wilton little league our objective: to implant in our players the ideals of good sportsmanship,...
TRANSCRIPT
Wilton Little League
Our objective: to implant in our players
the ideals of good sportsmanship,
honesty, loyalty, courage and respect for
authority,
so that they may be well adjusted,
stronger and happier children and will
grow to be good, decent, healthy and
trustworthy citizens.
Wilton Little League
60 Years of Little League baseball in Wilton
Little League International (Williamsport, PA)
East Region (Bristol, CT)
Connecticut District 1 (Lower Fairfield County)
An all-volunteer organization
Board of Directors
League Directors, Managers and Coaches
Boosters
Parents
Wilton Little League
2013 was an incredible year for Wilton Little League
Nearly 1,000 player seasons across spring, summer and fall baseball and softball
District 1 Finalists in all five District 1 Championships:
12s baseball District 1 Finalist
11s baseball District 1 Champion
10s baseball District 1 Champion
LL Softball District 1 Finalist
10u Softball District 1 Finalist
What’s new for 2014
Field renovation at YMCA
50/70 program
Spring Travel baseball
Enhanced YMCA partnership
60th anniversary celebration
Winter: Evaluations, Clinics & Planning
Spring:Player
Development
Summer: Competitio
n
Fall: Recreation
Wilton Little League runs year-round, with three on-field seasons and an off-season devoted to League planning and player development.
In each season our focus is:
Winter:
− Player evaluations
− Clinics
− Board planning
Spring – our developmental season, focus on baseball fundamentals
Summer – our competitive season, focus on Little League tournaments
Fall – our recreational season
Annual Calendar - Baseball
League Structure – Developmental Leagues (K, 1 & 2)
Kindergarten: T-ballIntroduction to Wilton Little League
Focus on Fun…and begin baseball fundamentals
Hitting, Throwing and Catching
First Grade: Coach PitchContinued development of fundamentals
Begin to hit a pitched ball
Second Grade: Machine PitchContinued development of fundamentals
Begin to develop strike zone awareness
* “Little League Age” means age as of April 30th
League Structure – Kid Pitch (3rd – 7th / 12 y.o.)AA (“Double A”)
3rd and 4th grade (ages 8-10)
Introduction to pitching
Focus on core skill development
Hitting, Throwing, Pitching and Catching
Limited base-running
Playoffs and Championship
AAA (“Triple-A”)4th, 5th and 6th grade (ages 9-11)
Intermediate kid-pitch baseball
For players with a solid understanding of the game
Intermediate base-running
Playoffs and Championship
Majors5th, 6th and 7th grade (ages 11 & 12)
WLL’s highest level of spring baseball
For our most advanced and oldest players
Full “live” base-running
Playoffs and Championship
* “Little League Age” means age as of April 30th
Winter: Evaluations, Clinics & Planning
Spring:Development
al/Competitive
season
Summer: Extended
district play
Fall: Recreation
Wilton Little League runs year-round, with three on-field seasons and an off-season devoted to League planning and player development.
In each season our focus is:
Winter:
− Player Evaluations
− Clinics
− Board planning
Spring – our developmental season, focus on softball fundamentals; competitive inter-town play for older leagues
Summer – extended competitive play for districts and beyond
Fall – our recreational season
Annual Calendar - Softball
League Structure – Softball age 5 through 14*Softball age uses calendar year calculation!
T-ballAges 5 and 6
Introduction to Wilton Little League
Focus on Fun…and begin softball fundamentals
Hitting, Throwing and Catching
advance away from Tee use as season progresses
AA (“Double A”)Ages 7 and 8
Introduction to pitching
Uses 10 inch ball
Focus on core skill development
Hitting, Throwing, Pitching and Catching
Limited base-running
Aim for 20% inter-town play
AAA (“Triple-A”)Ages 9 - 10
Kid pitch with boundaries
Intermediate base-running
Playoffs and Championship
Uses 11 inch ball
Pitching from 35 feet
Majority of play is inter-town
Submits a district team
MajorsAges 11 and 12
For our more advanced and older players
Play full Little League “book” rules
Playoffs and Championship
Majority of play is inter-town
Pitching from 40 feet
Uses 12 inch ball
Submits a district team
JuniorsAges 13 and 14
WLL’s highest level of spring softball
For our most advanced and oldest players
Play full Little League “book” rules
Freshman that play high school team are eligible once school season ends
Pitching from 43 feet
Uses 12 inch ball
Majority of play is inter-town
Submits a district team
Player Evaluation – Baseball & Softball
What we do, how we do it, and why…Provide for the right pace of development of core baseball skills with proper league allocation
Enable a fair team selection process
End of spring-season evaluations prepared by each team manager
Beginning in 2nd grade (Machine Pitch) for Baseball
Beginning with AA for Softball
Core baseball skills (hitting for contact and power, pitching, fielding and running)
January evaluations within each age/grade peer group
Wilton High School Fieldhouse
All players 3rd grade and older for Baseball
Core baseball skills (hitting for contact and power, pitching, fielding and running)
Rigorous, data-driven and time-tested evaluation metrics and techniques
A sound process…NOT a crystal ball
OtherData is maintained by Wilton Little League
Year-over-year analysis utilized to provide better guidance each season
Continuous process improvement
League & Team Allocation – BaseballGrade, Age, Experience and Social Considerations
League Grades
Little League Ages*
Grade? Age? Ability? Social?
T-ball K 5 & 6
Coach Pitch 1st 6 & 7
Machine Pitch 2nd 7 & 8
AA 3rd – 4th 8 – 10
AAA 4th – 6th 9 – 11
Majors 5th - 7th 11 & 12
* “Little League Age” means age as of April 30th
K
id P
itch
|
D
evelo
pm
enta
l
Team Selection, Baseball & Softball
Developmental Leagues – Teams assembled by LeagueBaseball: T-Ball, Coach Pitch and Machine Pitch
Softball: T-Ball and AA
Social considerations are primary focus
Parents often request teammates based on friendship, carpool convenience, practice days, etc.
WLL honors all reasonable requests to the extent possible
Kid-pitch Leagues – Teams drafted by the ManagersBaseball: AA, AAA & Majors
Softball: AAA, Majors & Juniors
Managers are provided a ranked, sorted list of players on draft night
Draft sheets are returned to WLL at end of draft, maintained by WLL
Managers are given freedom to assemble teams as they see fit
Prioritization of skills on team (pitching vs. fielding vs. hitting)
Drafting coaching assistants
Social considerations
Goal is a balanced, competitive league
Fair draft process – all managers provided same information
Not always the same thing as balanced teams…sound process, not a crystal ball
Upcoming Calendar
SoftballTeams complete, Managers notifying players
Baseball Kid Pitch League draftsMonday, March 17th - Wednesday, March 19th
Manager & Coaches Clinic and Safety MeetingSaturday, March 29th
10:00 am Clinic
11:00 am Safety Meeting
Opening DayDevelopmental Leagues – Sunday April 6th
Miller-Driscoll Carnival Fri 4/4 – Sat 4/5
Baseball
AA – Monday, March 31
AAA & Majors – Tuesday, April 1
Softball – April 5
60th Anniversary of Wilton Little LeagueWednesday, April 9th
Full slate of AAA & Majors Baseball games at the YMCA fields 5:30 – 9:00
Upcoming Calendar
Little League DaySaturday, May 17th at the YMCA
An outdoor celebration of baseball in Wilton
Food, music, prizes, raffles…and baseball
Picture DaySaturday, May 10th
PlayoffsPool Round: Saturday May 31st – Sunday June 8th
Semi-Finals: AA Monday June 9th; AAA & Majors Tuesday June 10th
Championship and Consolation games: AA Thursday June 11th; AAA & Majors Friday June 13th
Softball TBD
Summer TournamentsPlayer Voting Saturday June 7th
District Teams announced Sunday June 15th
Summer Friendship Tournament team selection June 16th – 25th
Fields
Comstock Community Center (180 School Road)T-ball and/or Coach Pitch baseball
Miller Field (Miller-Driscoll School, 336 Belden Hill Road)T-ball baseball
Driscoll Field(Miller-Driscoll School)Coach Pitch baseball
Lion’s Field (725 Danbury Road)Machine Pitch baseball
Middlebrook 1 and 2 (Middlebrook School, 25 School Road)All softball
Middlebrook 3 (Middlebrook School, 25 School Road)Double-A baseball
Clem Young Field (aka “AAA”; Wilton YMCA, 404 Danbury Road)AAA baseball
Kid-pitch playoff semifinals and championship
Bill Terry Field (aka “Majors”; Wilton YMCA)Majors baseball
Kid-pitch playoff semifinals and championship
Parent Resources
Manager & CoachesVolunteers
Set the direction for the team
League DirectorWork with the managers and coaches on scheduling, umpires, etc.
First point of contact for any manager or coach concerns
Player Agent and Board of DirectorsPlayer Agent – any parent question or concern
Board – available
Wilton Little League WebsiteTeam Schedules
Sponsor highlights
Board contact information
Board of Directors – Wilton Little League
Board members and roles
Robert Louzan - President
CJ Belanger – VP softball, VP Baseball (interim)
David Johnson – Player Agent
Kerry McMahon – Treasurer
Kevin Tietjen – Secretary
David Liston – Information Officer
Eric English – Safety Officer
Mario Ferrante – Tournaments Coordinator
Tim Clark – Evaluations Coordinator
Jim Jarvie – Sponsorship Coordinator
Michael Cyr – Field Maintenance
Glenn Walsh – Purchasing & Equipment
Tim Roberts – Player Development
Jamie O’Neill – Boosters Coordinator
Softball Committee Members and roles
CJ Belanger – VP softball, District 1 rep
John D’Elisa– Player Agent
Jeff Imrie & Chris Stengrim – Player development
April Strazza– Secretary, Coach Development
Bob Belanger & Chris Kelly– Purchasing & Equipment
Patrick Cropper– Softball umpire coordination
Bob Wallace – WBSA liaison
