Morristown Area American Little League: Welcome

Challenger Games - June 3! 

Morristown Area American Little League is proud to host the Morris County Challenger Little League with a full day of baseball games to be held on Sunday June 3, 2012. This event is open to all kids 10 years old and above who would like to volunteer to be a buddy for the Challenger players (they do not have to be MAALL players - brothers and sisters of MAALL players are welcome too!).  This is a great event for all kids and parents to have the opportunity to help children with disabilities have a fun day of baseball.

Please respond to mleung@maall.net if your child would like to volunteer to be a buddy. We will need 60 kids at the 2:00 games and another 30 kids at the 4:00 games. Please indicate which game your child will be available (“Both games" would be a much appreciated answer given the large number of kids that we need.) Please provide child's name, age, phone, Email address and time available (1:30, 3:30, both).

BACKGROUND
The Challenger League is a baseball league for disabled children, that was established in 1986 by Little League International in Williamsport, PA. The Morris County Challenger Little League was established in 1999. The majority of the player participants are from Morris County, with a few from neighboring counties. The Challenger Baseball schedule begins in the middle of April and ends at the end of June. The games are played at different towns each weekend. The Challenger players are physically or mentally challenged children of varying disabilities who need assistance playing the game of baseball. The Challenger program relies on the dedication and enthusiasm of both player and parent volunteers to create a positive environment for the Challenger players.

THE GAMES
At the 2:00 games, there will be 4 teams of Challenger kids playing against each other. Each Challenger player will be assigned a “buddy” player from MAALL to help them through the game, whether it’s pushing their wheelchairs along the base paths, directing them where to run, or helping them to throw or catch a ball.

Time commitment will be approximately 1:30 - 3:45. At the 4:00 games, volunteers will play against 2 other Challenger teams who are less severely handicapped, but still at a disadvantage. To level out the playing field, our players will play with a “forced disability” (i.e. batting with one hand, hopping to the bases on 1 foot, for example). Its great fun and a truly memorable experience. Time commitment will be from 3:40 - 6:10.

Please email mleung@maall.net with any questions.

Red Storm Baseball Camps

Ed Blankmeyer, the head coach of the St. Johns University baseball team, is a local area resident and has always provided a great deal to support MAALL. For many years he has freely donated his time to help the league running coaching clinics and instructing our coaches on how to correctly teach the fundamentals of baseball to our players. What you might not know is that during his 17 years of coaching tenure at St. Johns more than 50 players have signed professional contracts.

Every year Ed runs one of his baseball camps locally at the Ginty Complex. It takes place right after the local schools end and is a great way for the kids to start their summer.

When: Monday June 25th through Thursday June 28th
Time: 9AM till 3PM
Where: Ginty Fields
Who: Players 7 to 12 years old

This is a great opportunity for your son or daughter to improve their baseball skills. The camp addresses the fundamentals of fielding, throwing, baserunning, hitting and position play. There are also fun competitions and instructional games held.

Visit his website for additional information or to register online at: http://www.collegebaseballcamps.com/calendar.cfm?ID=222&src=CBC

To provide young athletes the opportunity to develop an understanding of the game of baseball, the skills required to participate and the deeper qualities of discipline, teamwork, commitment and physical well-being.  MAALL offers the necessary information, tools and resources to effectively coach participating children and allow children and parents alike to fully enjoy the experience of playing and watching the game of baseball.

To deliver on the MAALL Mission, the league commits to the following critical objectives:

• Provide the opportunity to learn and enjoy baseball through quality instruction and competitive participation. 
• Provide both coaches and parents alike specific, detailed information on properly teaching the game at each level of play.
• Encourage sportsmanship, discipline and teamwork.
• Make the game an exciting, positive and fun experience for all involved.