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Age Change Information
September 13, 2005
USSSA Age
Change poses new opportunities for players and coaches.
As many of you may be aware, there
has been a change in the age cutoff for youth baseball. USA
Baseball, the governing body for all amateur baseball in America,
has reconsidered the long-standing age cutoff date of July 31st. USA
Baseball has decided to change the date from July 31st to April
30th.
The previous date meant that a
player's "league age" and "chronological age" might be out-of-synch.
Example: A 10-year-old player whose 11th birthday is July 15th would
have been playing in the 11-year-old league due to the previous age
cutoff of July 31st. This meant that he would be playing the entire
season as an 11-year-old, even though he was only chronologically
10.
What this means to players: The new
age cutoff date of April 30th means that any player born between May
1st and July 31st, has the option of replaying the previous year.
Example: The above 10-year-old, who had previously been playing with
the 11-year-old team, would now be allowed to play 11-year-old ball
again. However, USSSA Baseball allows players to play up, so if this
child does not want to make this move, he will also have the option
of playing 12-year-old ball.
What this means to coaches: New
players may be dropping down and trying out for your team. In some
situations, this might be a welcome change, but in others it could
disrupt a team.
This was not a decision made by
either West Jeff Baseball and/or the Jefferson County Junior
Baseball League. The age change will affect not only USSSA Baseball,
the organization that West Jeff plays under, but also Little League
Baseball, Triple Crown Baseball and most other youth baseball
organizations.
Therefore, to summarize, a players
"league age" for the 2006 season is his age ON April 30th, 2006.
However, a player is allowed to play up with the previous years age
group if so desired.
We understand that this change might
be confusing, and we will make every effort to work through these
changes with you. Should you have any questions regarding the
change, please feel free to contact West Jeff Baseball.
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