Gordon Baseball is a proud part of the Gordon Athletic Association. Please read the various topics below to learn more about Gordon Baseball and to review information for our current season.
Affiliation Gordon Baseball is affiliated with the Chesterfield Baseball Clubs (CBC) which is a part of PONY (Protect Our Nations Youth) baseball. Many people ask about the difference between PONY Baseball and Little League. The article below, reprinted from Baseball News, outlines the differences.
PONY League Baseball Compared to Little League PONY League and Little League are similar in many ways. Both do a very good job of working with children, offering them a program of fun and learning, as well as competition that leads to state, regional, and national playoffs ending in a “World Series” for each age grouping. PONY and Little League also differ in ways that we think are important. We feel that PONY rules are more beneficial to young athletes as they develop their baseball skills. PONY baseball provides more developmental levels of play as players move up a level every 2 years. PONY also introduces many skills (such as base stealing) at an earlier age than Little League rules allow. Field sizes grow with the players. The distances between bases and the distance from the pitching rubber to home plate are increased gradually at each level. Nine and ten year olds’ bases are 60 feet apart, 11 and 12s’ are 70 feet apart, and 13 and 14s’ are 80 feet apart. At age 15, players move to a regulation size baseball field. These field sizes, as well as the pitching distances, are important in the development of young arms and result in exciting and competitive games for the players. CBC also believes it is a real benefit to have two levels of play in each age group. And, playing with a local athletic association based on elementary school boundaries allows your child to be on the same team that many of his/her school friends are on. All of these benefits add up to a positive and fun experience for our children as they learn to play the national past time.
Age Group Play We offer baseball for ages ranging from 4 to 18 years of age. Your age group is determined by what your birth date is as of August 31st of the current year. Our age groups are broken down as follows:
Tee Ball: Players can be ages 4, 5 and 6. A reduced injury factor baseball is used. The ball is put into play offensively once it is hit off a tee. The base length is 50 feet. All players participate offensively while 10 players play at one time in the field. Game length is 1 . hours or 6 innings, whichever comes first. A half inning concludes once 3 outs have been made or 5 runs have been scored. There are no wins/losses, standings, playoffs or all-stars for this level.
Pee Wee: Players can be ages 5 and 6. A reduced injury factor baseball is used. The ball is put into play offensively once it is hit from a pitch thrown from a coach. Batters are allowed 7 swinging strikes. The base length is 50 feet. All players participate offensively while 10 players play at one time in the field. Game length is 1 . hours or 6 innings, whichever comes first. A half inning concludes once 3 outs have been made or 5 runs have been scored. There are no wins/losses, standings, playoffs or all-stars for this level.
Shetland: Players can be ages 7 and 8. A reduced injury factor baseball is used. The ball is put into play offensively once it is hit from a pitch thrown from a coach. Batters are allowed 3 swinging strikes. The base length is 60 feet. All players participate offensively while 10 players play at one time in the field. Game length is 1 . hours or 6 innings, whichever comes first. A half inning concludes once 3 outs have been made or 5 runs have been scored. There are no wins/losses, standings, playoffs or all-stars for this level.
Pinto: Players can be ages 7 and 8. Pinto is the first division of kid pitch. A regulation baseball is used. The ball is put into play offensively once it is hit from a pitch thrown from a player. The base length is 60 feet. The pitching distance is 42 feet. All players participate offensively while 9 players play at one time in the field. Game length is 1 hour 30 minutes or 6 innings, whichever comes first. A half inning concludes once 3 outs have been made or 5 runs have been scored. For the first time wins and losses are counted, standings and playoffs are in place, and there is all-star play.
Yearling: Players can be ages 9 and 10. Yearling is the instructional level of 9 – 10 play. A regulation baseball is used. The ball is put into play offensively once it is hit from a pitch thrown from a player. The base length is 60 feet. The pitching distance is 44 feet. All players participate offensively while 9 players play at one time in the field. Players can steal a base once the ball has passed home plate, though leading off a base is not allowed. Game length is 1 . hours or 6 innings, whichever comes first. A half inning concludes once 3 outs have been made or 5 runs have been scored. Wins and losses are counted, standings and playoffs are in place, though there is no all-star play. Mustang: Players can be ages 9 and 10. Mustang is the upper level of 9 – 10 play. A regulation baseball is used. The ball is put into play offensively once it is hit from a pitch thrown from a player. The base length is 60 feet. The pitching distance is 44 feet. All players participate offensively while 9 players play at one time in the field. . Players can steal second and third base at their own risk while leading off a base is allowed. Game length is 1 . hours or 6 innings, whichever comes first. A half inning concludes once 3 outs have been made. Wins and losses are counted, standings and playoffs are in place, and there is all-star play.
Palomino: Players can be ages 11 and 12. Palomino is the instructional level of 11 – 12 play. A regulation baseball is used. The ball is put into play offensively once it is hit from a pitch thrown from a player. The base length is 70 feet. The pitching distance is 48 feet. All players participate offensively while 9 players play at one time in the field. . Players can steal a base at their own risk, while leading off a base is allowed. Game length is 1 . hours or 7 innings, whichever comes first. A half inning concludes once 3 outs have been made. Wins and losses are counted, standings and playoffs are in place, though there is no all-star play.
Bronco: Players can be ages 11 and 12. Bronco is the upper level of 11 – 12 play. A regulation baseball is used. The ball is put into play offensively once it is hit from a pitch thrown from a player. The base length is 70 feet. The pitching distance is 48 feet. All players participate offensively while 9 players play at one time in the field. . Players can steal a base at their own risk, while leading off a base is allowed. Game length is 2 hours or 7 innings, whichever comes first. A half inning concludes once 3 outs have been made. Wins and losses are counted, standings and playoffs are in place, and there is all-star play.
Stallion: Players can be ages 13 and 14. Stallion is the instructional level of 13 – 14 play. No high school JV players may play in Stallion. A regulation baseball is used. The ball is put into play offensively once it is hit from a pitch thrown from a player. The base length is 80 feet. The pitching distance is 54 feet. All players participate offensively while 9 players play at one time in the field. . Players can steal a base at their own risk, while leading off a base is allowed. Game length is 1 . hours or 7 innings, whichever comes first. A half inning concludes once 3 outs have been made. Wins and losses are counted, standings and playoffs are in place, though there is no all-star play.
Pony: Players can be ages 13 and 14. Pony is the upper level of 13 – 14 play. A regulation baseball is used. The ball is put into play offensively once it is hit from a pitch thrown from a player. The base length is 80 feet. The pitching distance is 54 feet. Only nine players participate offensively and defensively. Players can steal a base at their own risk, while leading off a base is allowed. Game length is 2 hours or 7 innings, whichever comes first. A half inning concludes once 3 outs have been made. Wins and losses are counted, standings and playoffs are in place, and there is all-star play.
Colt: Players can be ages 15 and 16. There is not an instructional level for 15 - 16 play. A regulation baseball is used. The ball is put into play offensively once it is hit from a pitch thrown from a player. The base length is 90 feet. The pitching distance is 60.5 feet. Only nine players participate offensively and defensively, though an extra hitter (EH) and designated hitter may be used. Players can steal a base at their own risk, while leading off a base is allowed. Game length is 2 hours or 7 innings, whichever comes first. A half inning concludes once 3 outs have been made. Wins and losses are counted, standings and playoffs are in place, and there is all-star play.
Senior Colt: Players can be ages 16, 17 and 18. There is not an instructional level for 16 –18 play. A regulation baseball is used. The ball is put into play offensively once it is hit from a pitch thrown from a player. The base length is 90 feet. The pitching distance is 60.5 feet. Only nine players participate offensively and defensively, though an extra hitter (EH) and designated hitter may be used. Players can steal a base at their own risk, while leading off a base is allowed. Game length is 2 hours or 7 innings, whichever comes first. A half inning concludes once 3 outs have been made. Wins and losses are counted, standings and playoffs are in place, though there is no all-star play.
Practices Teams usually practice twice a week in the preseason with one practice during the week and one on the weekend. Ages 4 to 8 usually practice on the Gordon Baseball Field. The older age groups may have to practice at other locations due to field sizing. Most of the time the older age groups have practice time at Rockwood Park.
Inclement Weather Inclement weather can always cause confusion, though the CBC does all it can to minimize this. For weeknight play, the Chesterfield County Adverse Weather Hotline is updated daily at 4:00PM. If the hotline states that your field is open, you must report to the field or risk forfeiture of your game. The number for the Adverse Weather Hotline is (804) 748-1001. For weekend play, CBC makes all decisions regarding game status. Field status can be checked for weekend play on the CBC web site under the President’s Page.
Calendar The first weekend in March represents the first time an association can coordinate association-led play. Gordon Baseball uses the first weekend to conduct skill assessments, and begins practice as soon after that as possible. Practice begins once the coaches are in place, rosters are set, and practice fields are determined. The regular season begins at staggered intervals for the different age groups. Ages 5 through 13 start the third Thursday of April. Ages 14 through 16 do not start until the third Friday of May. Ages 16 through 18 do not start until the last Monday of June. The regular season generally concludes around mid-June. Leagues playoffs begin immediately after the season’s end and conclude just before the July 4th holiday. The 16 - 18 age group, because of its later start, doesn’t end until mid-August.
Coaching Gordon Baseball cannot succeed without the volunteers that make it possible. Each baseball team is generally comprised of 1 head coach and 3 assistant coaches. Gordon Baseball has a strong relationship with Monacan Baseball. The Monacan Varsity Baseball Coach leads a coaching clinic for all Gordon coaches in early March to help keep the instruction consistent between the Gordon program and that which the players will receive in the Monacan JV and Varsity programs. Chesterfield County requires a background check for all CBC coaches. No coach can work with a team until the background check has been completed. For information on the Chesterfield County policy and how to obtain a background check, please click here.
Sign Ups Sign ups are conducted early in the year in order to meet the tight deadlines required to schedule the almost 250 teams county-wide for games. An informational flier goes out to Gordon, Reams and Crestwood Elementary Schools in December with sign-ups beginning in January.
Fall Baseball Each year, CBC sponsors play for a Fall baseball league for players ages 6 through 15. All games are played on Saturdays, generally beginning the second Saturday in September, running for six consecutive weeks. Ages 6 through 8 play just one game per Saturday, while ages 9 through 15 play two consecutive games. Sunday afternoons are used for rainouts. Fields are made available for practice Monday through Friday.