Winthrop Little League

Dear WLL Membership,
The WLL board would like to thank everyone who has made baseball happen during this crazy time. Our volunteers, coaches, parents and players have been tremendous. We appreciate your continued patience as we all navigate the season. The health and wellness of our players, coaches, volunteers and spectators is our top priority.

We are very excited to have played our first games of the season on a beautiful night last night here in Winthrop. In Senior league the Twins took on the Angels in a battle at Ingleside Park that came down to the final out. The Twins battled to keep their lead and Won 7-6. In Little league action at the A field, the Mariners fell to Angels 9-4.

With more games tonight, we wanted to clarify some guidance from the state of Massachusetts and share again with all of you the procedures that have been put in place throughout the league:

Players are not allowed to share any worn equipment. (gloves, batting gloves, helmets etc.) We have been assigning equipment to any player that needs it and will collect the equipment back at the end of the season.
All players have been assigned an area distanced from other players when they are not in the field.
Each defensive team utilizes their own set of games balls. They are not shared with the other teams.
Hand sanitizer and disaffected wipes have been supplied to all teams and players, to be used as frequent as possible. We are fully stocked with plenty of sanitizer. Ask the coaches for more when needed.
Masks are required to be worn whenever distancing is not possible for all players and spectators. Coaches, umpires and volunteers must always wear face coverings. Additional masks are available for anyone if needed. Ask any coach or league volunteer for one, they are in the league office.
We ask all spectators to practice social distancing and be respectful of all others trying to enjoy the game. Please wear a mask anytime you feel distancing is not possible.
We have added signage to help reinforce the practice mentioned above.
Bathrooms (port-a potties) are not on premise. We are reviewing the guidelines and feasibility of getting them back currently. Please plan accordingly.
All teams have a designated Covid coach in addition to the Manager and 2 assistant coaches. (This person effectively is charged with ensuring players and coaches are adhering to guidelines).
At A field we have taped off areas in the bleachers to reinforce distancing.
Given the openness of Ingleside park we have left it to the spectators to implement these on their own.
Starting Tuesday night, we will be asking for all those entering A field to sign into a book as per state requirements in the event we need to contact trace.
Given the openness and public access of Ingleside park, we will have a sign in book at the backstop for the same purposes. Please fill out your information there.
We appreciate everyone’s patience and understanding as we work together to ensure we are maintaining the safest environment for all our players, coaches, volunteers and spectators.

Sincerely,

Board of Directors

Rosters for players up to age 12 have been posted. Please click on “2020 Season” in the main menu to view teams.

Winthrop Little League 2020 Update…

Winthrop Little League Board of Directors has been in regular dialogue since Governor Baker announced his plan to reopen Massachusetts to determine what it means for Winthrop Little League. This is how we understand Governor Baker’s Plan:

Phase II (begins June 8th) – allows for all athletic fields to open with guidelines and youth sports to open in limited fashion

Phase III (begins June 29th) – allows for youth sports with games and tournaments with limited crowd sizes

We also know that while the daily COVID #’s reported are encouraging, the Phase roll-out is fluid and as a result, these dates could change.

As it relates to Little League Baseball, there are a number of new safety rules that have been recommended by Little League International including but not limited to the following:

No handshakes/No high fives
No chewing gum or seeds
No spitting
Each player will be required to have their own helmet, glove, and bat (no sharing of equipment)
Baseballs will be regularly swapped out every inning
All players in dugouts will wear masks and separate 6 feet from each other. If too many players are in dug-out (when team is hitting), players will be spread 6 feet apart behind fence line; players are not required to wear masks on field
All coaches, umpires and fans are encouraged to wear masks on and off field
All players must have a parent, guardian or responsible adult present for the entire game
Parents and families watching games must also sit 6 feet apart from other families
All players and families must leave the field within 20 minutes of game ending
Games will be umpired from behind the pitcher’s mound

As a result of the new safety guidelines, Winthrop Little League Board of Directors has concluded that we cannot consistently implement, enforce and monitor the new safety guidelines for all ages across 5 different divisions.

Therefore, we will only have a 10-12 year-old Little League and 13-16 Senior League this summer

(9 year-olds, please see below).

Senior League 13-16 Year Old’s (born between September 1, 2003 and August 31, 2007)

– you will have a baseball season. Your player will automatically be placed on a team within the next few weeks. Any player 13-16yrs old that does NOT intend to play must send an email to: chrisprev@comcast.net in order to receive a refund and/or credit for next season. Please include your child’s name and whether you are requesting a “refund” or a “credit”.

Little League 10-12 Year Old’s (born between September 1, 2007 and August 31, 2010)

Little League 9 Year Old’s (born between September 1, 2010 and August 31, 2011)

- parent/guardian will be allowed to make the decision as to whether they think player is able to handle the new safety rules as well as skilled enough to play with 10-12 year old’s. All 9 year old’s that are interested in playing, should email joe@ondecksports.com as soon as possible to discuss. Please email chrisprev@comcast.net if you prefer a refund, otherwise you will receive a credit for next season.

Little League 4-8 Year Old’s (born between September 1, 2011 and August 31, 2016)

- they will NOT have a Tee Ball / Little League baseball season. All such families can request a full refund, otherwise a credit will be applied to the 2021 season. Please email chrisprev@comcast.net for a refund.

We anticipate practices could start mid-to-late June and games starting on or about July 1st. Our goal is to play the season over 6-weeks (10-12 regular season games followed by playoffs with the season concluding in mid-August). We plan on scheduling all games for weekdays (no Saturday/Sunday games unless there is a rain-out/make-up games). If your family is planning on taking a vacation and missing a week of the season, we encourage your player to play baseball this summer but it would be helpful to notify the coach in advance for planning purposes.

Our focus has and always will be on the safety of our players, coaches, parents and families of Winthrop Little League which is why we are limiting this year’s season to only the older players. We will do our best to make up for this crazy season and make next season, and possibly Fall/Winter clinics, the best possible little league experience for all players.

Note – we will be re-opening registration for Little League 10-16 year old’s through June 7th to allow additional players to join. Please spread the word in the community.

WLL Board of Directors

Due to COVID-19 pandemic, all Winthrop Little League activities are suspended until May 11th. Additional information will be passed along as known.

Friday Night FUNdamentals begins this evening – details below. The 7-9 year old session is now filled, we have a few spots open for the 10-12 year old session. Please register right away, and we’ll see everyone this evening.

Winthrop Little League along with the help of the Winthrop HS Baseball team is hosting Friday Night FUNdamentals; a 6-week winter clinic for children ages 7-12* to held at the old middle school gym.

*Age is determined by how old the child will be on 8/31/2020

NOTE: Only children registered for the Winthrop Little League spring season are eligible to register for the FUNdamentals clinic.

Feb. 7th 2020
Feb. 28th 2020
March 6th 2020
March 13th 2020
March 20th 2020
March 27th 2020

Cost $50 per player ( includes WLL Tee Shirt )

Location : Old Middle School Gym

Times :
League Age players 7-9 years old 6-7:30 pm
League Age players 10-12 years old – 7:30 -9pm

Little League Age-if your son or daughter will turn seven before August 31st 2020, they are considered a 7 year-old by Little League Baseball
*Limited space is available. No more than 35 players per session.

Please refer to the Winthrop Little League/2019 Registration site (below) to register your child.
https://active.leagueone.com/OLR/Pages/Welcome.aspx?ClubId=14532