Arizona District Three Little League: District Three News

There will be a District Three meeting with all leagues having Junior teams on April 3rd at 6:00 p.m.  The location is still TBD but will either be the Coco's at PV Mall or the LDS Church at 36th St and Shea.

ONE representative from the league must attend this meeting.  It is preferred NOT to be a Junior Manager/Coach.  This is an organizational meeting to determine local rules, prepare an interleague agreement and prepare all of the Little League required forms.  If a league is not in attendance, they will not be permitted to play in an interleague. 

Each league must provide at the meeting:

The number of players BY AGE for each league.

Field Availability - Dates, times, locations.

Note:  Players league age 15 ARE NOT permitted to play in the Junior Division unless the league has submitted a Request for Wavier for EACH 15 year old player.  The league may not request a "blanket" waiver.  If a league does have 15 year olds, they will need to bring to this meeting the letter by the President requesting a waiver for each individual player.  Players approved for the waiver usually have the restriction of not being able to pitch and not eligible for tournament play.

“What are the dates?”

As the leagues are starting their regular season, I start to get the calls and emails - "What are the dates for tournaments?"

I know many expect a definite schedule has already been made and I should know the exact dates, times and fields. But, there are many, many factors that are involved.

First, the leagues have the right to not enter into a tournament. While there are 13 leagues in District Three, not all play in all tournaments. And, they have the right to drop right up until the start of the tournament (which has happened).

Second, Little League rules prohibit me from paying umpires for tournaments. Only one league out of 13 uses ALL volunteer umpires. This means that I have to request the paid groups to find umpires to volunteer their time for our tournaments.

Third, NO ONE knows when a team will finish. The teams play until they are eliminated from the tournament. 9-10's and 10-11's have a top level of State, which can end around July 31st. Little League (Majors) and above can advance on to State, Region and finally World Series. This can last as long as September 1st. Players, Managers and Coaches should be available until the team is eliminated from the tournament.

TOC will start on or about June 15th. There are some leagues that are playing their regular season until June 15th - the announcement date for all-stars. (Little League is NOT a school based program and leagues do not have to end when school gets out. It is a local league decision.)

All levels can now announce their teams 14 days before the start of the tournament or June 15th whichever is earlier. However, in District 3, the plan so far is to only have the 9-10 BB tournament start before June 29th. I will announce to the league presidents at the March District Meeting when the 9-10's will begin and when they can announce.

ALL other divisions will not be able to announce, practice or TRYOUT until June 15th. THAT is when the tournament season begins. When it ends is when your team is eliminated - so no one knows.

Tournament Titles

The tournament levels do have specific names. There is no such thing as a "Minor" All-Stars nor 11-12 All Stars. We don't have a 10U, 11U, 12U etc. "U" implies "under." When a league called the 9-10's 9U and 10U, I got a call from a parent who had a 8 year old complaining because they didn't make the 9U-10U team because they thought 9U meant 9 "and under." Same with 11-12's - while it is limited to 11 and 12 year olds, it is limited to those who played in majors. And, we don't watch the "11-12 World Series" - we watch the Little League World Series.

The levels and respective tournaments are:

9-10's - Those players league age 9 or 10 who played in the Minor or Major Divisions.

10-11's - Those players league age 10 or 11 who played in the Minor or Major Divisions.

Little League (Majors) - Those players league ages 11 or 12 who played in the Major Division ONLY.

Juniors - Those players league age 13 or 14 who played in the Junior or Senior Divisions.

Seniors - Those players league age 14, 15 or 16 who played in the Senior Divisons ONLY.

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