SOUTH BAY PONY FALL BASEBALL
Fall is the secondary Baseball Season for South Bay PONY (SBP) Baseball. Boys and Girls, ages 4-14, from all over South Bay are invited to play. There is no experience necessary. The Fall season tends to be for our more passionate players, but we also encourage new players who have never tried PONY before to give it a try.
In the Fall participants move up to the next age group, so they can prepare for the upcoming Spring season. So an 8-year-old playing in Pinto National (8U) during the Spring will move up to Mustang (9U & 10U) for the following Fall, and then they will be in Mustang again the next Spring. Our sports year runs from August to July. We calculate a players age on the last day April during the sports year.
In the Fall season we encourage Team Registration. We encourage groups of friends in the same division to register together as a Team with a Coach. This is different from the Spring when most of our divisions have player evaluations and player drafts, and you must register as an individual. Teams must have a designated Coach in order to register as a Team.
In the Fall we also allow Individual Registration. You can register as an Individual and we will do our best to place you on a good team. In the unfortunate situation where we cannot find you a team for the Fall, we will fully refund your Registration Fees.
Registration typically runs from mid July until late August, and we begin playing in mid-September. The regular season runs through November. We typically take off the week of Thanksgiving, including both the weekend before and after the holiday because most schools in the area take off the entire week. We will try to play 8 games for the younger divisions and 10 games for the kid pitch divisions, if there is enough field space. We will have double headers for the kid pitch divisions get to 10 games. If there is interest, we may offer a short Fall Playoff Tournament for participating teams in December. The Fall Playoff Tournament may vary by division and is not guaranteed.
There will be 7 Divisions (or more) in the Fall Season. Most of the interest in Fall Ball tends to be in the Kid Pitch Divisions, Pinto National and older. In kid pitch divisions we try to separate All Star/Select teams from Rec teams, to make the games competitive and fun for all participants.
- Shetland American (4-5 years old)
- Shetland National (5-6 years old)
- Pinto American (7 years old)
- Pinto National (8 years old)
- Mustang (9-10 years old)
- Bronco (11-12 years old)
- Pony (13-14 years old)
Shetland American (4-5 years old)
The Shetland American division is the start of our baseball journey. Teams will use a combination of Tee Ball and Coach Pitch. There are no outs. Every player hits a single every at bat, until the last batter each inning clears the bases with a GRAND SLAM!! We start on an age appropriate 50' diamond and do not keep score.
Most of our participants play soccer or another sport in the Fall, so most activities will be on Sundays to minimize conflicts. Shetland American teams will also have practices during the week.
The Shetland American division is great fun, but the kids need to be ready to play and the parents need to be involved. This is a Team Sport, and not a drop-off activity or daycare. It typically takes 4-6 coaches/parents to effectively run a Shetland American practice or game. Parents should be practicing baseball skills at home.
Shetland National (5-6 years old)
The Shetland National division is the second step of our baseball journey. Teams start to incorporate outs and extra base hits. Teams will use a Blue Flame pitching machine. Emphasis is on instruction and fun, not competition. Every player is given the opportunity to try different positions and every player plays the entire game. Every player is in the batting order, but Shetland National limits innings to 3 outs (or 5 runs). We use a 50' diamond and do not keep score.
Most of our participants play soccer or another sport in the Fall, so most activities will be on Sundays to minimize conflicts. Shetland National teams will also have practices during the week.
If a five-year-old is still learning the basics, he or she should be in Shetland American, even if friends are playing in Shetland National.
Pinto American (7 years old)
The Pinto American division is often considered the most fun level of baseball, because the kids are old enough to hit consistently, strong enough to drive the ball to the outfield, and developed enough to make regular defensive plays. There is a lot of action, so the kids get a large number of repetitions on offense and defense, and they get to learn a great deal about the game of baseball.
For the Pinto American division we move the kids up to a 60' diamond. We use the Jugs pitching machine to pitch consistent strikes. This is the first level where we keep official score for games.
Pinto American games will be on Sundays, to allow the kids to play soccer on Sundays. We will also attempt to offer practice times during the week, if the city allocates enough field space for practices.
Pinto National (8 years old)
The Pinto National division is typically our most popular Fall Ball division. This is the year kids transition from machine pitch to kid pitch, so the extra repetitions are very helpful getting players comfortable with both pitching the ball and hitting kid pitch. We encourage all players to try pitching. We will offer Pitching and Catching clinics for players to learn the fundamentals of pitching.
The Fall Season is mostly games. Practices are not guaranteed. Most of our participants play soccer or another sport in the Fall, so most activities will be on Sundays to minimize conflicts.
Starting in Pinto National, there will be 2 divisions, a Competitive Division and a Rec Division. The Competitive Division is designed for All Star teams, Select teams, and Travel Teams who wish to challenge their players with high level competition. The Rec Division is designed for players who would like to learn the new rules for a division, play more casual baseball, and develop more confidence at their level.
Mustang (9-10 years old)
Beginning with Mustang League, the players are playing real baseball in accordance with the rules of Major League Baseball, with only a few specific PONY rules where appropriate for this age group. Kids are allowed to lead off, steal at any time, work on pick-off moves, etc. This is a kid pitch division with a 60-foot diamond (46 feet to pitchers mound).
The Fall Season is mostly games. Most of our participants play soccer or another sport in the Fall, so most activities will be on Sundays to minimize conflicts.
Mustang will have 2 divisions, a Competitive Division and a Rec Division. The Competitive Division is designed for All Star teams, Select teams, and Travel Teams who wish to challenge their players with high level competition. The Rec Division is designed for players who would like to learn the new rules for a division, play more casual baseball, and develop more confidence at their level.
Bronco (11-12 years old)
In the Bronco division players step up to a 70-foot diamond and a 50-foot pitching mound. This is part of the PONY philosophy of adjusting the size of the diamond to player's size, strength, and ability. The players are playing real baseball in accordance with the rules of Major League Baseball, with a few specific PONY rules where appropriate for this age group.
The Fall Season is only games. Most games will be on Sundays, but some Bronco games may also be played on other days.
Bronco will have 2 divisions, a Competitive Division and a Rec Division. The Competitive Division is designed for All Star teams, Select teams, and Travel Teams who wish to challenge their players with high level competition. The Rec Division is designed for players who would like to learn the new rules for a division, play more casual baseball, and develop more confidence at their level.PONY 13U & 14U
The Pony Division is considered a “high school” prep division with thirteen and fourteen year old players competing with 90’ bases and pitchers throwing from 60 feet. Pony players play one of the most fascinating games in all of youth baseball. Well beyond the beginners stage, they have mastered all but the finest points of technique and strategy and can play the game with a skill comparable to that of older players.
The Fall Season is only games. In a typical year, games will be Friday, Saturday, or Sunday, but the exact schedule will depend on field allocation from the city.
IMPORTANT DATES
July 16, 2023 Registration opens
August 27, 2023 Registration closes
Sept 10, 2023 Games begin
VOLUNTEERS
Volunteers are a critical part of PONY Baseball. We could not provide such high quality baseball at affordable prices for all of South Bay without the tireless dedication of hundreds of volunteers. We are always looking for volunteers to coach, help maintain the fields, and manage the logistics of the league.
Please contact the league (Contact Us) or one of our Board Members (Board of Directors) if you have any interest in volunteering.
REGISTRATION
If you would like to Register for the Upcoming Season, please Login to your account or Register for an account at the top right corner of the page. The system will show you any and all available programs for which your children are eligible.