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Intermediate, Junior, Senior & Big League Baseball

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"Big League Baseball" redirects here. For professional baseball commonly known as the big leagues, see Major League Baseball
Junior, Senior, and Big League Baseball
Intermediate, Junior, Senior, and Big League Baseball are divisions of Little League Baseball.
SportBaseball
Founded1981
FounderCarl Stotz
TV partner(s)ABC, ESPN
Official websitehttp://www.littleleague.org/

Intermediate, Junior, and Senior League Baseball are youth baseball divisions of Little League Baseball that are considered more advanced and difficult than younger Little League divisions due to more advanced rules, including the ability to lead-off and steal as the pitcher breaks, along with longer base paths and greater pitching distance. Junior League also includes the use of bats with 2+5⁄8-inch (6.7 cm) barrels rather than the transitional 2+1⁄4-inch (5.7 cm) barrels of Little League. Junior League also allows the use of metal spikes in cleats in addition to the molded or plastic spikes used in Little League. The Big League level was discontinued in the baseball and softball divisions — after the 2016 Big League World Series.

Age divisions

Intermediate League

See: Little League Baseball#Little League Intermediate (50/70) Division.

Junior League

See: Little League Baseball#Junior League

Junior League Baseball is for children aged 12 to 14 years old.[1]

Senior League

See: Little League Baseball#Senior League

Senior League Baseball is for children aged 13 to 16 years old.[2]

Big League

See: Little League Baseball#Big League

Big League Baseball was for children aged 17 to 18 years old.[3] It was discontinued after the 2016 Big League World Series.

Tournament Venues

Intermediate League World Series

Main article: Intermediate League World Series

The tournament is held in Livermore, California.

Junior League World Series

Main article: Junior League World Series

The tournament is held in Taylor, Michigan's Heritage Park.

Senior League World Series

Main article: Senior League World Series

The tournament has been held in Bangor, Maine since 2002.

Big League World Series

Main article: Big League World Series

The Big League World Series was held from 1968 to 2016. The tournament's final host was Easley, South Carolina, from 2000 to the last-ever tournament in 2016. The tournament had previously been in Charlotte, North Carolina from 1968 to 1970 and in Fort Lauderdale, Florida from 1970 to 1998. Was also held in Arizona.

Regions

In general

For the Little League baseball division, there are sixteen regions, whose champions are divided into two brackets (U.S. and International). The eight U.S. regions are: New England, Great Lakes, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, Southeast, Southwest, Northwest (including Alaska), and West (including Hawaii). Since 2013, the eight international regions are: Asia-Pacific and Middle East (all countries in both regions, except for Australia, Israel, Japan, and Turkey), Australia, Canada, Caribbean, Europe and Africa (also includes Israel and Turkey), Japan, Latin America (Central America and South America), and Mexico.[4]

For the Intermediate, Junior, and Senior League baseball divisions, there are only five U.S. regions:

  • Central (Little League Great Lakes and Midwest regions combined)
  • East (Little League Mid-Atlantic and New England regions combined)
  • Southeast (same as Little League Southeast region)
  • Southwest (same as Little League Southwest region)
  • West (Little League West and Northwest regions combined)

The international regions differ in these three divisions.

Intermediate League regions

See: Intermediate League World Series.

Junior League regions

Unlike the Little League World Series — which has sixteen regions (eight in the U.S. bracket and eight in the International bracket) — the Junior League World Series has only eleven regions, whose champions are divided into the United States Pool and the International Pool.[5]

The Junior League has six international regions:

  • Mexico / Puerto Rico (automatic berth in even and odd years, respectively) (region unique to Big League and Junior League)
  • Latin America (Little League Caribbean and Latin America regions combined; plus Mexico or Puerto Rico in odd and even years, respectively)
  • Canada (same as Little League Canada region)
  • Australia (same as Little League Australia region)
  • Asia-Pacific (combination of Asia-Pacific countries in the Little League Asia-Pacific and Middle East region with Japan region)
  • EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa) (combination of Little League Europe and Africa region, plus Middle Eastern countries)

Senior League regions

Unlike the Little League World Series — which has sixteen regions, divided into U.S. and International brackets — the Senior League World Series (1) has only nine regions, (2) has a host team (Maine District 3), and (3) the regional champions (plus the host team) are divided into two mixed pools that combine U.S. and international regions (Pool A and Pool B).[6] Because of the mixed pools, the Senior League division does not have an international champion and a United States champion-- unlike the other four baseball divisions of Little League Baseball.

The Senior League has only four international regions:

  • Latin America (Little League Caribbean, Latin America and Mexico regions combined)
  • Canada (same as Little League Canada region)
  • Asia-Pacific (Asia-Pacific countries from the Little League Asia-Pacific and Middle East region, plus Australia and Japan regions)
  • EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa) (Little League Europe and Africa region, plus Middle Eastern countries)

Big League regions

The Big League World Series was held from 1968 to 2016. During its final years, it differed from the Little League World Series in that it (1) had only ten regions, divided into Pool A (U.S.) and Pool B (International), and (2) had a host team (South Carolina District 1), which played in the U.S. pool.[7]

The Big League had five international regions:

  • Mexico / Puerto Rico (automatic berth in even and odd years, respectively) (region unique to Big League and Junior League)
  • Latin America (Little League Caribbean and Latin America regions combined; plus Mexico or Puerto Rico in odd or even years, respectively)
  • Canada (same as Little League Canada region)
  • Asia-Pacific (Asia-Pacific countries from the Little League Asia-Pacific and Middle East region, plus Australia and Japan regions)
  • EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa) (Little League Europe and Africa region, plus Middle Eastern countries)

Playing Field

The distance between the bases is 90 feet, the same as for regulation Major League Baseball fields. The distance between the pitcher's mound to home plate is 60.6 feet, also identical to that of MLB. The minimum outfield distance in the upper divisions is 300 feet, while the maximum for Big League is 425 feet.

Game Length

A game consists of seven innings (same as in high school baseball) and is official if five innings have been completed.

See also

References

  1. ^ Junior League Baseball. Little League International. Retrieved 2012-06-04.
  2. ^ Senior League Baseball. Little League International. Retrieved 2012-05-31.
  3. ^ Big League Baseball. Little League International. Retrieved 2012-05-31.
  4. ^ "Regions Realigned for 2013: Australia to Play in Little League Baseball World Series" (Press release). Little League Baseball. August 29, 2012. Retrieved September 17, 2012.
  5. ^ 2009 Junior League Baseball World Series pools and results. Little League Baseball Incorporated. Retrieved 2010-01-15.
  6. ^ 2009 Senior League Baseball World Series pools and results. Little League Baseball Incorporated. Retrieved 2010-01-15.
  7. ^ 2009 Big League Baseball World Series pools and results. Little League Baseball Incorporated. Retrieved 2010-01-15.
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