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peeweecubs · 05-17-2006, 01:09 AM

How is your team doing this year? Is everyone having a good time? What kind of fun experiences have you had this year?

Pierre · 05-17-2006, 03:51 PM

My 8 year old, Jared is in his 2nd year of machine pitch. I had really high hopes for this year, but his team consists of mostly 6-7 year olds who should still be in t-ball but were waved up

. He's getting to play infield, mostly third, because he's got a strong arm and is the only one who can make the long throw without throwing a rainbow. I probably could have waived him up to the 9-10 year old kid pitch level but I wanted him to have the benefit of being the "big kid on the block" and get the additional hitting that comes with a machine pitch league.

peeweecubs · 05-18-2006, 08:34 PM

Thats good to hear that you son is doing well. Can you give me the break down on your age levels. I live in Clarksville, Tennessee. 5-6 is tee-ball, 7-8 is Pee Wee and is kid pitch but if the kids walks the batter, then coach from the other team give the batter four pitches, 9-10 is minor level... all kid pitch and they can steal bases, and then 11-13 is the majors. How does your local league break down the age groups?

Pierre · 05-22-2006, 02:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by peeweecubs

...How does your local league break down the age groups?

I think t-ball starts as young as 4 and goes til 6. Presently, in the Calvert Co. Babe Ruth the age cut-off is April 30. 7-8 years old play in machine pitch. We use a Jugs Jr. and set it at about 37mph from 46 feet. Each kid gets 5 swings to put the ball in play. Fouls count as one of the 5. It's really not bad because everybody gets to hit, though there's no stealing. At age 9-10 it becomes more like real baseball when they play kid-pitch (minors). I know there's limited stealing but I'm not sure (my kid is only 8, I'll fill you in next year). Then there's 11-12 (majors). We're a few years off from that.

rhodes · 05-23-2006, 11:55 AM

New member, so I just picked up on this thread. How is youth baseball organized in the U.S. these days? When I played it was pretty simple. We had Little League (9-12), Pony League (13-15) and Senior League (16-18). Now I see all kinds of stuff about Minors and Majors, etc.

In Holland we use a system fairly similar to when I played LL ball 30 years ago:

Peanuts (4-6); T-ball
Coach Pitch (6-7)
Modified Kid's pitch (7-9); coach throws a toss ball after 4 balls
Little League (9-12) several different levels depending upon age and ability
Pony League (13-15)
Junior League (16-21)

peeweecubs · 05-23-2006, 09:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pierre

I think t-ball starts as young as 4 and goes til 6. Presently, in the Calvert Co. Babe Ruth the age cut-off is April 30. 7-8 years old play in machine pitch. We use a Jugs Jr. and set it at about 37mph from 46 feet. Each kid gets 5 swings to put the ball in play. Fouls count as one of the 5. It's really not bad because everybody gets to hit, though there's no stealing. At age 9-10 it becomes more like real baseball when they play kid-pitch (minors). I know there's limited stealing but I'm not sure (my kid is only 8, I'll fill you in next year). Then there's 11-12 (majors). We're a few years off from that.

It seems that it varies from city to city, state to state, etc... even the other league here in my town does quite a few things differently.

Quote:

Originally Posted by rhodes

New member, so I just picked up on this thread. How is youth baseball organized in the U.S. these days? When I played it was pretty simple. We had Little League (9-12), Pony League (13-15) and Senior League (16-18). Now I see all kinds of stuff about Minors and Majors, etc.

In Holland we use a system fairly similar to when I played LL ball 30 years ago:

Peanuts (4-6); T-ball
Coach Pitch (6-7)
Modified Kid's pitch (7-9); coach throws a toss ball after 4 balls
Little League (9-12) several different levels depending upon age and ability
Pony League (13-15)
Junior League (16-21)

Welcome to the forum... glad to have you here as a registered user! I hope that you feel welcome and at home. I would have to say that things must be more complicated today then when you played as a kid... it seems that it varies all over the U.S.

The more I think about it... I believe that there should be some kind of baseline to go by, from there it is up to the individual board members of the league to decide some of these finer detailed rules. I can't remember where I found it within the site... but LittleLeague.org does post the standards and such. If you haven't visited the site, it is definately worth a visit... there is all kinds of resources there.. not only for coachs, but parents and kids as well. I have to say.. the official Little League site is very nice.

rhodes · 05-24-2006, 11:57 AM

Thanks for the welcome and yes, it's always fun to talk with the home country.

Actually in Holland, although certainly not as extensive as the system in the U.S., things for all leagues are pretty well organized. There is a Dutch national baseball association which defines the rules and framework at all levels: from T-ball up to the Dutch Major Leagues (on par with college baseball in the States). Keeps it simple for the players, coaches, umpires and parents.

Holland has one of the top programs in Europe, the coach of the Dutch team played for several years in the Yankees organization. Dutch teams generally win the European Cup for teams and also the Cup for European national teams. The biggest problem they have here (aside from the weather) is how to attach steel spikes to wooden shoes!