Memo to Harvard Youth Baseball / Softball Parents & Children From the baseball and softball coordinators and coaches Planned Changes for 2006
We hope you‟re having a terrific winter and 2006 school year. Since early fall, the Major, Minor, Rookie, T-ball and Girls Softball coordinators/coaches have been regularly meeting to address many issues, including the 2006 format, sponsorships, fundraising, awareness, safety, uniforms and a variety of other initiatives. We‟d like to take a moment to update you on these activities and share some information about the upcoming season. Many of these changes are still in “pilot” mode. We’re committed to being flexible, open to suggestions and available to discuss ideas.
In September, we began soliciting feedback from various sources, including coaches, parents, players and other towns. In October, the “committee to make sure our kids have a blast playing baseball and softball” identified several themes, including: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. An inadequate (and really outdated) registration process Competition from other sports in the spring Lack of general awareness of baseball / softball around town A minimal amount of fundraising beyond registration fees Difficulty fielding safe, fun for all and quality teams at many levels.
We listened and set out on a mission to create a dynamic, safe, fun and quality baseball / softball experience for our children. To that end, there are several initiatives we‟ve undertaken including:
Early registration – as you know we had a big push in the November timeframe and had the majority of players registered by January. New Web Site: We‟re live with online registration (no more paper!) http://www.harvardbaseball.org/ and lots of great information. Sponsors – Thanks to the generosity of Athletes Edge, Gwen Cook of Coldwell Banker, Fitchburg Savings Bank, Goldsmith, Prest & Ringwall, Harvard Oil Company, Harvard Realty, Middlesex Fence, Nelson General Contracting, West Heating Oil and West Plumbing & Heating we‟ve raised
money to fund better uniforms (that majors and minors will keep after the season) and other needed initiatives. Please support our sponsors who are giving back to the community! http://www.harvardbaseball.org/Sponsors.asp?org=HARVARDBASEBALL .ORG
Fundraising – We‟ve initiated other fundraising activities which we‟ll announce shortly. We have some easy-to-sell, value-oriented fundraising vehicles that we‟ll be launching soon. We‟ll need your help to succeed so please support these efforts with your continued generosity and effort. It will allow us to fund additional needs including field maintenance, a Baseball / Softball banquet and more exciting benefits for our children down the road. HES Field Overhaul – Park and Recreation has begun to investigate the feasibility of overhauling the HES Baseball / Softball fields this year. While sorely needed, this could further compound our space / field access issues.
New 2006 Format – For Majors, Minors and Rookie Ball.
New Playing Format Here‟s the challenge we heard. At all levels, there‟s a wide skills spectrum. Many children need more fundamental skills building, such as catching and fielding, while other more skilled players are not getting adequate advanced training. The first thing we did was to promote winter clinics that matched training levels with current skills. Thanks to Athletes Edge in Acton, we were able to offer seven very cost-effective clinics this winter to all interested players. It‟s been a great success. However, we knew this alone would not address our root challenges for each level of play. Here‟s a summary of the issues we heard and our current thinking as to how to address the issues we face: Majors- fewer players, lack of depth; difficulty fielding competitive teams Minors- lack of depth, especially in the area of pitching, wide skills spectrum Rookies- wide skills spectrum from beginners to players ready for „real‟ baseball, lack of field space Softball- Lack of quality field space, wide skills spectrum The first suggestion that brought unanimous agreement was to have formal rankings at each level based on player skill ratings in four areas: 1) Throwing/catching; 2) Fielding; 3) Hitting; and 4) Speed/Athleticism. This will allow us to get a true picture of the range of skills and organize teams accordingly. A more ongoing and comprehensive ranking initiative is being investigated but for now we‟ll start with a spring ‟06 ranking of players. The next question that came up was how to structure the tryouts/rankings and ultimately the teams. As many of you know, Harvard plays in the HLBB league for Majors and Minors, playing teams from Lancaster, Berlin and Bolton.
Majors – Typically Ages 11 and 12 Technically, all Little League 9 year olds and up are eligible for Majors. Little League age means the child's age as of April 30th. We discussed the pros and cons of opening up major league tryouts to 9 and 10 year olds. It was agreed that we would restrict Major League tryouts to 11/12 year olds this year with the goals of: Fielding at least one competitive major league team Placing 11 year olds (and even 12 year olds if necessary) in a level of appropriate skill to foster learning and ensure safety - meaning placing 11/12 year olds in minors in some cases. Having said that, give 11 and especially 12 year olds every possible consideration to play majors but with an eye on any safety concerns.
The current plan is to hold Major League tryouts on March 5th at 4PM at Athletes Edge in Acton for 11 and 12 year olds interested in participating in Majors. This will provide a sense of how many teams we‟ll be able to field this year. We very well may need to have additional outdoor evaluation sessions. Minors – Typically Ages 9 and 10 Structuring Minors is more challenging than Majors because there are more players and a wider skills spectrum. Our objectives for minors are: Create a dynamic, safe and competitive minor league system comprised primarily of 9/10 year olds, and in some cases 11 and even 12 year olds. Preserve the quality of the Minor League System - (i.e. don't thin out minors to compensate for player shortages at the major league levels, rather limit the number of Major League teams if necessary and invest in Minors). Create two tiers of Minor League teams (A/B) based on ranking players (tryouts).
The current plan to achieve these objectives is: 1. Gain agreement from HLBB towns to create two Minors levels (A & B) 2. Hold outdoor tryouts (maybe indoor too) and rank the kids using the same system described earlier 3. Field 1-2 Minor League A teams that play the other towns' minor league A teams. In addition, field 2-3 minor league B teams that play comparable teams in other towns.
We have not yet scheduled the tryout sessions for Minors. Our plan is to apply lessons learned from Majors to the Minor League process. Rookies – Typically Ages 6, 7 & 8 Rookies is probably the most challenging program with 5 teams, limited field access and an extremely wide skills spectrum. Our goals for Rookie Ball are: Foster an interest in baseball and emphasize fundamental skills and lots of practice Place children of different skill levels in appropriate programs Where possible, begin to play „real baseball‟ with coach pitch and maybe even some kid pitch games
Our plan for achieving these goals is: 1. Create a tiered system with A/B and maybe field an All Girls Team. 2. Gain agreement from HLBB to tier Rookies (A & B) 3. Hold outdoor evaluations in April and rank the kids using the same system described earlier 4. Field 1-2 Rookie A teams that play the other towns' Rookie A teams. In addition, field 2-3 other Rookie teams that play each other in town. T-Ball – Typically Ages 5 & 6 No changes are currently planned for T-ball. The major challenge is finding coaches who are adept at herding cats. Girls Softball – Girls in Grades 3-6 There are no major changes planned for softball this year – we will have 3 teams again and all will play an inter-town schedule against Littleton, Bolton, Groton, and Ayer. In summary, if it all sounds a bit unsettled, that's because it is a work in process. Even though we've been meeting since September/October we had many issues to tackle. One thing's for sure - we are trying to improve Harvard Youth Baseball / Softball and are open-minded, flexible and eager for the support of people like you. Please comment on these thoughts and submit ideas. Here‟s a list of contacts: http://www.harvardbaseball.org/Contacts.asp?org=HARVARDBASEBALL.ORG
Stay involved and make a difference! And thanks for participating in Harvard Youth Baseball & Softball. p.s. Please spread the word as not everyone has provided us an email address.