Boxford Baseball: Welcome
Saturday, January 19Boxford Baseball
THIS PAGE WAS UPDATED ON JAN. 21, 2008. MANY SECTIONS HAVE CHANGED.
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David Hilton, Commissioner
Baseball Board
Mark Balding, Howie Emmons, John Kowalski, Jon Schwartz, Jon-Eric White
Questions about the program should be directed to baseball@baasports.com
BASEBALL CHARTER
Boxford Baseball strives to help its players develop individual skills, work as a team, understand situational strategies, and compete in a spirited, sportsmanlike manner. Equitable playing time is a priority, with all players in the batting order for every game and participating in the field for at least half of the innings. Within each league, teams are organized by ability, in an effort to have exciting, competitive games. The BAA Baseball Constitution will be posted shortly.
2008 BASEBALL TIMELINE- Dates to be announced via email
Online registration
Player evaluations
Coaching Clinic
Drafts for Minors, Majors, Babe Ruth
Opening Day (subject to change based on field conditions)
BASEBALL REGISTRATION
When you register your child, you will be placed in a league based on grade (except Babe Ruth) for the regular season. For summer tournaments, we are required to place players according to the Little League age criteria. Babe Ruth is based on age - no exceptions. With regards to Babe Ruth, the young 7th graders (age 12 on May 1) will remain in the Majors and do not have the option of playing in the Babe Ruth 13 year old league. The date to determine a player's age is May 1. While our default is by grade, when you register, you will always have the option to play by age. Please pay special attention to this choice. Players born after April 30, 2003 are not eligible to participate in the 2008 season.
FEES
Instructional (Pre K & K): $50
Farm (Grades 1 & 2): $75
Minors (Grades 3 & 4): $110
Majors (Grades 5 & 6): $110
Babe Ruth Regular Season (ages 13, 14, and 15): $135
Babe Ruth Summer Leagues (ages 13-18): $135
A $25 late fee is assessed to all registrations received after the registration period has ended. When you register, you are asked to provide an email address. Please provide the address of an adult who checks email frequently. This is the primary method of communication used by the baseball program. Once you are registered and we have your email address, we will send information about evaluations, team placement, practice and game dates, and other important items.
BOXFORD BASEBALL LEAGUES
Note -- Players are placed in a league based on their school grade (except Babe Ruth). Players can move to another league only if they meet the age criteria. For example, if a player is in 3rd grade, but was born after 4/30/99, the grade grouping would place him/her in the Minors. However, he/she may choose to play in the Farm league, based on age. Pls refer to these links for understanding age requirements. The LLB one is easier to follow:
http://www.littleleague.org/common/forms/AgeChartBB_text.pdf
http://www.baberuthleague.org/resources/pdfs/2008BBBirthChart.pdfInstructional -- boys and girls born between 5/1/01 and 4/30/03 or in Kindergarten (regardless of age) participate in this non-competitive program designed to introduce young children to the fundamentals of baseball while having fun. Tennis balls are used for beginners and low-impact baseballs are used for more advanced participants. This program meets on weekends for six 90-minute sessions. The emphasis is on having fun while providing a positive introduction to baseball.
Farm -- boys and girls in 1st & 2nd grade or born between 5/1/99 and 4/30/01 participate in this intramural town league. Adult managers pitch to players in a manner to maximize the chance of hitting the ball. The emphasis is on lots of hitting, scoring, and enthusiasm. This program provides a positive experience in team play and exposes the kids to the fundamentals and techniques of the game. Teams typically play 2 games during the week and have one practice on Saturday or Sunday
Minors -- boys and girls in 3rd & 4th grade or born between 5/1/97 and 4/30/99 participate in this intramural town league where players pitch to players with the emphasis on skill development. Student umpires are used in the games. Teams typically play 2 games during the week and have one practice on Saturday or Sunday. Minor League is part of chartered Little League Baseball.
Majors -- boys and girls in 5th & 6th grade or born between 5/1/95 and 4/30/97 playing in this intramural town league are encouraged to further develop their technical and competitive skills. Regulation umpires are used to officiate the games. Teams typically play 2 games during the week and have one practice on Saturday or Sunday. Major League is part of chartered Little League Baseball. Important Major League
Notes: 1.) A 6th grader born before 5/1/95 is encouraged to contact the baseball board prior to making a decision about playing Majors or Babe Ruth. If the choice is to play Majors in 2008, next season he will be required to play 2nd year Babe Ruth (the 14/15 yr old Division), based on Babe Ruth's strict age guidelines.
2.) 7th graders born after 4/30/95 must remain in the Majors.
Boxford Little League (Minors and Majors) is a charter member of Massachusetts Little League District 15, which includes Amesbury, Beverly, Danvers, Gloucester, Groveland, Hamilton-Wenham, Ipswich, Manchester-Essex, Middleton, Peabody, Rockport, Salem, and Topsfield.
Babe Ruth Regular Season (ages 13-15) -- Players born on and between 5/1/94 and 4/30/95 will play in the 13 year old Division. Players born on and between 5/1/92 and 4/30/94 will play in the 14/15 year old Division. Boxford does not participate in any spring leagues for ages 16-18. Kids this age try out for their high school (Masco or their private school) and after high school can play in our summer league program (see below). If they do not make any high school teams, they will need to wait for the summer league (I am not aware of any non-school affiliated spring leagues except AAU, which is very competetive and typically for those that make the high school programs).
The 13-year old division plays on Tuesdays (5:45pm), Thursdays (5:45pm) and Sundays (1:00pm) while the 14/15-year old division plays on Wednesdays (5:45pm), Fridays (5:45pm), and Sundays (4pm). Players are expected to be at the field at least 45 minutes before game time. Each team will have a time slot on Saturdays and possibly Sundays for practice. The regular season ends the first week in June.
Boy Scout Park is the home field for the Boxford teams. Unfortunately, Boxford is experiencing a shortage of playing fields for all baseball levels, most notably Babe Ruth. Therefore, many of our Babe Ruth home games are played away at the opponent's field. (We need your help in finding new fields!) Every team participates in a double elimination playoff tournament with byes and seeding dependent on the team's final position in the standings. The playoffs will start the first week of June with games every other day until Championship Sunday.
This league is organized thru the CABRA website: http://eteamz.active.com/cabra
Babe Ruth Summer League (ages 13-18) -- Boxford Baseball participates in the Inter Town Babe Ruth League (ITBR) for the summer season (after the springtime regular season under CABR) for ages 13-18. This year, 2008, we are NOT participating in the Sr. Babe Ruth League that was run by Erin Tourcotte for many years. Registration for this summer league will be sometime in late March or April and will be via the BAA automated website registration system.
The ITBR has similar age divisions as our CABR regular season (a 13 division and a 14/15 division) with the exception of having divisions for 16-18. Towns from all over Northern Essex County and Southern New Hampshire participate in this league.
All teams in the ITBR play about 16 games and the top four teams from each league are drawn for playoffs; each series is the best of 3. The ITBR league must be notified by end of April as to the commitment to place a team(s) in the league, and, by mid May of the roster(s) for said team(s). Its schedule begins first week in June during the CABRA playoffs. End of season is the end of July and playoffs start a day or two later.
The Championship series is played during the second week of August. They also have an all-star game which this year will be mid July. This schedule is not as tight as the spring season schedule and involves playing 2 games per week as opposed to 3 per week. Practices depend upon the coach's preference and field availability.
PLAYER EVALUATIONS (Minors, Majors, and Babe Ruth Regular Season)
Skills assessments are conducted by several experienced coaches who will evaluate fielding, throwing, hitting, and pitching. Players are given at least two scores at each station. These scores are used to help the coaches ensure a balanced distribution of ability among the teams in each league. Attendance at evaluation day is REQUIRED for proper team placement.
PLAYER EVALUATION SCHEDULE (subject to change - you will be notified via email)
3rd Grade TBD
4th Grade TBD
Majors 5th Grade TBD
Majors 6th and 7th Grade TBD
Babe Ruth regular league only All Ages (13-15) TBD
BASEBALL DRAFT PROCESS (Minors, Majors, and Babe Ruth Regular Season Leagues only) The goal of the draft is to form evenly-matched teams by ability and age, which will foster competitive games. Draft selections are based on scores received during baseball evaluations. Due to age and ability considerations, evaluations are not warranted for the Instructional and Farm leagues.
BASEBALL PLAYOFFS
The Minor and Major Leagues have playoffs at the end of the season. Every team makes it to the playoffs, which culminate in a final game for the league championship. Trophies are awarded to the winner and runner-up. All the Boxford Babe Ruth Regular Season teams participate in playoffs.
BASEBALL SUMMER TOURNAMENTS
Boxford participates in several summer tournaments. Players are selected by the head coaches from each team and the league director. Selections are based on regular season performance, as well as a post-season tryout. The coaching staff for tournament teams is selected after rosters are finalized. Tournament teams will play from the end of the school year through the first week in August. If you intend to tryout for a tournament team, please keep these dates in mind when planning your summer vacation.
Boxford plays in the Little League District tournaments, as well as tournaments in Newburyport and/or Bradford. These tournaments are for ages 9 to 12, with a team representing each age group. Little League is hosted by different towns. Future tournaments could be hosted by Boxford. A team comprised of the top 11 and 12 year olds born between 5/1/94 and 4/30/96 will also enter the Williamsport Tournament, which culminates in the Little League World Series. 7th graders born after 4/30/94 who played in the Majors during the regular season are eligible to try out for the Williamsport team.
BASEBALL COACHES
The coaching staffs are made up entirely of Boxford parents who kindly volunteer their time to work with the kids. Prior experience is not required. Little League-sanctioned educational materials are provided for all coaches.
WE ARE ALWAYS IN NEED OF COACHES! PLEASE REGISTER ONLINE IF YOU ARE AVAILABLE TO HELP THIS SEASON.
Coaches are encouraged to attend the Little Al and Big Al clinic offered by our local Little League� district. Al and Al are originators of the "Know Your Baseball" training program, now the Little League Official Education Program for coaches. A PRE-SEASON MEETING WILL BE SCHEDULED. ATENDANCE IS MANDATORY FOR ALL COACHES.
BASEBALL UNIFORMS AND EQUIPMENT
Instructional: hats and T-shirts provided by the BAA
Farm: hats and T-shirts provided by the BAA
Minors: hats and game jerseys provided on loan by the BAA
Majors: hats and game jerseys provided on loan by the BAA
Babe Ruth: hats and game jerseys provided on loan by the BAA
Players in Farm, Minors, Majors, and Babe Ruth will be required to purchase pants. Wide barrel bats are not allowed in Little League. The maximum width is 2 1/4 inches. An appropriate length is 27" - 30" and a weight between 15 and 20 ounces (lighter is better).
AMERICAN LEGION
Boxford players up to and including age 19 can tryout for American Legion Baseball with our local Middleton Post 227 team. Call Scott Lamkin at 978-774-8425 or visit their website: http://district8.home.comcast.net
CAN'T GET ENOUGH BASEBALL?....
INDOOR BATTING CAGES
Strike One in Danvers
Extra Innings in Middleton and Salisbury
BASEBALL LEAGUES
Little League Baseball www.littleleague.org
Babe Ruth Baseball www.baberuthleague.org
Cape Ann Babe Ruth http://eteamz.active.com/cabra
Inter Town Babe Ruth http://eteamz.active.com/itbr
Boston Red Sox www.mlb.com
Pawtucket Red Sox www.pawsox.com
Portland Sea Dogs www.portlandseadogs.com
Lowell Spinners www.lowellspinners.com
AAU Baseball www.aaubaseball.org
American Legion Baseball www.baseball.legion.org
Middleton American Legion Team http://district8.home.comcast.net
Cape Cod League www.capecodbaseball.org
INSTRUCTIONAL, SKILLS, AND TIPS Baseball Reference www.baseballreference.com
Harold Reynolds Presents Baseball www.haroldreynolds.com
Bat Speed http://www.batspeed.com/ The Complete Pitcher http://www.thecompletepitcher.com/ Know Your Baseball www.alandalbaseball.com
BASEBALL BOOKS
Ball Four Lou Gehrig: A Biography
Moneyball
Play Baseball the Ripken Way
Sandy Koufax: A Lefty's Legacy
Summer of '49
Ted Williams: The Biography of an American Hero
The Boys of Summer
The Long Ball
The Teammates
Waiting For Teddy Williams
BASEBALL MOVIES
2004 World Series
Angel in the Outfield
Bad News Bears
Faith Rewarded: The Historic Season of the 2004 Red Sox
Field of Dreams
League of Their Own
The Kid
The Natural
The Rookie
The Sandlot
Touching the Game, the Story of the Cape Cod Baseball League
POPULAR PHRASES WITH ORIGINS IN BASEBALL
Batting a thousand
Cover your bases
It's a whole new ballgame
Let's go down swinging
On the ball
Play the field
She knew the answer right off the bat
Step up to the plate
That's a good call
Touch base
We're in the big leagues now