Here are some common questions we get about SF Little League.
Q: How are teams formed?
Little League uses a team Draft where the volunteer coaches all get together and select kids to join their teams. This means that as a parent, you don't have a lot of control over what team your player ends up on. There is one big exception to this. Become a coach, and your kid will play on your team!
Spring teams are typically drafted in late January and your coach will reach out to you shortly after the draft.
Over a few seasons, families will meet more and more of the community and you'll soon find it a regular occurrence to know several families on opposing teams by the time you reach Majors.
Q: What is a Skills Evaluation Session (SES)?
Once a year we hold SES to help Little League place our players in the correct Divisions and help our Coaches draft fair teams. It is not a try out. It's a tool to help us keep the league balanced by distributing talent. SES is mandatory for all players including players on the waitlists.
Q: Where and when are practices and games held?
Each team coach enters a lottery to secure a practice field during the week. Practices will start in late February. The best way to be sure your practice field is convenient to you is to become a coach!
Games are scheduled on fields in SF and on Treasure Island. (Rookie-Majors on TI) We try to balance our schedules so each team has a similar season within a Division.
Q: What level of play should I expect?
Nearly every team will have a few talented and seasoned players and a few players who have never played baseball before. This is one of the great things about Little League. There's always space for kids to grow as leaders and learners across the spectrum.
Q: What is All Stars?
In our older age groups, top players are invited to join All Star teams representing our league in local competitions. This intense program typically takes place after local championships in the month of June and lasts until our teams either are defeated in regional competition or make it all the way to ESPN and the Little League World Series in August. (SFLL has not yet made it this far, but maybe this is our year!)
Q: How is Little League different than SFYBL?
SFYBL follows a modified version of PONY Baseball Rules. Compared to Little League, base path lengths can vary by age and Lead Offs/Pick Offs are permitted earlier.
SFYBL Teams are mostly self-formed. This allows for school-based and club-based teams. There are different Division tiers within an age group depending on skill level to encourage balanced play within Division.
SFLL uses the SES to build teams with equitable distribution of talent. There are many guidelines such as no more than four from any one school and three from the same school/grade level.
In addition to our Little League divisions, SFLL runs the Challenger Program which is an adaptive baseball division for players with physical, developmental or cognitive disabilities.