Information AboutLittle League |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT LITTLE LEAGUE BASEBALL | |
| childrens sport | |
| little league | |
| softball | |
| 1939 establishments | |
| lycoming county, pennsylvania | |
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]] ]] Little League Baseball is the name of a Non-profit organization in the United States which organizes local children's leagues of Baseball and Softball throughout the USA and the rest of the world. The Little League was founded by Carl Stotz in 1939 as a three-team league in Williamsport , Pennsylvania . Little League enrollment has declined in recent years due to inroads made by Cal Ripken and travel baseball leagues which allow kids to play on larger fields with real baseball rules starting at younger ages. The Little League Museum is also located on the Little League International Complex in South Williamsport. It provides a history of Little League Baseball and interactive exhibits for children. The organization now has its headquarters in South Williamsport, directly across the Susquehanna River from the site of the original league; however, it continues to have a Williamsport postal address. South Williamsport also hosts the Little League World Series at Howard J. Lamade Stadium and Little League Volunteer Stadium . Little League Baseball encourages volunteers to run Little League programs. DIVISIONS These "little leagues" are divided into six divisions based on the ages of the children playing: Tee Ball , Minors, Little (or Majors), Junior, Senior and Big. The age-cutoffs between divisions may differ from league to league, especially in the younger age groups. "Majors" is generally 11 and 12 year olds, with some leagues allowing 10 or 9 year olds to play. Juniors are 13-14, Seniors are 15-16, with some leagues allowing 14's to play, and Big is 17-18, with 16's sometimes being allowed. Little League welcomes both boys and girls between the ages of 5 and 18. Another division of Little League is the "Challenger Division" which is designed for children with disabilities. One of the aims of Little League, other than simply to have fun, is to teach children about Team work, Sportsmanship and fair play. Their watchwords are '' Character , Courage , Loyalty LITTLE LEAGUE WORLD SERIES The most well-known event in the Little League calendar is the annual Little League Baseball World Series , which is held every August in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania . While the league has instituted a pitch count, it has failed to do anything about young pitchers throwing curve balls which doctors know injure young pitcher's arms. Tournaments leading up to the World Series are held throughout the USA, including the territories of the U.S. Virgin Islands , the Northern Mariana Islands , and Puerto Rico , and also across the rest of the world. In 2003 for example, there were also tournaments in Canada , Europe ( Germany and Poland ), Latin America ( Mexico , Panama , Curaçao , Aruba and Venezuela ), and in Asia ( Japan , Philippines , South Korea , Taiwan ) and Peru. The Little League Baseball World Series is just one of eight World Series every year. There are series for baseball and softball in Little, Junior, Senior and Big Leagues, each one held in a different location. HISTORY Carl Stotz, a resident of Williamsport, Pennsylvania, founded Little League Baseball in 1939. He began experimenting with his idea in the summer of 1938 when he gathered his nephews, Jimmy and Major Gehron and their neighborhood friends. They tried different field dimensions over the course of the summer and played several informal games. The following summer Stotz felt that he was ready to establish what became Little League Baseball. The first league in Williamsport had just three teams, each sponsored by a different business. The first teams, Jumbo Pretzel, Lycoming Dairy and Lundy Lumber were managed by Carl Stotz and two of his friends George and Bert Bebble. The men joined by their wives and another couple formed the first ever Little League Board of Directors. Stotz's dream of establishing a baseball league for boys to teach fair play and Teamwork had come true. 1 The first Little League game took place on June 6 , 1939 . Lundy Lumber defeated Lycoming Dairy 23-8. Lycoming Dairy came back to claim the league champioship. They, the first half season champions, defeated Lundy Lumber the second half champs in a best of three season ending series. The following year a second league was formed in Williamsport and from there Little League Baseball grew from a three teams in a small Pennsylvania town to an international organization of nearly 200,000 teams in every U.S. State and over 80 countries all around the world. According to the official web site of Little League Baseball, littleleague.com, there are more than 2.3 million players in Little League Baseball, worldwide, as of 2007, including 400,000 girls registered in Girl's Softball. For tournament purposes, official Little League is divided into 16 geographic regions, 8 National, and 8 international. The National regions are New England, Mid-Atlantic, Southeast, Great Lakes, Midwest, Southwest, Northwest, and West (including Hawaii). The international regions are Canada, Mexico, Caribbean, Latin America (Central America and South America), Transatlantic (Europe and the Middle East), EMEA (Europe, the Middle East, and Africa), Japan, and Asia-Pacific (all other countries in Asia and the Pacific). Timeline Early years 1939 - Little League is established by Carl Stotz. The first season is played in a lot near Bowman Field . Lycoming Dairy is the first season champion. 1946 - Little League has expanded to 12 leagues all of which are in Pennsylvania. 1947 - The first league outside of Pennsylvania is founded in Hammonton , New Jersey . Maynard League of Williamsport defeats a team from Lock Haven , Pennsylvania to win the first Little League World Series. Allen Yearick is the first Little League graduate to play professional baseball when he is signed by the Boston Braves . |
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