The maintenance of a baseball field’s skinned surface, often referred to as raking or dragging, is necessary for preserving the quality of play. This process levels the infield, breaks up soil clumps, and redistributes material displaced by player movement. Consistent technique ensures the surface remains even, which minimizes bad hops and creates a consistent playing area for fielders. Maintaining the integrity of the infield soil mix also promotes appropriate drainage and regulates moisture content.
Essential Tools and Pre-Raking Field Preparation
Effective infield maintenance requires hand tools for detail work and mechanical drags for large-area coverage. Infield leveling rakes feature a wide head with teeth for breaking up packed material and a flat side for smoothing. Scoop shovels remove debris, while a hand tamper compacts soil in high-wear locations like the batter’s boxes and pitching mound.
The larger infield skin is addressed with drag mats or screens, pulled by hand or a small utility vehicle. A nail drag, or spiked harrow, is used first to scarify the surface, breaking up hardened soil and aerating the mix. Following this, a rigid steel mat or flexible cocoa mat smooths the loosened material to create the final texture. Before dragging, remove all bases and insert anchor plugs to prevent debris from accumulating in the base sleeves.
Before dragging, check the moisture content of the infield mix, as this determines how the material will move and settle. The surface should be slightly damp, not dusty and dry, nor muddy and saturated. Professionals often target a moisture content in the 25 to 30 percent range, as this level binds soil particles without causing excessive sticking to the drag mat. Lightly watering the field before a nail drag helps the spikes penetrate the top layer to a uniform depth.
Large holes or depressions, particularly those created by pitchers’ landing feet or sliding runners, must be addressed before the main dragging begins. Use a hand rake to pull material from the high edges of the depression into the center of the hole, then tamp it down to re-establish a solid base. Addressing these irregularities by hand ensures the drag mat passes over a mostly level surface, preventing the material from simply displacing the problem.
Mastering the Infield Dragging Technique
Dragging the infield surface requires a consistent, slow speed and a deliberate pattern to achieve a uniform finish. When using a motorized vehicle, the speed should not exceed 3 to 4 miles per hour; excessive speed slings material toward the edges and creates an uneven washboard effect. Always keep the drag mat a minimum of 6 to 12 inches away from the turf edge to avoid pulling infield mix onto the grass.
The dragging pattern must be rotated regularly to prevent the formation of grooves and ridges where the drag slows or turns. The concentric circle pattern begins along the perimeter and works inward, creating a slight “crown” that aids in water runoff. The figure-eight pattern works across the entire infield, alternating sides to ensure the center of the diamond receives sufficient coverage.
When performing either pattern, each pass must overlap the previous one by 6 to 12 inches to eliminate missed strips that can develop into noticeable ridges. This overlap ensures the entire surface is covered uniformly, preventing hard-packed lanes that cause inconsistent ball bounces. Alternate the direction of the drag each time the field is groomed; for example, if dragged clockwise one day, drag counter-clockwise the next to continually pull material in different directions.
Conclude the dragging operation by lifting the drag mat five to six feet before reaching the edge of the infield to prevent material buildup. Hand-rake this small pile to blend it seamlessly with the rest of the surface. Exiting the field in a different location each time helps distribute wear and prevents the creation of a perpetual low spot.
Finishing Touches: Edges, Base Paths, and Spot Repair
After the main infield is dragged and smoothed, attention shifts to areas the drag mat cannot reach, including base paths, the home plate cutout, and the mound. The most frequent maintenance error is the formation of a “lip,” a ridge of infield mix that builds up where the dirt meets the grass edge. Avoid this lip by hand raking parallel to the grass line, gently sweeping migrated material back onto the infield skin.
The base paths require specific raking to maintain a level, hazard-free surface. Hand raking must be performed up and down the path, moving from one base to the next, rather than across the width. Raking perpendicular to the path creates a low spot in the middle and pushes material to the edges, exacerbating lip formation along the foul lines. Pull material from higher, less-worn areas and deposit it into the sliding zones around the bases.
Repairing High-Wear Areas
High-wear areas, such as the batter’s boxes and the pitcher’s mound, require structural repair after each use. These areas sustain deep indentations and holes from the repeated action of planting and pivoting feet. To repair these spots effectively, remove any loose material from the hole, and lightly moisten the exposed surface to help the new material bind to the existing soil.
New packing clay or infield mix is then added to fill the depression, and a hand tamper is used to firmly compact the material into place. Simply filling a hole with dry dirt results in a temporary fix that quickly loosens and reforms the hole; the combination of water and compaction creates a durable repair. The final step involves a light application of water across the entire skinned surface to settle the loose top layer and control dust, followed by replacing the bases.