FAQ



FAQ

What gear or equipment does each family need to supply for their player(s):

NWSLL does not provide the following REQUIRED gear:

  • Baseball glove (mitt)
  • Cleats (soccer or football shoes work just fine)
  • Protective cup (for boys)
  • wind breaker or other clothing for cold/wet weather
  • Water bottle (as there are no drinking fountains at most field locations)
  • For older divisions (usually kid pitch divisions), players will be expected to have their own pants, socks, and undershirt (to match the team colors).

 

Is there any “optional” gear we should consider for our player?

The following items are not required, but families may choose to supply these for their player:

  • Personal helmet
  • personal bat
  • batting gloves
  • gear bag



What if I cannot afford the appropriate equipment for my child?

Please contact your coach or any little league board member if your family needs assistance to outfit your child with appropriate equipment. NWSLL is committed to including all players who wish to play and we will help your child acquire what he/she need.

 

What are the AA and AAA baseball divisions?

To comply with the District 8 standards, we have added the AA and AAA divisions for baseball in place of what we formerly called “Minors”.

The addition of the AA division (also known as 89ers) will allow 8 year old baseball players to play “kid pitch” baseball with the 9 year olds.

The new AAA division will be a “stepping stone” for 10 and 11 year old baseball players on their journey to Majors baseball.   This new division will be a more competitive division and provide more inter-league games than the league we have historically called “Baseball Minors”.

The addition of the AAA league will also raise the level of our Majors division teams to a level at par with the rest of the division 8 leagues, as most of the Majors games are “inter-league” in nature and more competitive than AAA.

 

Should my daughter play baseball or fast pitch softball?

Girls have the choice of playing baseball or “fast pitch” softball. We recommend starting girls in softball after they’ve played at least one year of Tee-ball,  around age 7. We’ve noticed that most girls who continue on in baseball stop playing at the Minors or Majors level, whereas girls who start softball early often continue playing through high school.  Softball players will make friends with the girls she will continue playing with year after year, forming bonds that are important for most girls to continue in sports. If your daughter happens to excel or you are looking for athletic challenge, there are more opportunities available for girls in fast-pitch softball as they get older.

Player evaluations

As each of our teams in “KID PITCH” baseball will be chosen by a “draft” procedure, all players wishing to play in AA, AAA and Majors Baseball must attend Player Evaluations in early February.

Some players may be considering the option to “play up” into a division above their registered age group. These players must attend evaluations for both the age group they would like to play in and the age group they fall in at registration. Evaluations occur in February.

What happens on Evaluations day?  What if we can’t make it to any of the try-out dates?

Player evaluations (AKA “Try outs”) are an activity at which all players who desire to play “kid pitch” baseball (in AA, AAA and Majors) are asked to participate.  Player evaluations happen usually on the weekend before Mid-winter break (early Feb) and take place at a local field (usually a turf field due to weather issues in February.)

At the evaluation day, players are asked to take turns batting, fielding and running the bases. The NWSLL team coaches attend the evaluation and rate each players demonstrated skills (other things are also looked at like effort, attitude and maturity).

If a child cannot attend any of the try-out dates,  coaches may compare notes on what they know of the player from last season so that the player can be “rated” correctly in relation to other the other players.  In some cases, the player’s name will be drawn out of a hat at the end of the draft process to determine team placement for that player.  Any player requesting to play up will be required to attend player evaluations.

What should my child bring to the evaluation day?

Kids will be running, fielding and batting. If at all possible, players should wear baseball attire including baseball cleats and baseball pants or sweats. Players should also wear a protective cup, bring a glove and water bottle.

Batting helmets, bats and baseballs are provided but if preferred, a child may wear his/her own helmet or hit with his/her personal bat. There will also be extra gloves should a player need to borrow one.

How is my child selected to a team?

At the end of the evaluation weekend, coaches get together and decide if any and which players will be invited to “Play up”.  Then the coaches will have a player “draft” to choose teams. The purpose behind a draft process is to create teams that are most equally matched in terms of experience and skill, so that there is parity among all NW teams.

Can my child “play up”?

“Playing up” is an option for some players.  NWSLL allows players to request to play up one division by choosing the YES box when asked if you request this option during the registration process.  During the registration process, you cannot register for the division you wish to play up to, but this does not matter, as every player requesting to play up will be given the same opportunity based on the below process.

If you are thinking that you want your player to play in a division “up” from the one specified in the table above, please follow these steps:

“Play-Up” Step 1:  Go through player registration process, and check the YES box when asked: “We request our child be evaluated to play up“.  Do not falsify player age in registration in order to register in upper division (this is important).

“Play-Up” Step 2: Player must participate in BOTH player evaluation sessions in February (the division for which your child is registered AND the requested “Play Up” division).  If you do not hear from the league regarding times and places for BOTH sessions, please send an inquiry email to get the required information.  Send email to [email protected]

“Play-Up” Step 3: After Player Evaluations and before team selections (draft), decisions on all “play up” candidates will be made.

Please understand that the league is taking the following into consideration:

  • Demonstrated skills/ability at Player Evaluations
  • Confirmation that the player play safely and competently in the upper division
  • Feedback from the coach from last season
  • Composition of teams and number of players in each division
  • Team parity in each division

The league will let you know if other information is needed.

NOTE: Do not put in a “false” Date of Birth during registration!   It is VERY important that every player be registered with a correct birthday, as Little League Rules need to be followed for each division.

Please see our FAQ document for NWSLL policies on playing up.  If you have questions about league age or “playing up” please contact us at [email protected].

Common “Play Up” Scenarios:

Here are a couple of “Play up” scenarios:

An ELEVEN year old requesting to play up to MAJORS from AAA: 

In this case, an Eleven year old player may have displayed a high level of skill during the previous season (in Minors or on the ten year old All Stars team).  This player may request to play up to Majors if they feel that they are ready for the higher level of competition (against older and bigger kids) in Majors.   Based on the criteria listed above in “Play up Step 3”, the player may be invited to play up in the Majors division.

Another situation may be that an 11 year old player may not have requested to play up, but at evaluations the coaches determine that it may be a good fit for the player to play up. In this case, the majors coordinator or registrar will contact the parents of that player and discuss the decision of whether or not the player should play up.

A NINE year old requesting to play up to AAA baseball from AA :

In this scenario, a nine year who has played a season of Kid Pitch baseball (as an eight year old) and may want to experience the added challenge of AAA baseball (and the bigger kids/better pitching/harder hitting that comes with it ).   This player may have played at a high level the season before or played extensively in summer and fall ball leagues this past year.

In this case, the parents will request that the player “play up” in registration and then the player will attend BOTH the AA and AAA player evaluation sessions.  If there are roster spots which need to be filled on AAA teams, and moving those players up will help team/league parity, this player may be invited to play up to AAA.

It must be a point of emphasis that not being invited to “play up” does not mean that that player is not a good player or have high skills. The fact that one of NWSLL’s goals is to have “parity between all teams in each division and 12 players per team” may dictate how many players play up, not the skill level of each player who may have requested to play up.   Overall, team parity create a better experience for all teams and players.


What does it cost to play Northwest Little League?

Beyond player registration fees and business sponsorships, NWSLL relies each year on a fundraising component to pay for roughly 25% of our league expenses.  In May 2018, NWSLL held our annual Fan Fest to close out the fundraising drive.  As you may recall the Fan Fest included team pictures, fun player and team contests, and prizes including video game and pizza parties for the top fundraising teams.  And thanks to our generous community, we exceeded our 2018 goals!

For many years NWSLL fundraising has involved the sale of tickets.  To simplify matters for the league and for our families, we have decided to move away from tickets and toward an exclusively donation-based model for 2019.  As Spring approaches we will communicate further details on our 2019 Fan Fest fundraising drive, but if you would prefer to make a donation in advance, we will happily apply this to your player’s individual and team fundraising totals (which are eligible for prizes).  As a refresher here were the individual fundraising goals for last year (we expect them to remain the same or similar for 2019):

  • Rookies/SB 78ers/Tee-Ball – team average of $50 per player
  • AA Baseball & Softball – team average of $90 per player
  • AAA/Majors/Juniors Baseball & Softball – team average of $120 per player

As communicated last year we absolutely recognize that not all NWSLL families are able to achieve such fundraising targets, so for those of our families in position to raise greater-than-average amounts, we appreciate your efforts to financially support our league and provide ball-playing opportunities for all.

 

Other details

  • Additional players from the same family each receive a $25 discount after the first child is registered.
  • Each family is asked to participate in the Fan Fest fundraising drive.
  • The policy of  NWSLL is to issue no refunds after a child has played in a sanctioned game. Prior to playing in a sanctioned game, partial refunds are available.  Please click here for details.
  • In case you register your 8 year old for AA but he/she later chooses to play in Rookies, a refund will be issued for the difference in the registration fees.
  • No child will be denied an opportunity to play for financial reasons. Please download the Scholarship Application, complete it and send it to us before you register.

NWSLL Scholarship Request Form

 

Should I become a League Member?

All board members, managers, coaches, and umpires are required to become members. Membership allows you to attend the general membership meeting in September and to elect board members.  Please fill out the Adult volunteer Registration form to become a member.

Volunteer information

The success of our league depends upon volunteers. Please consider volunteering your time and skills to help make our league better! The registration process allows you to select volunteer opportunities that may interest you review this website for more details.

Tax-deductible donations

Please consider making a tax deductible donation to NWSLL. This year, these funds will be used to provide scholarships to needy families, continue with field improvements, and to purchase new equipment, such as pitching machines for our teams. The registration process has a field where you can specify tax-deductible donations.

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