Choosing a program that best fits the needs of your player and family is the key to a positive youth baseball experience! There are many excellent programs throughout the United States and abroad, most of which are listed below. The following organizations endorse JUNIOR BASEBALL MAGAZINE and its goal to improve, support and promote youth baseball.

At the end of this list you’ll find additional organizations and 10 Factors to Consider When Choosing a Youth League. There is no cost for qualifying organizations to be listed. National and regional associations can contact the publisher@juniorbaseball.com  for more information.


Amateur Athletic Union (AAU)
c/o The Walt Disney World Resort
PO Box 10000, Lake Buena Visa FL 32830-1000
Phone: 1-800-AAU-4USA
Senior Sports Mgr: Jeremy T. Bullock
Phone: 407-934-7200
Fax: 407-934-7242
email: jeremy@aausports.org
www.aausports.org

This large, multi-sport organization is dedicated to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs,( such as the Presidential Sports Awards). The AAU baseball program is for ages 8-18 and appeals to teams that like to travel. Players are not precluded from playing in other leagues. Several divisions of play are offered in order to better level the strength and experience of teams. AAU Baseball conducts National Championships in each age group at various levels. Teams qualify for each level from all over the U.S. Annual membership is $12-$14 per year and $25 per team.
 

American Amateur Baseball Congress (AABC)
AABC National Headquarters
100 West Broadway, Farmington, NM 87401
Phone: 505-327-3120
Fax: 505-327-3132
email: aabc@aabc.us
www.aabc.us

One of the largest amateur baseball organizations in the United States, offering continuous organized competition on a national level. The AABC has organized leagues in 42 U.S. states, Puerto Rico, Canada and Mexico. It conducts competition in seven age groups, 8 and under, 10u, 12u, 14u, 16u, 18u, and adults.
 

Babe Ruth Baseball
PO Box 5000, Trenton NJ 08638
Phone: 609-695-1434
Fax: 609-695-2505
www.baberuthbaseball.org

Through over 7,000 leagues worldwide, Babe Ruth offers baseball for players ages 13-18 and its Cal Ripken division for ages 5-12. There is also a softball division, ages 5-18. Beginning at age 13, players have the opportunity to play baseball under regulations and rules of standard diamonds. Leagues can enter tournaments and winners go on to state qualifiers, then to regional tournaments and the World Series. Divisions for the World Series include 10 and under, 12u,13, 14, 13-15, 16, 16-18, softball 12u and 16u. Started in 1951, Babe Ruth Baseball has been providing youth baseball programs for over 50 years.
 

Baseball Softball UK
(Previously: British Baseball Federation - BBF)
Ariel House, 74a Charlotte St, London W1T 4QJ
Phone: 011-44-207-453-7055
Fax 011-44-207-453-7007
email: contact@baseballsoftballuk.com
www.baseballsoftballuk.com
 

Continental Amateur Baseball Association (CABA)
82 University St, Westerville OH 43081
Phone: 740-382-4620, 740-382-4620
email: RTremaine@cababaseball.com
www.cababaseball.com

Offers tournaments for ages 9 to adult. Dual participation in programs is encouraged. There are single and multiple age divisions. 32 states, Mexico, Brazil and Korea are represented in the World Series games.
 

Dixie Youth Baseball (DYB)
PO Box 1778, Marshall TX 75671
Phone: 903-927-1845, J. Sandy Jones, Commissioner
Fax: 903-927-1846
email: boys@dixie.org
www.dixie.org

In 11 Southern states, Dixie offers three divisions of baseball, ages 12 and under, 13-14 and 15-18 and also has a softball division. Unique to this league is its requirement that all players participate in every game and that the entire organization is operated by volunteer personnel from top to bottom. Although its emphasis is on recreation and local play, teams do compete in a World Series. DYB awards college scholarships to past players based on financial need, scholastic record and citizenship, application on website.
 

Dizzy Dean Baseball, Inc.
c/o Danny E Phillips, Commissioner, 2470 Hwy 51 S, Hernando MS 38632
Phone: 662-429-4365, 662-429-7790
email: dizzydeanbaseball@yahoo.com

Primarily in the South as well as New York, Texas and Colorado. This is a recreational program for ages 5-18. Dizzy Dean agreed to have the league named after him as long as no child could ever be turned away from playing. Guidelines are used for player selection to keep the teams equally balanced. About 30% of the players participate in post-season (all-star) tournaments compared to 10% to 15% for most other leagues.
 

Hap Dumont Youth Baseball (National Baseball Congress)
PO Box 17455, Wichita KS 67217
Phone: 316-721-1779, 316-838-1467
Fax 316-721-8054
email: hapdumontbball@yahoo.com
www.hapdumontbaseball.com 

An affordable opportunity for post-season play for ages 10-18. Tournaments are well organized and provide a higher level of competition. They provide double-elimination state tournaments and national World Series with 3 games guaranteed. Run entirely by volunteers it’s “A small program with big advantages”. The registration fee is only $8 per team, plus a state fee. Charters represent 20 states in the U.S. Interested teams should see the charter form available on the Hap Dumont website.
 

National Amateur Baseball Federation (NABF)
PO Box 705, Bowie MD 20715
Phone: 301-464-5460, 301-352-0214,
Charles M. Blackburn, Executive Director
Fax 301-352-0214
email: nabf1914@aol.com
www.nabf.com

The NABF has organized leagues throughout the U.S and Canada. It conducts annual national tournaments in eleven divisions, ages 10 and under, 12u, 14u, 16u, 17u, 18u, high school, 22u, college, major division, and unlimited. Also conducts classic championship series for 11, 13 and 15u. In existence since 1914, this is the oldest continuously operated amateur baseball organization in America.
 

National Association of Police Athletic Leagues (NPAL)
658 West Indiantown Road, #201, Jupiter, FL 33458
Phone: 561-745-5535
Fax 561-745-3147
email: copnkid1@aol.com
www.nationalpal.org

For ages 5-18, this is the largest organization of law enforcement agencies using a recreation-oriented program (including sports, performing and creative arts) to prevent juvenile crime and violence. Baseball was the very first PAL activity. Today teams compete in the National Pal Baseball World Series. Call or write for the PAL near you or to start a program in your community.
 

PONY Baseball, Inc.
PO Box 225, Washington PA 15301
Phone: 724-225-1060
Fax: 724-225-9852
email: pony@pulsenet.com
www.pony.org

PONY, which stands for Protect Our Nation’s Youth, provides baseball and softball programs for players ages 5-18. Here is the opportunity to play the complete game of baseball by allowing lead-offs, dropped third strike rule, metal cleats and ‘big-barrel’ bats. To help young players with the transition to a regulation size diamond, PONY incrementally increases the distance to the pitcher’s mound and on the base paths. Divisions include ages 5-6, 7-8, 9-10 (60 foot base path), 11-12 (70-foot base path), 13-14 (80 foot base path), 15-16 (90 foot base path), 17-18, and girls softball leagues ages 5-18. Teams in the U.S. compete in a National tournament and the PONY World Series, which started in 1951, now draws teams from all over the world.
 

T-Ball USA
2499 Main St, Stratford CT 06615
Phone: 203-381-1449
Fax: 203-381-1440
email: teeballusa@aol.com
www.teeballusa.org

Catering to the beginning player, T-Ball USA promotes and supports T-ball programs nationwide. A source of information to improve tee ball programs and establish new ones. Services YMCA, National Recreation & Parks Association, AAU, PAL, Boys & Girls Club of America, Little League and many independent and local leagues.
 

USA Baseball
Hi Corbett Field, 3400 E Camino Campestre, Tucson AZ 85716
Phone: 520-327-9700
Fax: 520-327-9221
email: usabasebal@aol.com
www.usabaseball.com

USA Baseball is the governing body for amateur baseball in the U.S. and is best known for selecting, training and supporting the teams that will compete in the Olympics, the National Team (Collegiate), Junior National Team (18u) and Youth National Team (16u) which participate in various international competitions. Players are selected to try out through recommendations by local and high school coaches and scouts. USA Baseball provides sanctions to teams playing outside the U.S. to protect their rights and amateur status. They also provide sanctions when an American team competes with or hosts an international team in the U.S. As an ‘umbrella’ organization uniting many youth organizations, USA Baseball members include AAU, AABC, ABCA, American Legion, Babe Ruth, Dixie, Little League, NABF NBC, NPAL, PONY, YMCA and a number of high school and college associations. USA Baseball is funded through memberships as well as by the sale of official USA Baseball merchandise.
 

United States Amateur Baseball Association (USABA)
PO Box 55633, Seattle, WA 98155
Phone: 425-776-7130
Fax: 425-776-7130
email: usaba@usaba.com
www.usaba.com

USABA offers a baseball program for ages 11-19 with progressive post-season competition in nine age groups, from 50 states. Dual participation allows teams from any league to take part and many scouts attend the tournaments at the older age levels. In the World Series tournaments, each team plays a minimum of five games in a round-robin, and all teams play in a Championship double-elimination. This non-profit organization is run by volunteers. Leagues with 6 or more teams qualify for a travel allowance.
 

United States Specialty Sports Association (USSSA)
PO Box 1998, Petersburg VA 23805
Phone: 800-741-3014
email: joeyodom@aol.com
www.usssa.com

Organizes tournaments in 42 states for players ages 6-18, in single age groups. Holds World Series events for all ages in three divisions: Majors, AAA, and AA.

Additional Organizations

These organizations are provided for your reference.
See Youth Leagues for JUNIOR BASEBALL MAGAZINE’S endorsing organizations.

All American Amateur Baseball Association (AAABA)
331 Parkway Dr, Zanesville OH 43701
Phone: 740-453-8531

American Amateur Youth Baseball Alliance
12919 Four Winds Farm, St Louis MO 63131
Phone: 573-518-0319
www.aayba.com

American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA)
108 S University Ave Ste 3, Mt. Pleasant, MI 48858-2327
Phone: 989-775-3300
www.abca.org
Main objective is educational - to help improve coaching skills for all levels of baseball.

American Legion Baseball
PO Box 1055, Indianapolis IN 46206
Phone: 317-630-1213
www.legion.org
High school age and above, run by the local American Legion civic service organizations.

Boys & Girls Clubs of America
1230 West Peachtree St. NW, Atlanta, GA 30309-3447
Phone: 404-487-5700
www.bgca.org
Many chapters provide baseball programs. Check your local White Pages or call the headquarters for one near you.

Little League Baseball, Inc.
PO Box 3485, Williamsport PA 17701
Phone: 570-326-1921
www.littleleague.org
International youth baseball organization with over two million players.

Municipal Parks & Recreation Programs
This is a good place to find more affordable programs. Levels of play vary. To locate a program in your area, look in your telephone White Pages in the Government Section for ‘Recreation & Parks’ or ‘Parks & Recreation’ and your Yellow Pages under ‘Playgrounds & Parks’.

National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA)
23500 W 105th St, PO Box 1325, Olathe KS 66051-1325
Phone: 913-791-0044
www.naia.org
Over 300 four-year colleges and universities compete for national championships in mens baseball and women's softball.

National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)
700 W Washington St, PO Box 6222, Indianapolis, IN 46206-6222
Phone: 317-917-6222
Fax: 317-917-6888
www.ncaa.org
Coordinates sports programs at over 900 colleges in three sports divisions, annual championships.

National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS)
(also associations for High School Coaches, Officials, Spirit, and Athletic Administrators)
PO Box 690, Indianapolis, IN 46206
Phone: 317-972-6900
Fax: 317-822-5700
www.nfhs.org
Serves its members and administers high school athletic programs and activities.

National High School Baseball Coaches Associations
PO Box 5128, Bella Vista AR 72714
Phone: 501-876-2591
Educational organization, member benefits, holds annual convention in November.

National Junior Baseball League
PO Box 1021, East Northport NY 11731
Phone: 631-582-5191
A non-profit travel baseball league for 150 teams, ages 8-18. Primarily in the Metropolitan NY, Long Island area as well as PA, CT and NJ.

National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA)
PO Box 7305, Colorado Springs, CO 80933-7305
Phone: 719-590-9788
www.njcaa.org
Provides athletic programs including baseball for Community and Junior Colleges. Over 500 member institutions.

Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities (RBI)
245 Park Ave, New York, NY 10167
Phone: 212-931-7897

United States Amateur Baseball Federation (USABF)
1111 Orange Ave Ste A, Coronado CA 92118
Phone: 619-435-2831
www.usabf.com
Organizes amateur baseball tournaments in the US, Canada, Australia and Mexico.

World Baseball Association
Phone: 888-922-2280
www.wbabaseball.org
Organizer of WBA Super Regional Tournaments and the WBA World Series

YMCAs of the USA
101 N Wacker Dr, Chicago IL 60606
Phone: 800-872-9622, 312-977-0031
www.ymca.net
Many YMCAs provide youth baseball programs. Look in your local White Pages (beginning of the ‘Y’ listings) or call the headquarters listed here for the chapter nearest you.

 

10 FACTORS TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING A YOUTH LEAGUE

1. Location (distance to home, school, work, league boundaries, etc.)

2. Travel (transportation, gas, food, lodging, car pooling, supervision, etc.)

3. Time (game & practice schedules, school and other commitments, parent involvement, etc.)

4. Costs (fees, uniforms, fundraising, additional instruction, snacks, etc.)

5. Type of play (recreation versus competitive, league rules, levels of play, player rotation, etc.)

6. Safety (rules, equipment, condition of fields, limit on games pitched, etc.)

7. Quality of instruction (coaches’ training, ability to teach baseball skills and work with children.)

8. Leadership (how are decisions made, teams drafted, all-stars chosen, conflicts resolved, etc.)

9. Reputation (past history, references from other parents, etc.)

10. Will this program provide a positive experience for my child?
(build self esteem, reinforce good values, create friendships, etc.)

 

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