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STILLY VALLEY LITTLE LEAGUE

STILLY VALLEY SOFTBALL

Stilly Valley Softball takes pride in coaching the youth of our community. From the ages 6 all the way to 16 we have a division for you. Whether you are new to the sport or have played for many seasons, we welcome you to Stilly Valley Little League!

Let’s figure out what division your player should be in. We place your player into a division by league age, per Little League International the Age Determination Date for a Little League Softball player is the actual age of a child on December 31 of the previous year.

Example for spring 2025: If your player is 8 years old on December 31 of 2024 then your player’s league age is 8 for the 2025 season’s, even if your player turns 9 in February 2025 before the spring season starts, the player is league age 8.

Check out the league age chart for clarification.

Divisions. Click a division to learn more about them.

                              Rookies (6-8)         Minors (9-11)         Majors (10-12)         Juniors (13-14)         Seniors (15-16)


WHAT WILL YOU NEED?

What will you need for equipment and uniforms? For equipment the league provides team catchers gear, catcher’s glove, 1 bat, and 1 helmet. For uniforms the league provides a jersey, you will have to get pants, socks, and a belt according to the coach’s team color. So, wait until you’re on a team and a coach informs you on the team colors.



                                                             

Fielding masks are not required and ultimately, we leave it up to the parents. Why are softball players wearing face mask and not baseball players? Well first off dental work is expensive! The sole purpose of a face mask is to protect the individual from a line drive or bad hop to the face. So, why softball, the pitcher starts anywhere from 35-ft to 43-ft and by the time they plant and release the ball the pitcher is now about 10-ft closer than they were when they started. There is not much time to react if the ball is line drived back to the pitcher. It gets faster as they move up in divisions and up to college, the pitches are faster and better hitters. Generally, our coaches will push for pitchers, 1st basemen, and 3rd basemen to wear masks for safety of the players. 


For fielding gloves take a look at the chart below for glove sizes. Rookies and minor divisions use an 11-in ball while majors and up use 12-in ball.

Bats and what you should know

Bats, they can get expensive and if your player is new then the bat finding experience can be overwhelming. Let's dive into some bat basics! First thing to know is there are two common bat styles aluminum and composite. Composite bats are a bit more on the expensive side while aluminum bats are more moderately priced. Once style is determined next thing to think about is the length of the bat. 



The funny thing about the length is that it's also used to determine the drop weight of the bat. these drop numbers are shown as a negative number (-11).



Now that we have determined the style, length, and drop (weight), we need to make sure the bat is approved. 



These approved markings are known as stamps. 
Bat stamps, this can be confusing, but we are here to clarify! Softball bat rules are different from Baseball in the fact that Baseball requires USA stamp, and Softball can use USA or ASA stamps. According to Little League International all bats must meet certain specifications and standards. The stamps on the bat show officials that the bat was tested and meets standards and are checked before games. This goes for All-stars as well.

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