Most PONY
divisions consist of two year age groups, starting with Filly baseball at the (
league-
age) 4-6 year old age group all the way through to Colt/Palomino baseball at the 16-20 year old age group. See the
EVB Pony Divisions page for more details.
Which Division will my child play in?
In the Spring season, age divisions are determined by the players age as of August 31 of that year. For example, a child who turns 9 on or before August 31 of the year of that spring season would play in the Mustang Division. Visit out
Divisions page for more info on each division.
Can my child play UP one level/division?
If your child is within one league-age year of being in the next division higher then we can have him/her be considered for that division. Contact us if you are interested in having your child play up one level.
IMPORTANT: Any player "playing up" loses all-star eligibility for the age-level of his actual age, because they did not play the season at that level. Visit out
Divisions page for more info on each division.
Can my child play DOWN one level/division?
As a general practice playing in a younger division will not be allowed. However, under special circumstances the EVB Board may approve playing down to a younger division. This would typically only be allowed for safety reasons or to accommodate a player that does not have a division to play in. Any player who wishes to move down to a younger division can only be one year older than the division they want to play in. If you want to ask about this please contact us. Visit out
Divisions page for more info on each division.
In our SPRING SEASONS, the league-age is what their age will be
on August 31 of that current year. Pony International is pretty strict in the spring season about players playing only in the division their league-age allows. There are a few exceptions, but these are not common. If you have a question about this please contact us. In our FALL SEASONS the league-age is what their age will be on August 31 of the
following year. This is common practice in Pony Baseball leagues, with the idea that the fall season is more geared towards preparing the players for what is usually considered the more competitive spring season that will follow. We do have flexibility with the league-age in the fall though, so if you'd like your child to play back to the previous spring seasons age please contact us for more information. Parents are always encouraged to keep the player at the intended division but EVB recognizes that certain circumstances may still lead a parent to believe one more season in the lower division would be in the best interest of the player.
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When does the season start?
When does the season end?
Spring Season: Teams are formed and practices will begin in about the last week of January. Games start about the 3rd Saturday of February. Final Championship games are no later than the Saturday before Memorial Day Weekend, so sometime in late May.
Fall Season: Teams are formed and practices begin approximately mid-August. Games start on the Saturday after Labor Day, and the final playoff games are usually the Thursday before Thanksgiving.
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When are Player Assessments required?
Any season that any division (except Filly) has more than one team, Player Assessments and a draft by the managers are required to form those teams equally. EVB plays it's season with Menifee Pony Baseball and has to form it's teams under the same guidelines in order to maintain the competitive balance as much as possible.
What does my child need to bring for Player Assessments?
Each player should have a glove, bat, helmet and cleats. We may have a league helmet or bat to borrow, but not any gloves. These things you will really need for the season anyway, as equipment sharing isn't something that's encouraged these days. For assessments they can do without the cleats since they do very little running, but you will need them for the season. An athletic cup is also recommended, and is also required for playing the catcher position.
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How are teams formed?
Can I request a certain coach for my child?
In divisions with two or more teams, divisions will have a Player Assessments, where coaches can evaluate each players skills, and then a draft, where the managers take turns selecting their players. This is important so we can create a competitive balance as much as possible. The Filly (t-ball) division teams are formed by player requests for teammates and coaches. We are usually able to grant every request in the Filly division. Player requests are considered in the draft process, especially at the younger levels, but they are not guaranteed.
When are games and practices?
Most games for most levels are played on Saturdays, but they can be played on any weeknight during the week, especially in the older divisions. At the Filly level usually all games are played on Saturdays. As the levels increase there are more games during the season so more must be played on weekdays. Practices may be on any weekday and is usually based on the needs of the coach and the field availability to the league. The Filly division will typically be just one 1-hour practices and one 1-hour game per week. As the ages increase, the frequency and duration of practices gradually increase. Since EVB, like most youth leagues, relies on volunteer coaches, we need to allow these coaches to set their own practice schedule, within certain guidelines and reasonable time-ranges. Remember that these are just guidelines to practice schedules, ultimately the time and frequency (within reason) are at the managers discretion.
When will the game schedule be posted?
The game schedule takes coordination with several different entities, including other leagues and different parks departments. This causes our schedule not to be completed any sooner than one or two weeks, usually one, before our first games.
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Do EVB teams travel to other cities to play?
EVB does play interleague games with Menifee Pony every season, so some games will be played at the Menifee fields. Pony Division teams play MPB and sometimes also French Valley.
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When are announcments made to cancel games or practices due to bad weather?
Why don't you cancel games or practices sooner?
For games at Canyon Hills Sports Park, we personally inspect fields the night before and the morning of games. For games in Menifee, their parks department makes the decisions on their fields. Once any determination has been made, we notify managers immediately. For weeknight games, parks are typically inspected about 3:00pm, unless it's very clear earlier in the day that it won't be usable. Until that official determination is made, fields are considered 'OPEN' until we announce otherwise. We do not cancel games unless we're very sure it's necessary, as field time is too valuable of a commodity at all of our parks. Until then, coaches can always choose to cancel practices (but not games) on their own, this is always their choice. Likewise, it is obviously also always the parents choice whether they want to bring their child or not. The league policy is always that fields are open until we announce they are closed. Any time games are in doubt due to weather, league officials stay in close and frequent contact until games are completed for that day, or the decision was made to cancel. We do not have time to respond to weather-related inquiries, and we are very quick to announce when fields are closed for us.
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Do canceled games get rescheduled?
When games are canceled due to weather or some other condition that causes cancelation of many games at the same time, we generally do not reschedule them the first time this happens, sometimes not the second time either. EVB sets it's budget and it's registration fees based on the assumption that at least one game per team will be lost due to weather each season, as is almost always the case. Rescheduling an entire Saturday's worth of games can be a very complicated and inconvenient process that we'd rather avoid if possible. For weekday games, we usually do get them rescheduled, but not always.
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What equipment does my child need?
Players need a glove and cleats, and boys should have an athletic cup (for Shetland and above). Cleats should be rubber soled until the Bronco division, at which time metal cleats are permitted (but never on portable mounds). We recommend each player have their own bat and batting helmet since comfort and familiarity are important factors with this equipment. When considering buying a bat, make sure to review the
Pony Bat Rules first. For some helmet buying assistance, check out this
Batting Helmet Buying Guide. For baseball bats,
here is a good guide from Demarini to help you select the proper size. For baseball gloves,
here is some general
buying info.
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What are PONY Baseballs bat rules?
- NO bats larger than two and five-eighth inch (2-5/8″) diameter are allowed at any level of play.
- Two and five-eighth inch (2-5/8″) diameter bats that weigh minus 3 (-3) and have the "BBCOR Certified" stamp on them are legal, as long as they are designed for baseball use.
- All bats, except for the -3 (BBCOR certified), must be USABat certified with the USABat licensing stamp on the bat in order to be used for league and tournament play.
- T-ball bats are only allowed when hitting off a tee or our Shetland Blue Flame Pitching Machines, and while using a safety ball.
- T-ball bats must also include the following text: "Only For Use With Approved Tee Balls"
- Coach-pitch bats are not allowed in Menifee Pony Baseball.
- Colt and Palomino will only be allowed to use 2-5/8" -3 BBCOR certified bats.
More on the USABAT Standard can be found HERE
A full list of certified bats can be found HEREBack To Top
Are wood bats still allowed?
Yes. Solid, one piece wood bats are approved for use under USABat with or without the USA Baseball Certification Mark. Multi-piece and composite wood bats must feature the USA Baseball Certification Mark to be approved for play. Bats made of multiple pieces of wood, sawdust, or including man-made materials, are considered composite wood bats.
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What is the Alliance Division?
Off and on since the Spring 2014 season, EVB has had teams in the
Southwest Interleague Baseball Alliance (SIBA), which is a joint effort of four neighboring PONY leagues (Temecula, Murrieta, French Valley, Lake Elsinore and Menifee) that formed an official PONY league for travel baseball teams within our communities. These teams are formed by invitation and/or tryouts and are not part of the regular recreational leagues, though the EVB
Alliance teams will share our fields and facilities and still be considered a part of Elsinore Valley Baseball. By including the
Alliance teams within the EVB organization we retain talented players who have often grown and developed within the league, still may have siblings and friends in the league, and would like to be a part of our baseball community while still getting some of the "travel ball" experience. These teams are independently formed and operated and they join our SIBA league as a team, not on an individual basis.
Do Elsinore Valley Baseball Board Members get paid for their position?
Nobody within Elsinore Valley Baseball gets paid. EVB operates entirely on volunteers, from the Board Members on down to the coaches and Team Parents.
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Can I bring payment in to the EVB office?
Can I come in to the EVB office to discuss an issue?
The Elsinore Valley Baseball Board of Directors is based entirely on volunteers who perform their "jobs" out of their own homes. There are no offices of EVB. To have an office would add unnecessary additional expenses that would have to be passed down to each of you in the form of higher registration costs.
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I'm having too much trouble registering on your website, or it's simply too inconvenient and time-consuming for me, can I just register in-person?
Elsinore Valley Baseball has no offices to come down and register at. EVB typically does all of it's registrations online, but if you are really needing to make an in-person payment, or if you are having trouble with our online system, please do contact us. With website problems though, please do try a different browser, or a different device first.
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