got lucky. I heard the bat and my reflex was to hit the shutter. I was shooting a Canon 1D Mark II AI Servo, 10fps.
The shot of the high school player was shot with a Canon 300mm, plus a Canon 1.4x TC II from the middle deck. I saw the hitter in batting practice and EVERYTHING was at the shortstop. I focused on him and, again, got lucky.
I will say, however, that hitting the shutter at the right time is important. If you have a certain FPS - it'll affect your timing. I only use the 1D Mark II. I can't justify the Mark IV and have had issues with the Mark III when I had one. At 10fps, I can wait a split second and start firing. With a Canon 50D - it'll be a lot harder to capture the right "moment".
But, like I said... you can get LUCKY.
