PINE BUSH LITTLE LEAGUE
2010 INFORMATION MANUAL
AMERICAN & NATIONAL DIVISIONS
Serving the Communities of Guilderland, Altamont and Voorheesville, NY

Baseball Programs for Players Age 5-12

Address:
PO Box 401
Guilderland , NY 12084
Voice Mail 861-3658
Web Address: www.pinebushbaseball.com
E-Mail: See board member list on website

PLEASE READ!! VERY IMPORTANT FOR ON-LINE REGISTRATION!

This website is to register for Little League Baseball. If you wish to register for the Pine Bush Girls Softball League, go to their website at www.pbgsl.com

This website serves the communities of Guilderland, Altamont and Voorheesville, NY in Albany County, NY. There is a Pine Bush Little League that serves the community of Pine Bush in Orange County, NY. You can access their website here if you reside in Orange County

When registering on-line you must be able to produce an order/reference number when your registration and payment is complete. This will appear on your final receipt and assure that your child is registered. If you cannot find an order/reference number on your receipt your child is not registered and does not exist in the data base and therefore is not placed on a team or draft list because we have no idea he/she exists. If you feel you have completed the on-line registration and cannot produce an order number please contact Dan Hulbert hulbert77@juno.com Please resolve this matter immediately and do not wait and jeopardize your child's placement. This seems to happen to a handful of registrations each year. Please be sure to check and make sure this number appears on your receipt immediately after you register your child.

During the "Parent Information" section of the PBLL on-line registration process you will be prompted to enter a "day" and "evening" phone number. Please put your home or main phone number in both spaces. (If you registered on-line last year, your phone numbers are already listed. Please check and edit them so that the home/main phone number appears in both the "day" and "evening" slots.) Also, when prompted, please indicate the Public Elementary School that serves the district you live in (even if the child does not attend that school)

PLEASE ALSO UPDATE YOUR E-MAIL ADDRESS SO YOU CAN RECEIVE INFORMATION THROUGHOUT THE YEAR FROM PBLL

SEVERAL E-MAIL ADDRESSES GET KICKED BACK TO US.

Please read through this entire information manual. You may want to print it for future reference. It will answer many of your questions and assist you through the registration process. Afterwards you may register by clicking on "Player Registrations" on the left side of the web page or the link at the bottom of this page.

Thank you. By following these guidelines our registration process and communication will be much more efficient. If you have any questions please e-mail Dan Hulbert at hulbert77@juno.com

Registration for the 2010 season begins October 15, 2009 and ends on January 20, 2010. Player participation cannot be guaranteed for those who register after January 20, 2010.

All registration fees, fund raising fees, trophy fees and player concession ticket fees are being collected in one payment at registration. The Registration fee is $160 until December 15th and $175 after December 15th. First additional Siblings are $140. Third siblings and beyond are $90 All fees are included in this one price. Your fund raising fee though itemized below is included in this fee

PBLL is instituted a new fund raiser last year (the 2009 season) and will use the same format for the 2010 season. The raffle ticket fund raiser is $50 per player with a maximum family obligation of $100 if more than 1 sibling is registered. The fund raising requirement is included in the registration fee. The family/player can sell the raffle tickets and recoup their fund raising payment or choose to purchase the tickets and enter the raffle for a chance to win cash prizes. No other fees will be collected for registration, fund raising, trophy purchase or player concession tickets during the season. The only other fees a family might incur is for team pictures and parties or if your child is selected and decides to participate on a travel or all-star team.

These fees are in line with our registration and fund raising from previous years. The primary difference is that the fees are being collected in one payment, up front, to ease the collection process and remove some of that process and responsibility from our team parents.

See the home page for details on the raffle ticket sales and cash prizes.

On-line Registration via the website is the preferred method of Registration. This saves much time for our volunteers. There will also be two walk-in registration dates. They are on Sunday, November 8, 2009 from 1:00 PM-4:00 PM. and on Saturday, January 16, 2010 from 10:00 AM-12:00 PM at the Guilderland Public Library

There is absoluteley no mail-in registration. Please do not send any payment or registration information to the PBLL PO Box. It will not be honored and will be sent back to you and your child will not be considered registered! Late Registrants will be provided a mail-in form that is sent directly to the registrar!

Registration will close on Wednesday, January 20, 2010. Registrations received after that date will not be guaranteed team placement. A mail-in form with instructions on where to send it will be provided for download on the website to those registering after the deadline. Late registrants will be placed on a waiting list.
Registrations over the phone and mail-in registrations will not be accepted

If you encounter a problem during on-line registration please e-mail Dan Hulbert at hulbert77@juno.com

REGISTER EARLY!!!

This website and registration is for Pine Bush Little League BASEBALL. If you want to register for the Pine Bush Girls Softball League, visit their website at www.pbgsl.com

Pine Bush Little League General Information:

2010 League Age: Players must be 5-12 years of age as of April 30, 2010. A copy of the player's birth certificate will be required for all new registrants and can be mailed to the above address following your on-line registration. For a grid to see if your child is league age or what league age he is click here

For players who are 13 years and older as of April 30, 2010 you are eligible for Guilderland Babe Ruth Baseball and must register with that organization.

To be eligible to play in Pine Bush Little League, a player's family must be residents of the Town of Guilderland , Village of Altamont or the Village of Voorheesville and attend Guilderland or Voorheesville Central Schools .

American & National Divisions:
Pine Bush Little League has 2 separate and distinct charters to participate in Little League Baseball. Splitting into 2 leagues or divisions allows PBLL to more efficiently manage a large population of eligible players.
Placement in the American (residents within the Pine Bush Elementary, Lynwood Elementary and Altamont Elementary school district boundaries) or National League (residents within the Guilderland Elementary, Westmere Elementary and Voorheesville Elementary school district boundaries) is based on the Public/Central Elementary School District the player's family resides in (even if the player does not attend the public school of the district he/she lives in)

IT IS REQUIRED DURING THE PBLL REGISTRATION PROCESS THAT YOU INDICATE THE PUBLIC ELEMENTARY SCHOOL DISTRICT (even if your child does not attend that school) THAT YOU LIVE IN SO YOUR CHILD IS PLACED IN THE APPROPRIATE LEAGUE.

Game Site: Roger "Keenholts" Park-Guilderland Center
Off of Route 146 @ French's Mill Road

Practice Sites: Various sites at schools and parks within the towns and at Keenholts Park . Practice schedules and sites are determined by the individual team managers.

Team Placement: Player drafts are held for players 8-12yo. Players 5-7yo are placed on teams with regard to age and buddy requests. Player Placements are Final and Cannot be changed after the draft.

PARENTS OF PLAYERS AGE 5-7 PLEASE NOTE DURING THE REGISTRATION PROCESS YOU MAY INDICATE THE NAME OF 2 BUDDIES YOU WOULD LIKE YOUR CHILD TO BE ON THE SAME TEAM WITH. EVERY EFFORT WILL BE MADE TO PLACE BUDDIES TOGETHER BUT THERE IS NO GUARANTEE THAT ALL CAN BE ACCOMMODATED

FUND RAISING: Each player up to two siblings is required to participate in a single mandatory fundraiser each year. This in recent years has been a very successful candy sale. The PBLL BOD has decided on a new fund raiser for 2009 and will continue with this fund raiser for 2010. The first two players in each family are required to purchase $50 in raffle tickets at registration. You can choose to sell the raffle tickets to recoup the fund raising fee you paid at registration or enter the raffle tickets yourself in the drawing for cash prizes or a combination of selling some and entering some. The choice is up to you. For families with 3 or more siblings registered you are responsible for fund raising of only your first two children registered in PBLL which amounts to a $100 fee. This sibling fundraising "discount" only applies to PBLL siblings not other community baseball or softball programs.

Uniforms: Each player will receive a hat, uniform jersey and team socks for his/her use during the season. Pants must be purchased by parents. They must be gray baseball pants and can be purchased at the PBLL pants sale when uniforms are distributed or independently at local sporting goods stores.

The Uniform Jersey is to be returned to PBLL after the last game of the season. The player keeps the hat and socks. We ask each family to carefully launder and care for their player's uniform jersey to help maintain its expected life.

Organization: Pine Bush Little League is an independent volunteer organization comprised of parents who wish to provide an official Little League program for their children's participation. Registrations, fundraising, concession and donations are our sole sources of income. The League is responsible for the routine preparation and maintenance of all baseball fields.

The PBLL and the Town of Guilderland have collaborated on various Keenholts Park projects and the Town does provide overall park maintenance, however the Town of Guilderland does not subsidize the League's operations in any way.

Player Clinics: Check the website for clinics being held in the winter and early spring months.

Fall Ball: PBLL provides a fall baseball program during September and October. See the website to register for Fall Ball 2010.

Levels of Play:

Tee Ball: Players Age 5-6.A non-competitive (no scores are kept) instructional introduction to baseball. The season begins with players batting off of a tee and progresses to a coach's pitched ball.

Minors: Players Age 6-7.A non-competitive (no standings are kept) instructional league designed to continue the teaching of the game to players. Coaches pitch to the batter during the entire season. Players concentrate on hitting and learning defensive positions.

***PARENTS OF PLAYERS WHO ARE 6 YEARS OLD!! YOU WILL HAVE THE OPTION DURING THE REGISTRATION PROCESS TO PLACE YOUR CHILD IN TEE BALL OR MINORS. READ THE DESCRIPTIONS OF THE LEVELS OF PLAY ABOVE AND IF QUESTIONS REMAIN ABOUT PLACEMENT CONTACT A BOARD MEMBER TO DISCUSS. THE BIGGEST DIFFERENCE IS THAT IN MINORS THEY WILL BE HITTING A PITCHED BALL FROM A COACH AND NOT HITTING OFF OF A TEE.


New for 2008 League Age 12 Year Olds:Little League Baseball has a new rule that went into effect for the 2008 season was continued for the 2009 season and will continue for the 2010 season as well. All league age 12 year old players are required to play in the local league's highest division of play despite their ability or skill level. For Pine Bush Little League this would mean all 12 year old players would play in the Majors Division.

For 2010, Divisional play will follow the format listed below. The only age group that will be split into a first and second draft will be the 11 year olds. All 12 year olds will be placed into the Majors Division draft as indicated above.

8 Year Olds:Players Age 8. A non-competitive (no standings kept) instructional league designed to continue the teaching of the game to players and to transition them to Little League Baseball. A combination of coach and player pitching is utilized throughout the season.

9 Year Olds:Players Age 9. First year of complete baseball techniques with players pitching more of the season and coaches pitching less. Focus is on teaching all aspects of the game, as it will be played in the older leagues.

AAA & Majors: Players Age 10-12. Little League Baseball game rules apply emphasizing the complete range of skills and aspects of the game.

Travel Baseball: Players Age 9-12 who are interested in playing at a more competitive/all-star type level of play in addition to their placement on a Pine Bush Little League team can indicate their interest during registration. This does not guarantee placement on a travel team. Games are played on Sunday's during the spring season through Pine Bush Baseball's Cal Ripken Youth Baseball Charter.

All Star Teams: Pine Bush Baseball has 2 youth baseball charters. Our primary charter is with Little League Baseball, Inc. and we are a member of New York District 13. We have all-star teams in each age group from 8-12 years old in the American and National League. There is also a secondary all-star team for the each 11 and 12 year old age group to give the older players more post-season oppurtunities. Our primary all-star concern is with Little League Baseball and NY District 13. When age population and league resources allow Pine Bush Baseball will also participate in Cal Ripken all-star tournaments. The teams and age groups that participate will be at the discretion of the Pine Bush Baseball Board of Directors and will be reviewed on a year to year basis.

Player Placement Policy:
Placement on a team whether by draft or assignment is final. Each year the number of teams at each level changes and to be fair to all players and give each team an equitable opportunity to draft players we continue to re-draft all teams (ages 8-12) each season. Requests to move drafted players to be with a buddy or coach or even for a car pool are not able to be honored.

Player drafts are held each year for players 8-12. Each manager begins his/her roster with his/her own child and two other children he chooses to secure or "protect" prior to the draft. Generally protected players are children of parents that have offered to help coach or assist the manager in some way. Players are drafted from the pool of registered players to complete the teams. All players in a respective division are eligible to be drafted by any manager in that division, the League places no restrictions.

League Support Programs/Advanced Levels of Parental Support
During the Registration Process you will be asked to consider volunteering for PBLL Support Programs. Below is a description of some of these positions that are vital to the league. Descriptions of other volunteer work duties and jobs are available during the registration process.

Team Managers
Teaches the game of baseball to the players on his/her team. Responsible for the team and takes charge of organizing the players and coaches into a team, sets practice schedule and is responsible for the pre-game preparation and equipment and acts as head coach during the game. If he/she is unable to attend a game ensures that one of the coaches is available to fill in. Supports the team parent in his/her efforts to coordinate the administrative needs of the team. Managers are key to ensuring sufficient teams are available for all registered players.

Coaches
Coaches are selected by the manager to assist in the teaching of baseball skills to the players during practices and during the games. Fills in for the manager as needed.

Team Parents
The parent assigned to work with the team manager and who assumes the administrative responsibilities of the team. He/she sets up phone trees for disseminating information on the team and is the team's direct liaison with the League for all team communications. He/she solicits parents on the team to share in these responsibilities.

Sponsorship Recruitment
A sponsorship committee is needed to solicit team sponsors, yearbook ads and field signs to generate revenue to maintain the league operations.

Parents Auxiliary
Parents take turns at operating the concession stand to prepare the stand to open prior to the game, training and supervising the parents in the stand during the game and cleaning up and closing the stand after the games.