Junior, Senior & Big League Baseball
- "Big League Baseball" redirects here. For professional baseball commonly known as the big leagues, see Major League Baseball
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Junior, Senior, and Big League Baseball are divisions of Little League Baseball. | |
| Sport | Baseball |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1981 |
| TV partner(s) | ABC, ESPN |
| Founder | Carl Stotz |
| Official website | http://www.littleleague.org/ |
Junior, Senior, and Big 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.
Age divisions
Junior League
Junior League Baseball is for children aged 13 to 14 years old.[1]
Senior League
Senior League Baseball is for children aged 15 to 16 years old.[2]
Big League
Big League Baseball is for children aged 17 to 18 years old.[3]
Tournament Venues
Junior League
The tournament is held in Taylor, Michigan's Heritage Park.
Senior League
The tournament has been held in Bangor, Maine since 2002.
Big League
The tournament's host has been Easley, South Carolina since 1998. The tournament had previously been in Charlotte, North Carolina from 1968 to 1970 and in Fort Lauderdale, Florida from 1970 to 1998.
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 Junior, Senior, and Big 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.
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 ten regions, whose champions are divided into the United States Pool and the International Pool.[5]
The Junior League has five international regions:
- Puerto Rico (region unique to Junior League)
- Latin America (Little League Caribbean, Latin America and Mexico regions combined)
- Canada (same as Little League Canada region)
- Asia-Pacific (combination of Asia-Pacific countries in the Little League Asia-Pacific and Middle East region with Australia and Japan regions)
- 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]
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
Unlike the Little League World Series — which has sixteen regions (eight in the U.S. and eight international) — the Big League World Series (1) has only ten regions, divided into Pool A (U.S.) and Pool B (International), and (2) has a host team (South Carolina District 1), which plays in the U.S. pool.[7]
The Big League has five international regions:
- Mexico (same as Little League Mexico region)
- Latin America (Little League Caribbean and Latin America 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)
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
- Big League World Series
- Senior League World Series
- Junior League World Series
- Junior League World Series (softball)
- Amateur baseball in the United States
- Major League Baseball
- List of organized baseball leagues
- Baseball awards#World
- Baseball awards#U.S. youth baseball
- Baseball clothing and equipment
References
- ↑ Junior League Baseball. Little League International. Retrieved 2012-06-04.
- ↑ Senior League Baseball. Little League International. Retrieved 2012-05-31.
- ↑ Big League Baseball. Little League International. Retrieved 2012-05-31.
- ↑ "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.
- ↑ 2009 Junior League Baseball World Series pools and results. Little League Baseball Incorporated. Retrieved 2010-01-15.
- ↑ 2009 Senior League Baseball World Series pools and results. Little League Baseball Incorporated. Retrieved 2010-01-15.
- ↑ 2009 Big League Baseball World Series pools and results. Little League Baseball Incorporated. Retrieved 2010-01-15.
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