Youth Baseball

Division Placement Process: Division placement will take place after the registration deadline. Parents will be contacted after the registration deadline to communicate what options they have to choose from for their child’s division. Many divisions have overlapping age groups. This is to ensure kids are playing in divisions that help them develop their skills appropriately, thereby having a more fun experience

Rookie Ball (4 Yr Olds): This co-ed program serves as the perfect intro to baseball and softball! It consists of one day a week of skill development for four weeks. Each week will consist of skill development stations that parents and children rotate through together, with parents teaching the skills at each station along with guidance from Zeeland Rec staff on site. There will also be modified games played to build an understanding of the sport.

Tee League (5-6 Yr Olds): This is our Tee-Ball League! All balls are hit off tees with no live pitching from coaches or players. This program includes one practice and one game per week.

Coach Pitch (6-7 Yr Olds): This is our Coach-Pitch League! Coaches pitch to players, with no live pitching from participants. This program includes one practice and one game per week.

Low-A Baseball (7-9 Yr Olds): This is our Kid/Coach Pitch League! It’s designed to teach participants how to pitch and how to hit against live pitching from other participants. Batters will begin by facing an opposing pitcher, but coaches will step in to pitch if the batter is walked to ensure all hitters get the chance to improve their hitting skills. Stealing is not allowed.

High-A Baseball (8-9 Yr Olds): This is a Kid Pitch League designed for those with more experience in pitching and hitting live pitching. Coaches do not assist in pitching. Stealing is not allowed.

AA Baseball (8-10 Yr Olds): This is a more advanced Kid Pitch League that also introduces players to stealing while on base. The regular season ends with a postseason “Karl Elzinga Tournament” between all AA teams. This is also the first level where players are eligible to try out for Zeeland Little League All-Star Teams after the regular season ends.

AAA Baseball (9-11 yr olds): This league helps to prepare players for playing in the Majors division. The regular season ends with a postseason “Karl Elzinga Tournament” between all of the AAA teams. All players are eligible to try out for Zeeland Little League All-Star Teams after the regular season ends.

Majors Baseball (10-12 Yr Olds): This league is the division that the Little League World Series is associated with. This is the last division playing with 60 ft bases and 46 ft mounds (the later divisions for 13 year olds+ have larger field dimensions). Teams in the Majors division also play in a district wide tournament at the end of the regular season.

Lakeshore League (12-14 Yr Olds): These age levels will play in the "Lakeshore League" along with other local teams in the west Michigan area. Field dimensions are 60 ft mound and 90 ft bases. This division is the first time players are playing at the field dimensions they will play at for the rest of their career. 

DIVISION PLACEMENT PROCESS:
Division placement will take place after the registration deadline. Parents will be contacted to communicate what options they have to choose from for their child’s division. 

TEAM FORMATION PROCESS: 5-7 Yr Olds
Evenly skilled teams are formed by the Zeeland Little League board via the skill ratings each child was given by their coach from the previous season (if they played last year) and/or the rating their parent/guardian gave their child during the registration process. All kids get placed on a team and receive equal playing time.

• Team Placements: Will be communicated by Apr 1

TEAM FORMATION PROCESS: 8-14 Yr Olds
Evenly skilled teams are formed by coaches after they review the skill ratings that players were given by their coach last year (if they played last year) along with reviewing current skills levels at our "Team Formation Practices". At these practices, players will participate in a series of drills in order to help coaches evaluate current skill levels in order to help us form evenly skilled teams. All kids get placed on a team and receive equal playing time. Team placements will be communicated by Mar 25. 

• Baseball Team Formation Practice: Sat, Mar 5 
• Softball Team Formation Practices: Sat, Mar 12
• Times: Times will be communicated in mid-Feb 
• Team Placements: Equally skilled team selections will be released in mid-March

• ZLL Practice and Game Guidelines for Each Division
• 5-7 Yr Olds Practices: Apr 11-Mid June
• 8-12 Yr Olds Practices: Mar 28-Mid June
• Games: Late April-Mid June

Postseason Opportunities: After the regular season ends in mid-late June, some teams play in postseason tournaments that vary based on division. These tournaments involve playing additional games, in some cases against other local leagues, and can last up until the end of June. More details on postseason tournaments are determined after team selections.

All-Stars: After the completion of the regular season and postseason tournaments, an All-Star tournament takes place from the end of June-mid July. If a player is interested in playing on an All-Star team, families must complete an All-Start Commitment Form for the player to be eligible for selection. Anyone who submits the commitment form can try-out for an All-Star team. All-Star teams are then selected by appointed committees in early June. Team selections are based on multiple factors (try-out performance, regular season performance, team needs, etc.) as decided by the committee.

Players interested in All-Stars can find more information on the Zeeland Little League website HERE

Coaches Needed: Zeeland Little League relies on volunteers to coach each team. Our goal is to have at least two coaches per team. We provide training and resources to help, and experience is not required. Please consider signing up to coach during registration or on the ZLL Website under the “Coaches” tab HERE

ZLL Rules