Player Placement FAQ
What are the age guidelines and rules for each division?
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Division
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League Age
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Description
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T-Ball
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5 or 6 year old children.
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An introduction baseball where all children play in the field and bat every inning. Batters hit from a “T”.
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Jr. Farm Baseball
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7 year old children.
NOTE: 6 year olds may also play Jr. Farm Baseball if they have played one year of Tee Ball.
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Coaches pitch. There are nine players in the field. The batting order includes everyone. The team “bats around” but outs are recorded. The score is not kept.
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Farm Baseball
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8 year old children.
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Combination of coach and player pitch. Strike zone is more strictly enforced. There are nine players in the field. The batting order includes everyone. The team “bats around” but outs are recorded. The score is not kept.
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Minor Baseball
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9-11 year old children. 9 and 10 year olds are automatically placed in Minors. 11 olds are placed in Minors if they are not selected to a Major league team or if they opt to stay in Minors. 12 year olds must request a waiver to play in Minors.
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Players pitch and score is kept. The batting order includes everyone. This is a competitive division with playoffs.
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Major Baseball
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11 and 12 year old children. All children who wish to play Majors need to tryout. 11 year olds must be selected to a Major team. 12 are guaranteed a spot on a Major team. 12 year olds who played in the Majors the previous year NO LONGER return to the same team. They will attend tryouts and will be re-drafted.
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The most competitive baseball division.
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Farm Softball
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7 and 8 year old girls.
NOTE: 6 year olds may also play Farm softball if they have played one year of T-Ball.
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Coaches pitch. The batting order includes everyone. Players “bat around” and outs are recorded. Score is not kept.
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Minor Softball
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9 and 10 year old girls.
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Players pitch and score is kept. The batting order includes everyone. This is a competitive division with playoffs.
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Major Softball
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11 and 12 year old girls. All girls who wish to play Majors need to tryout. 11 year old girls must be selected to a Major team. 12 year old girls are guaranteed a spot on a Major team.
12 year old girls who played in the Majors the previous year NO LONGER return to the same team. They will attend tryouts and will be re-drafted.
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This is the most competitive softball division and includes playoffs. Players pitch and the score is kept.
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What does the term “league age” mean?
League age is the age of a player as of on April 30, 2022 for baseball or January 1, 2022 for softball.
When determining in what division a child should be placed, AVLL uses the child’s league age. For example, only league age 11 and 12 year olds are eligible for Major baseball.
I want my child to play in a higher or lower division than the age guidelines allow. Can I do that?
AVLL is committed to compliance with the LLI age requirements, and in fairness to all kids, requests to play up a division will not be entertained. However, if you believe that your child is not developmentally ready for a higher competitive division (Minor baseball, Major baseball, Minor softball or Major softball), you can request that he or she play down. Please put your request in the comment section of the registration form and someone from AVLL will contact you.
AVLL in accordance with the LLI recommendations makes a special exception for league age 6 year olds who played Tee Ball the previous season. These children are allowed to play up in the Jr. Farm Baseball or Farm Softball Divisions. They will be required to complete all their years in those Divisions before moving up again.
Can I request my child be placed on a particular team?
We do not honor requests for placements in competitive divisions, specifically Major baseball, Minor baseball, Minor softball or Major Softball. We try to honor requests in non-competitive divisions but we cannot guarantee it.
We will guarantee that siblings are kept together in non-competitive divisions as well as Minor baseball and Minor softball. We endeavor to keep siblings together in Major baseball and Major softball but competitive parity sometimes prevents it.
If you would like to make a request please add it to the “Comments” section of the registration form.
My son/daughter is 11 and he/she wants to try out for Majors baseball. What division should I register him/her in?
If your child wants to be eligible for the Major baseball draft, register him or her in the Major division. Players not drafted onto a Major baseball team will automatically be placed in the Minors division.
