Turlock American Little League AWS
Turlock American Little League
INSIDE THIS ISSUE 1. Machine Pitch 2. Evaluations for Minors and Majors
3. Managers and Coaches 3. Uniforms 3. Fundraising 4. New Bat Standard 4. Opening Day Ceremonies 4. Your Player Agent
“People ask me what I do in winter when there's no baseball. I'll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring.” --Rogers Hornsby.
2018 Preseason TALL Newsletter
Welcome to Turlock American On behalf of the Turlock American Little League (TALL) board we would like to welcome each of you to the 2018 season. This newsletter is designed to pass on information and answer frequently asked questions that parents often ask.
Machine Pitch Turlock American Little League (TALL) offers a machine pitch division for 6-8-year-old players. This division offers players who have moved on from coach pitch a chance to continue to learn the game while throwing in some friendly competition. 10 defensive players will take the field for three outs, OR five runs per inning. Using a pitching machine, provides more consistent pitches and gives less experienced players a better chance of making contact with the ball. Families with 8-yearold players are often ask whether to have their child play in a machine pitch division or move to the minor league division. We recommend that players who have only had coach pitch opportunities play machine pitch. For players who have already had an opportunity to play in a kid pitch division and had success we recommend they play in the minor league division. If you are on the fence, we suggest you sign up in our minor league division and attend the first night of evaluations. At the evaluation if you notice that your child is less experienced than the other 8 and 9 year olds you can talk to the league’s Player Agent to be moved to the machine pitch division.
2018 Preseason TALL Newsletter
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Evaluations for Minors and Majors Evaluations for minor and major league divisions will occur quickly after registration. All players, not currently on a major league team, will need to attend two of the three evaluation dates and must speak to the league’s Player Agent if an emergency occurs that prevents them from doing this. The minor league consists of 9-11-year-old players and the major league consists of 10-12-year-old players. Managers and coaches of both divisions will attend evaluations and make note of player performance. A draft will occur the following week. This draft allows the league to create more balanced teams based on perceived player performance, and managers are able to fill rosters with players that can play in positions to round out their team. It is important to note that parents of 10-12-year-old players should hold onto the originals of the paper work they turned in or uploaded as they will need to present these same documents at the end of the year if they make an all-star team. Originals are needed and not copies.
“All players will need to attend two of the evaluation dates...” “...Parents of 10-12year-old players should hold onto originals of the paper work they turned in or uploaded…”
January Evaluation dates are as follows: January 24th 8-9 Year old's Hitting Only from 5:00-5:45 10 Year old's Hitting Only from 6:00-6:45 January 25th 11-12 Year old's Hitting Only from 6:00-7:00 January 27th 8-9 Year Old's Hitting and Fielding 2:00-3:30 10 Year Old's Hitting and Fielding 12:30-2:00 11-12 Year Old's Hitting and Fielding 10:30 am-12:00 pm *Note players can only use league issued bats for evaluations.
2018 Preseason TALL Newsletter
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Managers and Coaches Little league managers, often called the team’s head coach, will begin to call players to welcome them to their team and set up first practices as soon as they are given the ok to do so by the league president. For machine pitch, minors, and majors this will be after both drafts have been finalized which should occur no later than February 7th. Please wait until after February 7th to contact your league’s Player Agent if you do not hear anything from a manager in these divisions. Junior and Senior league will begin in late April. Remember that little league is a volunteer organization and managers will call when they are able.
Uniforms Shirts and hats will be provided to your players as part of your registration fees. You will be given an official little league patch that will be worn on the center of the left shoulder sleeve that you must iron on. We suggest you also sew these if able. Belts, socks, and pants are not provided by the league but are recommended; the choice of color is determined by the team’s manager. Typically, this is grey pants and a color of socks and a belt to match the team’s hat, but please wait to talk to your team’s manger as they will make this determination.
Pictured are the 2017 Lugnuts; our 2017 Minor League TALL Championship Team.
Fundraising Every player in Little League is asked to participate in a league fundraiser to help support the costs of running the league. The fundraiser is determined each year by the TALL Board of Directors. This year, each player will prepay for 5 tickets for a fundraising BBQ at the time of registration. The cost will be $5.00 per ticket. These tickets will be handed out by managers at their first parent/team meeting. Managers will ask for parent volunteers to run the dispersal of meals on the day of the BBQ. There will be other fundraising events throughout the year in which parents will be asked to participate; including shifts to operate our field’s “snack bar”. Again, Little League is a volunteer organization.
Pictured are the 2017 Red Sox; our 2017 Major League TALL Championship Team and TOC District 73 Champions.
2018 Preseason TALL Newsletter
New Bat Standard As of January 1, 2018, a new USA Baseball Bat Standard was implemented for Little League. Bats that were approved for use for the 2017 season will no longer be acceptable for use in any Little League game. Newly approved bats are easy to recognize and have a USA Baseball sticker on them (see picture to the right). For more information on the USABat standard and complete list of bats approved through the USABat Standard, visit usabat.com.
Opening Day Ceremonies Please mark your calendars for our opening day ceremonies which is set for March 3rd at our Julien Field. Opening day is a long standing tradition and players from all divisions will be invited to come hear speeches and be announced. Major leagues games will begin right after these ceremonies are finished. Note our annual BBQ will be held this day.
Your Player Agent Before the season begins you may have questions, and during the season you may have concerns, which you will need help with. The person to call is your league’s Player Agent. Our Player Agent this year is Joe Silveira and can be reached at 209-250-7689 should you need assistance.
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TALL will provide loaner bats for managers to check out at each game, so if you are unable to purchase a new bat that meets this new bat standard there will be one for your player to use.
2018 Preseason TALL Newsletter
All Stars Congratulations to our 2017 All Star Teams. Our Seniors won District and Section and advanced to the State Championship hosted by District 73 at Pedretti Park. Our 12s won District and advanced to Sections. Our 11s won District and Sections and advanced to the State Tournament. Our 10s won District and Sections and also advanced to the State Tournament. Congratulations to our teams, coaches and parents!
Turlock American Little League tur l oc k am eric an l it t le l e ag u e.c om f ac e bo ok .c om /T url oc k Am er ic a n/
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INSIDE THIS ISSUE 1. Machine Pitch 2. Evaluations for Minors and Majors
3. Managers and Coaches 3. Uniforms 3. Fundraising 4. New Bat Standard 4. Opening Day Ceremonies 4. Your Player Agent
“People ask me what I do in winter when there's no baseball. I'll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring.” --Rogers Hornsby.
2018 Preseason TALL Newsletter
Welcome to Turlock American On behalf of the Turlock American Little League (TALL) board we would like to welcome each of you to the 2018 season. This newsletter is designed to pass on information and answer frequently asked questions that parents often ask.
Machine Pitch Turlock American Little League (TALL) offers a machine pitch division for 6-8-year-old players. This division offers players who have moved on from coach pitch a chance to continue to learn the game while throwing in some friendly competition. 10 defensive players will take the field for three outs, OR five runs per inning. Using a pitching machine, provides more consistent pitches and gives less experienced players a better chance of making contact with the ball. Families with 8-yearold players are often ask whether to have their child play in a machine pitch division or move to the minor league division. We recommend that players who have only had coach pitch opportunities play machine pitch. For players who have already had an opportunity to play in a kid pitch division and had success we recommend they play in the minor league division. If you are on the fence, we suggest you sign up in our minor league division and attend the first night of evaluations. At the evaluation if you notice that your child is less experienced than the other 8 and 9 year olds you can talk to the league’s Player Agent to be moved to the machine pitch division.
2018 Preseason TALL Newsletter
Page 2
Evaluations for Minors and Majors Evaluations for minor and major league divisions will occur quickly after registration. All players, not currently on a major league team, will need to attend two of the three evaluation dates and must speak to the league’s Player Agent if an emergency occurs that prevents them from doing this. The minor league consists of 9-11-year-old players and the major league consists of 10-12-year-old players. Managers and coaches of both divisions will attend evaluations and make note of player performance. A draft will occur the following week. This draft allows the league to create more balanced teams based on perceived player performance, and managers are able to fill rosters with players that can play in positions to round out their team. It is important to note that parents of 10-12-year-old players should hold onto the originals of the paper work they turned in or uploaded as they will need to present these same documents at the end of the year if they make an all-star team. Originals are needed and not copies.
“All players will need to attend two of the evaluation dates...” “...Parents of 10-12year-old players should hold onto originals of the paper work they turned in or uploaded…”
January Evaluation dates are as follows: January 24th 8-9 Year old's Hitting Only from 5:00-5:45 10 Year old's Hitting Only from 6:00-6:45 January 25th 11-12 Year old's Hitting Only from 6:00-7:00 January 27th 8-9 Year Old's Hitting and Fielding 2:00-3:30 10 Year Old's Hitting and Fielding 12:30-2:00 11-12 Year Old's Hitting and Fielding 10:30 am-12:00 pm *Note players can only use league issued bats for evaluations.
2018 Preseason TALL Newsletter
Page 3
Managers and Coaches Little league managers, often called the team’s head coach, will begin to call players to welcome them to their team and set up first practices as soon as they are given the ok to do so by the league president. For machine pitch, minors, and majors this will be after both drafts have been finalized which should occur no later than February 7th. Please wait until after February 7th to contact your league’s Player Agent if you do not hear anything from a manager in these divisions. Junior and Senior league will begin in late April. Remember that little league is a volunteer organization and managers will call when they are able.
Uniforms Shirts and hats will be provided to your players as part of your registration fees. You will be given an official little league patch that will be worn on the center of the left shoulder sleeve that you must iron on. We suggest you also sew these if able. Belts, socks, and pants are not provided by the league but are recommended; the choice of color is determined by the team’s manager. Typically, this is grey pants and a color of socks and a belt to match the team’s hat, but please wait to talk to your team’s manger as they will make this determination.
Pictured are the 2017 Lugnuts; our 2017 Minor League TALL Championship Team.
Fundraising Every player in Little League is asked to participate in a league fundraiser to help support the costs of running the league. The fundraiser is determined each year by the TALL Board of Directors. This year, each player will prepay for 5 tickets for a fundraising BBQ at the time of registration. The cost will be $5.00 per ticket. These tickets will be handed out by managers at their first parent/team meeting. Managers will ask for parent volunteers to run the dispersal of meals on the day of the BBQ. There will be other fundraising events throughout the year in which parents will be asked to participate; including shifts to operate our field’s “snack bar”. Again, Little League is a volunteer organization.
Pictured are the 2017 Red Sox; our 2017 Major League TALL Championship Team and TOC District 73 Champions.
2018 Preseason TALL Newsletter
New Bat Standard As of January 1, 2018, a new USA Baseball Bat Standard was implemented for Little League. Bats that were approved for use for the 2017 season will no longer be acceptable for use in any Little League game. Newly approved bats are easy to recognize and have a USA Baseball sticker on them (see picture to the right). For more information on the USABat standard and complete list of bats approved through the USABat Standard, visit usabat.com.
Opening Day Ceremonies Please mark your calendars for our opening day ceremonies which is set for March 3rd at our Julien Field. Opening day is a long standing tradition and players from all divisions will be invited to come hear speeches and be announced. Major leagues games will begin right after these ceremonies are finished. Note our annual BBQ will be held this day.
Your Player Agent Before the season begins you may have questions, and during the season you may have concerns, which you will need help with. The person to call is your league’s Player Agent. Our Player Agent this year is Joe Silveira and can be reached at 209-250-7689 should you need assistance.
Page 4
TALL will provide loaner bats for managers to check out at each game, so if you are unable to purchase a new bat that meets this new bat standard there will be one for your player to use.
2018 Preseason TALL Newsletter
All Stars Congratulations to our 2017 All Star Teams. Our Seniors won District and Section and advanced to the State Championship hosted by District 73 at Pedretti Park. Our 12s won District and advanced to Sections. Our 11s won District and Sections and advanced to the State Tournament. Our 10s won District and Sections and also advanced to the State Tournament. Congratulations to our teams, coaches and parents!
Turlock American Little League tur l oc k am eric an l it t le l e ag u e.c om f ac e bo ok .c om /T url oc k Am er ic a n/
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