Mission Bay Little League: Information
To help make everyone’s Little League experience enjoyable, we’ve prepared the following guideline information:
EQUIPMENT:
1. Mission Bay Little League provides jerseys, hats, and basic equipment for each team (i.e., helmets, bats, and catching equipment).
2. Parents are required to provide their kids with: (1) gloves; (2) protective 'cup' for the boys; (3) cleats (no metal spikes until Jrs Division); and (4) pants, socks, and belt.
3. Pants, socks, and belt: We strongly recommend you hold-off buying the pants, socks, and belt until the team colors are selected – your coach will let you know what to purchase.
4. Gloves: Leather gloves are essential – please stay away from vinyl imitations. The correct glove size depends largely on your child’s hand size, and strength. You may be tempted to get your child a really big glove (11” or 12”+), but be careful … your child needs to be able to move the glove around quickly, and to get the ball out of the glove quickly. Often, a smaller glove is better. Derek Jeter (short-stop for the NY Yankees) reportedly uses a size 11” glove.
5. Bats: The league provides bats, but many kids bring their own. Tips for purchasing a bat:
a For Majors, Minors, Farm, and TBall, The bat MUST be 2-1/4 inch diameter AND have "BPF 1.15" marked on it!!!!
b IMPORTANT: The barrel size must be 2-1/4 inch diameter for use in Little League. “Big barrel” bats (2-5/8 inch diameter) can ONLY be used in Juniors (age 13-15) division.
c Length and weight depend on each child … have your child swing a few bats to find the one that works best for him/her. Here are a few 'rough guidelines' to get you started (i.e., feel free to adjust the length and weight to fit your child):
· Tee-Ball: these bats are typically labeled “Tee-Ball”
· Farm (6-7 yr olds): 27”, -11 (weight approx. 16oz. )
· Minors (8-10 yr olds): 28”, -11 (weight approx. 17oz.)
· Majors (11-12 yr olds): 29”, -11 (weight approx. 18 oz.)
Where, bat weight (oz.) = bat length (inches) – factor on bat.
d Helmets: The league provides helmets, but many kids bring their own. Wilson and Rawlings are common helmets found at almost any sporting goods store.
TIPS:
Quick disclaimer: The following information is included on this site to help parents support their kids. However, it has not been officially approved by Little League. Little League also provides some helpful information, please see: www.littleleague.org
Q. Back elbow up or down when hitting?
A. Tony Gywnn: "I'm a flat elbow guy. My back elbow stays pretty relaxed... but half of the guys will be hitting with it up, the other half with it down." If the batter does not have good hitting fundamentals (approach, grip, stance, etc.), then having the back elbow farther up may NOT help. Please check out Tony's book to get the basics (good photos too); "The Art of Hitting", available on Amazon or eBay.
Tips for having a successful year:
(1) Parent Support: Be supportive of your child. Ted Williams, arguably the best hitter ever in baseball, said something to the effect that baseball is the only sport where someone can be considered successful if they only get a hit 1 out of 3 times. Point being, during the season your child will have ups and downs – and how you support your child during a down moment is just as important as congratulating them when they’re successful. Remember, baseball is a great (and fun) mechanism to build leadership, teamwork, and character.
(2) Baseball Fundamentals: By following good fundamentals, the odds of being successful can noticeably improve – whether it’s hitting, fielding, pitching, etc. There are almost too many ‘mechanical’ details for kids to remember – so when teaching the kids, keep instructions simple for them – then introduce more each year as they grow older or master the concepts.
There are literally thousands of resources out there, some good, some bad. Here are a few that you may want to check out / consider:
Private Lessons: There are now many private instructors out there for all aspects of the game – batting, fielding, pitching, etc. As a matter of policy, we don’t endorse or recommend anyone. We do know that businesses such as JP Longball offer private lessons.
Batting Cages: Batting cages provide kids with an excellent opportunity to work on fundamentals – the thought being that they can build good fundamentals through repetition. The closest cages that I’m aware of are JP Longball (Linda Vista) and Boomers (Clairemont Mesa).
Books: The best book I’ve ever run across is Tony Gwynn’s, ‘The Art of Hitting.’ It gives instruction on the stance, grip, mental approach, etc., etc. You can find a previously owned one on Amazon.com for about $15 (well worth the investment, and you can easily get Tony to sign it if you attend an SDSU baseball game – he signs autographs after every home game).
Video: Video’s are available for sale or for free on the internet. A couple of free You-Tube videos are:
Hitting basics ... “How to Hit a Home Run” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HbI6ZeEBv_Q&feature=related
“Hitting 101, Hips vs. Hands” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fi8xOprdLqo&feature=related
“Baseball Hitting” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySH8FE6Py-M&feature=related
"Baseball Fielding Drills" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ic6AYvPf9dY&feature=related
"Baseball Throwing Drills" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ocjieTmP08&feature=related
Batting Tee: This device is recommended by both Tony Gwynn, Alex Rodriguez, and other major leaguers. It’s simple to use, and cost effective – especially when used with wiffle balls. IMPORTANT: the tee is NOT home plate. If the batter is working on the basics, make sure that the child lines up such that their front hip his aligned just behind the pole (vs. their belly button being aligned with the pole) so they hit the ball "in front of them" (in front of them means just upstream towards the pitcher). Exceptions: the tee can be moved around to work on hitting inside and outside pitches.
Hit-away: This is a device that velcros to a pole. When the batter hits the ball, the ball wraps around the pole, then the ball flies back at them to cause the process to repeat (similar to the old tether ball concept). Opinion on tool is mixed. PRO: This is an excellent tool because if the ball is struck incorrectly, it will be immediately noticeable because it won’t wind up correctly. CON: often the device coils up and unwids so fast that the batter does not have time to get into a proper stance before having to swing again ... potentially causing really terrible form issues. IMPORTANT: if you are going to use this device, make sure that the child lines up such that their front hip his aligned just behind the pole (vs. their belly button being aligned with the pole) so they hit the ball "in front of them" (in front of them means just upstream towards the pitcher), and make sure the batter swings to hit the ball ‘up the middle’ (vs. swinging to hit it back in the direction that the ball came from).
Hope this information has been useful,
Chad
Tuesday, March 8
MISSION BAY LITTLE LEAGUE RULES
IN EFFECT AT ALL TIMES ON THE PLAYING FIELDS & COMPLEX AREA:
NO DOGS ARE ALLOWED ON THE FIELDS AT ANYTIME
NO GOLF PLAY OF ANY KIND NO GLASS CONTAINERS NO ALCOHOL
NO BICYCLES, SKATEBOARDS, ROLLERBLADES OR SCOOTERS
NO BALL PLAY ON ANY WALLS NO ONE ALLOWED ON DUGOUTS
NO MOTORIZED VEHICLES IN COMPLEX AREA WITHOUT PERMISSION & ESCORT BY AN EXECUTIVE BOARD MEMBER
NO BALL PLAY INSIDE THE PLAYGROUND FACILITY
ALL PARENTS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THEIR CHILDREN AT ALL TIMES.
TEAM RULES WHEN IN OFFICIAL CAPACITY ON THE FIELD PRACTICES AND GAMES
NO OPEN TOES SHOES NO PROFANITY NO GUM
ANYONE BEHIND THE PLATE MUST HAVE A CATCHER'S MASK
ALL PLAYERS MUST WEAR A HELMET WHEN THEY HAVE A BAT
NO FOOD OF ANY KIND ALLOWED IN DUGOUTS OR INFIELD
ONLY WATER AND GATORADE TYPE DRINKS ALLOWED IN DUGOUT
RULES FOR COACHES/MANAGERS ON GAME DAY:
NO ADULTS MAY WARM-UP PLAYERS BEFORE A GAME
NO PLAYER MAY TAKE A BAT INTO THE DUGOUT
NO PLAYER MAY SWING A BAT UNTIL THEY ARE AT THE PLATE
NO PARENT'S ALLOWED IN DUGOUTS, ONLY COACHES
NO PLAYER MAY LEAVE THE PLAYING FIELD WITHOUT THE PERMISSION OF AN UMPIRE
PLAYERS MAY NOT WEAR ANY JEWELRY
PITCHERS MAY NOT WEAR WRISTBANDS OR WATCHES
PLAYERS MAY NOT HAVE GUM OR SEEDS IN THE DUGOUT
NO SEEDS ON THE FIELD
