Age Cutoff / Control Dates Oconee County Little League Divisions of Play Baseball All ages will use August 31 of the current year as the age determination date. The age of the little leaguer on that date is what age division they will play. During the registration period, the online registration website will automatically place the child in the correct age group. Please note the division descriptions below. Softball Control Date for Softball is December 31 of the previous year. The age of the little leaguer on that date is what age division they will play. Uniforms: Shirts and hats are provided for baseball and tee ball. Socks and shirts are provided for softball. Please note: The last page contains registrations fees, discounts, and refund policy. BASEBALL DIVISIONS Tee Ball (Coed): Tee Ball is the entry level of play for boys and girls. Tee Ball Baseball is for boys and girls 4-5 years who want to learn the fundamentals of hitting and fielding. In Tee Ball, players hit a ball off a batting tee. Rules of the game may be varied to accommodate the need for teaching. The primary goals of Tee Ball are to instruct children in the fundamentals of baseball and to allow them to experience the value of teamwork. Parents are strongly encouraged to become involved in this introduction level of Little League. After completing a Little League volunteer application and passing a required national background check, parents may become involved in practices, and be eligible as coaches, managers, umpires, local league board members and other volunteer positions within the league. Coach Toss Baseball: Coach Toss is a league for slightly more advanced players than Tee Ball. Coach Toss Baseball is for boys 5-6 years old who want to continue to learn the fundamentals of hitting and fielding. In coach toss, the coaches will pitch the ball to the players either overhand or underhand depending on the player s ability. Soft baseballs are used in this division of play. It is recommended that 5 year olds play one year of tee ball before playing coach pitch. Page 1
Rookie League Baseball: This level of play has an evaluation process/tryouts for team alignment. All players are required to participate in the pre-season tryout. Tryouts allow coaches and managers to assess each player s skill level including, but not limited to, fielding, hitting, throwing, running, and catching. Any player that registers will be placed on a Rookie A: This is a competitive league focusing on instruction, development and Majors/Minors preparation. This league focuses on the players learning how to hit a live pitch. This league will have two innings of kid pitch and two innings of machine pitch. Rookie Instructional: This league will use the pitching machine for all innings. Players will be rated during tryouts and placed in the division that best suits their abilities. There are All-Star teams selected from this league that can advance to District and State tournaments. There are 2-3 baseball events per week. Games are played on Saturday morning/afternoons and weeknights with game start times of either 5:30pm or 7:30pm. Games are scheduled in 90 minute allotments. Practices vary from 60-120 minutes. Major and Minor League Baseball: Ages 9-12 will play what is referred to as the Major/Minor system within Little League. The number of teams is determined by the number of registrants but there will be twice as many Minor teams as Major per Little League National rules. OCLL will have Minor AA, Minor AAA and Major division. All children ages 9-12 MUST participate in our evaluation process. Evaluations allow coaches and managers to assess each player's skill level in order to assign them to the appropriate level of play. Various areas are judged such as fielding, hitting, throwing, running, judgment and catching. All 9 year olds must be drafted to a Minor League AA or AAA team and cannot be placed on a Major League All 10-11 year olds are eligible to be drafted to either a Major or Minor League All 12 year olds must be drafted to a Major league team and cannot be placed on a Minor league Minor League teams have 2-3 events per week, Monday-Saturday. Games are primarily played on weeknights with start times scheduled for either 6:00pm or 7:45 pm and last approximately 90 minutes per event. Practice times will vary from 60 120 minutes. Major League teams have 3-4 events per week, Monday Saturday. Game are primarily played on weeknights with start times scheduled for either 6:00pm or 8:00pm and last approximately 105 minutes per event. Practice times will vary from 60-120 minutes. Page 2
There is typically at least one team from each of the 9/10, 10/11, and 11/12 age groups selected for All-stars that can advance to district, state and regional tournaments. Please note: All-stars are selected by age not by the divisions of play/league they played in during the season. Senior League Baseball: This is real baseball on the big fields. Teams play into early June with 3 baseball events per week. Games are on Weekdays and Saturday mornings. If you want to watch some real baseball for free and get to see some really talented kids, this is the game you want to watch. Big League: Please email us at info@oconeelittleleague.com for more information if you have a player eligible/interested in this league. SOFTBALL DIVISIONS Coach Toss Softball: Coach Toss is a league for slightly more advanced players than Tee Ball. Coach Toss Softball is for girls 5-6 years old who want to continue to learn the fundamentals of hitting and fielding. In coach toss, the coaches will pitch the ball to the players. Cushioned softballs are used in this division of play. It is recommended that 5 year olds play one year of tee ball before playing coach pitch. Rookie League Softball (Player/Coach Pitch) This league teaches girls the fundamentals of softball focusing on fielding, throwing and batting. All games are played using a combination of player and coach pitch. A player will pitch for the first two innings of the game and a coach will pitch the remainder of the game. The value of learning to pitch and hit a live pitch is vital to the success at this level. There are no base on balls awarded at this level to encourage hitting and fielding the ball. All children MUST participate in tryouts (evaluations) for team alignment. Everyone who registers will be placed on a 6 year olds are allowed to play in this level of play provided that they have completed one year of coach pitch. There are 2-3 softball events per week. Games are on weekday afternoons/evenings and occasionally on Saturday mornings. Games last 75-90 minutes and practices vary from 90-120 minutes per session. This league is geared highly toward instruction and more in-depth fundamentals than tee ball or coach toss. There is an All-Star team that is selected from this league that can advance to district play. Page 3
Major/Minor League Softball Ages 9-12 will play what is referred to as the Major/Minor system within Little League. The number of teams is determined by the number of registrants but there will be twice as many Minor teams as Major per Little League National rules. A primary goal of this system is to allow an increased level of competition at this age level for the players who have advanced to a higher level of play while allowing balanced, safe and fair competition for all players. All children ages 9-12 MUST participate in tryouts (evaluations). Tryouts allow coaches and managers to assess each player's skill level in order to assign them to the appropriate level of play. Various areas are judged such as fielding, hitting, throwing, running, judgment and catching. All 12 year olds must be drafted to a Major league team and cannot be placed on a Minor league All 9 year olds must be drafted to a Minor League team and cannot be placed on a Major League All 10-11 year olds are eligible to be drafted to either the Majors or Minors. Major and Minor league teams typically have 2 games per week with the exception of 3 Saturdays during the season (opening day, Saturday game and a Saturday Interleague tournament). Games are played on weeknights with start times set at either 6:00pm or 7:30pm and last about 100 minutes per event. Stealing, sliding, and bunting are taught at this level. Some rules may be modified to accommodate the games. There is an All-Star team that is selected from the Major and Minor league that can advance to district play. Senior League Softball This league is for girls who wish to continue to develop their skills and have fun. This level is great for working on skills while preparing girls for play at the high school level. This is real softball on the big fields. There are typically 3-5 softball events per week during the regular season that typically includes 2 games and 2 practices. Games are played on weeknights and Saturday mornings and will last about 120 minutes. Page 4
Registration Fees Updated 12/13/18 Registration Fees Registration Fee 4/5 Tee ball $ 80 5/6 Coach pitch baseball $ 80 7/8 Machine pitch baseball $ 95 7/8 Rookie league baseball $ 95 9-12 Major/Minor baseball $ 110 13-16 Sr league baseball $ 110 5-6 Coach pitch softball $ 80 7-8 Rookie Softball $ 95 9-10 Minor Softball $ 110 11-12 Major Softball $ 110 13-16 Senior Softball $ 110 Family Discount There is a $5 per registrant discount for each additional family member registered in the Fall (the first family participant pays full registration fee) and family discounts will apply online at checkout for the additional siblings. Scholarships Oconee County Little League will not turn away any player. Scholarships are available for full or part of the registration fees. Contact info@oconeelittleleague.com for a scholarship application. Refunds While OCLL realizes that unexpected situations occur, there are costs involved with registration, especially once uniforms are ordered and once teams are established multiple alterations after the fact disrupts the division as a whole. For these reasons the below refund policy has been established: Refund requests made after a player is registered but before teams are established will be made in full less a $5 processing fee. Refund requests made once teams are selected (and in the fall once evaluations are held) but before the practice start date will be made in full less a $25 processing fee. Refund requests made after practices start but before the games start will be for 50% of what was paid (taking into consideration family discounts if applicable). No refunds will be processed once games begin. As with any policy, exceptions can be made for extenuating circumstances (i.e. play preventing injury, family illnesses, moving, emergencies etc.). Please email us with any questions at info@oconeelittleleague.com. Page 5