Traditional Little League ends after the child’s 12-year-old season, but for most kids, their enjoyment of baseball does not! Fortunately, there are two great options for these great kids to continue their involvement with baseball after their last SMNLL Majors season: Keep Playing or Become an Umpire!
Keep Playing!
Currently, there are 3 main local options for continuing to play baseball into your child’s 13-year-old season:
SMNLL Juniors
Bel Mateo Babe Ruth
Travel Ball
See below for a table of comparison information between SMNLL Juniors and Babe Ruth – both programs are excellent, though there are key differences that can help each family decide which is the best fit for their child’s development and enjoyment of the game. Some key considerations to highlight:
The field dimensions take a big jump up from the SMNLL Majors’ 45-foot pitching and 60-foot bases (45/60). Juniors increases to 54/80, Babe Ruth goes all the way to 60/90 (full size, like MLB). Kids have different sizes and adapt differently to the bigger fields, so the field size can have a significant effect on your experience.
Player ages in the league – plusses and minuses of the difference in age eligibility. Juniors is generally restricted to kids who played in SMNLL, whereas Babe Ruth draws kids from throughout San Mateo County
Practice and game schedules are very different and will match your child’s overall schedule differently
In general, very few “baseball 13-year-olds” will start travel ball at that age, so those comparisons will be omitted below. Families wanting to learn more can reference websites for the Feds, NCS, Prime, and others.
Become an Umpire!
Your child’s recent experience as a player will be an asset that will help them call a fair game, learn more about the rules and nuance of umpiring, and develop their confidence and leadership skills. See additional information here and contact the Umpire Coordinator, Josh Villegas at [email protected].