Five and six year olds play in the T Ball league. Several practices are held in April, once the weather breaks. Teams play every Saturday morning and one night per week (Monday through Thursday) from early May until mid-June. You can expect to play 12 to 14 games. Players are divided into teams of nine or ten and receive a uniform shirt and hat. T Ball players can ask to play on teams with their friends. No records or team standings are kept. As in all leagues, parents of the players provide coaching.
T Ball allows young players to continue to develop their skills. Batters all start swinging at a RIF ball placed on a tee. Fielders play normal positions with catchers optional. The team at bat continues to hit until all players have hit or the defensive team makes three outs; yes, it does happen! Coaches are allowed in the field as well as along the baselines. Games continue for three innings or 1 ½ hours, whichever comes first. As the season progresses and player skills develop, coaches may pitch underhand to the players.
INTERMEDIATE
Seven and eight year olds play in the Intermediate league. Practice and game schedules are similar to T Ball. Teams play 10 players in the field and teams, therefore, consist of 10 to 12 players. In order to keep the teams as even as possible, players new to the Intermediate league attend an indoor tryout and draft. Coaches select the teams. All age appropriate players are selected. Player fees include a hat, uniform shirt and baseball pants. Beginning at the Intermediate league, actual team selections are up to the coaches. Requests to play with friends are, therefore, not always able to be accommodated. Again, the objective is to select fair teams. No records or team standings are kept. Parents of the players provide coaching.
In a step towards regular baseball, Intermediate batters no longer use a batting tee. A RIF ball is used. The fielding team plays all the normal positions, including catcher, with the addition of a fourth outfielder. The team at bat continues to hit until all players have hit or the defensive team makes three outs. A unique feature of the league is the use of a spring-loaded pitching machine. These machines “throw” a very consistent, hittable pitch that keeps the games moving along. Strikeouts do occur, but only foul balls and swings and misses are counted as strikes. There are no called third strikes. Base runners cannot leadoff or steal. They can only run on a batted ball. Games consist of four innings or two hours, whichever comes first. As the season progresses, usually about the halfway point, limited player pitching is introduced. After four balls, the batter’s coach pitches until the batter hits the ball or strikes out swinging.
The Intermediate league offers the first chance for players to tryout for a travel team that plays in our league tournament in early July as well as several other weekend tournaments in neighboring towns through the month of July. Tryouts for the team are usually held on a weekend near the end of the regular season. See “TRAVEL TEAMS” for more information.
MINORS
Nine and ten year olds play in the Minor league. Practice, game schedules, the number of players per team, the method of selecting teams are the same as the Intermediate league. Some new aspects are added as follows-
• League play usually starts in late April • Games are six innings long and are played to completion unless darkness or inclement weather force an earlier conclusion. • A 10 run after four full innings mercy rule is in effect. • Several “crossover games” against teams of a similar age in the Red Willison league in Lima may be played. These games take place at our fields and Mark Tubbs Park in Lima, giving players the experience of playing “away”. • HFMYB fields have “home run” fences. • Players pitch the games using standard baseballs. For the first half of the season, there are no walks. After the pitcher throws four balls, the hitter’s coach pitches, in accordance with the hitter’s skill level. In the second half of the season, only players pitch and four balls equals a walk. • Umpires call balls and strikes from behind the plate. Volunteer coaches provide the umpiring on weeknights; paid umpires work the weekend games. • While leading off bases is not allowed; limited stealing is introduced mid way through the season. • Team records and league standings are maintained. At the end of the regular season, every team is seeded based on their records and a modified double elimination tournament is played to determine the league champion.
Minor league players also have the opportunity to try out for travel teams. These teams are competitively selected and play competitive baseball. See “TRAVEL TEAMS” for more information. Minor league players can also play in the “August League” and “Fall League”. See those sections for more information.
MAJORS
11 and 12 year olds play in the Majors. Differences from the Minor league are as follows-
• Players pitch all the games and four balls is always a walk. • Paid umpires call balls and strikes at all games. • While leading off bases is not allowed, base runners can steal once the ball crosses home plate.
Major league players also have the opportunity to try out for travel teams, including the Mendon Storm. The Storm plays an extensive travel schedule, culminating with a weeklong tournament at Dreams Park in Cooperstown NY at the end of July. These teams are selected competitively and play competitive baseball. See “TRAVEL TEAMS” for more information. Major league players can also play in the “August League” and “Fall League”. See those sections for more information.
SENIORS
HFMYB has offered a continued baseball experience for teens through age 18 for many years. Teams are generally formed for 13/14, 15/16 and 17/18 year olds. Full uniforms are provided, with players keeping the hat but returning the shirt and pants. Only rubber spikes are allowed in this league.
This season for teens 13 to 16 begins the first weekend in May and continues through the 1st of July. If there is sufficient interest, a “second season” of play runs from Jul1 to mid-August. The 17/18 League begins play in mid-June and continues until early August. The league includes teams formed by other local towns including, Fairport, Penfield, Brighton, etc. and all games are played on regulation 90 fields, both locally and in the other towns. This is a travel league.
Until 2007, all home games were played either on the HFL Varsity baseball field or the school field located behind Lima Primary School in Lima NY. In late 2006, with the support of league parents, HFMYB began construction of its own regulation field for the Senior League. The field was substantially completed in late 2007. We expect at least limited play on our newest field in 2008 as grass cover thickens.
TRAVEL TEAM PLAY
Our regular spring league that plays through Father’s Day accepts all players of appropriate age as long as space is available. For those players who wish to play at a more competitive level, HFMYB forms travel teams at the Majors, Minors and Intermediate levels. These programs are described below-
Majors - Two majors level travel teams are formed as long as there is sufficient interest. The Mendon Storm team is composed of approximately 12 players who will be age 10, 11 or 12 on April 30 and played in the HFMYB league in the prior year or are new to the area. Tryouts for this team are usually held in the prior fall (eg. September 2007 for the 2008 team), after announcements have been mailed to all age appropriate league players. Players on this team and their families must be willing to make a commitment of time and money. The team usually practices in the fall, weather permitting, and winter (indoor facility). The team is focused on playing in a weeklong tournament at Dreams Park in Cooperstown NY near the end of July. Teams from across the USA attend the tournament and form the competition. This is a highlight for many players and their families. Because the tournament is played on fields with 70-foot base paths with all rules of the game applying, the Storm usually plays in a local travel league using the same rules. This season runs concurrently with the regular league season. The team also plays in a Memorial Day Weekend tournament and in the HFMYB tournament before going to Cooperstown. If you love baseball, this is the team for you. It is a lot of fun and a lot of competitive baseball straight through the end of July.
A second travel team, the Black team, is formed in June based on competitive tryouts, if there is sufficient interest. This team practices and plays in the HFMYB tournament as well as other local tournaments in surrounding towns which may include Honeoye, Lima, Victor, East Rochester, Canandaigua and others. The travel season can extend through the end of July depending on the number of tournaments entered.
Minors- As long as sufficient interest exists, two Minor league travel teams are formed, the Gold team and the Black team. These teams are selected at competitive tryouts held in June and play a schedule similar to the Major league Black team. Due to the limited roster size, players selected for the Gold team make a more significant commitment to being available to play through the end of July. The Black team usually has a larger roster and can more easily accommodate players who have vacations or other planned absences.
Intermediate- HFMYB has recently begun to form one or two Intermediate travel teams. These teams may be selected competitively depending on player interest. The teams play in the HFMYB July tournament and may play in one or two other weekend tournaments in surrounding towns.
DRILLS AND SKILLS
Based on our experiences of the past three years, we have decided to make some changes that will affect the T-Ball league. Beginning in 2008, we will sponsor a “DRILLS AND SKILLS” program for new four year olds. The program will consist of six Saturday sessions lasting an about an hour. New players will learn the basic skills for baseball – hitting, fielding, throwing and running. The emphasis will be on having fun while getting ready to “hit the ground running” when they turn 5 and enter T-Ball.
We believe that this change will provide a better experience for our 4 year olds and give them an early strong foundation. We have learned that the development differential between 4 and 6 year olds is very significant. Having the 4 year olds play as a group will be much safer. It will also improve the T-Ball experience for our 5 and 6 year olds who have progressed physically.
Our league has experienced a recent trend of players wanting to play in the league above their normal age group. We expect that the addition of “Drills &Skills” will result in most players staying in their age appropriate league rather than registering to play “up”. This will raise the level of play in each league, providing opportunities to hone skills while having fun
So spread the word to your friends with young children. There’s a new game in town!
