9- and 10-year old participants play in the Minors age group in the Junior Division. Rec and advanced play teams are offered for Minors players in the Spring Season and rec teams are offered in the Fall Season. All Minors teams compete on a 46/65 field, where the basepaths are 65 ft and the distance from the pitching rubber to home plate is 46 ft.

BMBL follows the age cutoffs defined by Cal Ripken Baseball for both rec teams and advanced play teams in the Junior Division.

Follow the links below for more information on teams offered for the Minors age group.

Spring Season

In order to qualify for the Minors age group in the Spring Season, the player must be 9 or 10 years old on April 30th of the year in which they compete.

• Rec Teams
• Advanced Play Teams

Fall Season

In order to qualify for the Minors age group, the player must be 9 or 10 years old on April 30th of the year after the Fall Season in which they compete.

• Rec Teams

The Minors age group is designed to allow players to experience the game of baseball with most of the standard rules. Coaches will continue to break the game down by position and also continue to encourage players to try all positions. Players will now have the opportunity to pitch on a regular basis and also hit from a live pitcher every game. Players will continue to be taught the basic fundamentals of the game, good sportsmanship and teamwork as they go through this program.

BMBL offers Minors rec teams in both the Spring and Fall Seasons. In both seasons, these teams compete against other Minors rec teams in the BMBL, so travel is limited to fields located within the area of the Boyertown School District. The Minors Rec Spring Season begins at the end of March and concludes in mid-June. The Minors Rec Fall Season begins the last week of August and ends in late October.

Minors Rules and Regulations

Goals for Minors:

9-YEAR-OLD MINORS PLAYERS:

1. Be able to slide to the bag appropriately.
2. Understand bunting and the difference between a sacrifice bunt and bunting for a base hit (drag bunt).
3. Understand the difference between pitching from the stretch vs the wind up.
4. Understand stealing and know when to do it.
5. Catcher should be able to throw down to second base at least on a bounce.
6. Outfielders and Infielders should know what cut offs are.
7. Batters should know what the strike zone is and where to stand in batters box.
8. Batters/Runners should begin to look for coaches and signs/signals.
9. Fielders should know the difference between a force out and a tag out.
10. Fielders should know that they have responsibility on every play.

10-YEAR-OLD MINORS PLAYERS:

1. Know what it means to slide to the inside/outside of the bag.
2. Understand bunting down either foul line.
3. Begin pitching for accuracy and for a longer period of time.
4. Know what the term balk means and when it might be called.
5. Catcher should be looking to and attempt to throw runners out.
6. Outfielders and Infielders should understand cut offs and who takes the cutoff.
7. Batters should be able to recognize balls and strikes.
8. Batters/Runners should start to understand when to take extra bases.
9. Fielders should know when a force out is possible vs. when a tag out is necessary.
10. Fielders should be backing up throws and looking to cover bases on every play.

The BMBL offers tryout-based advanced play teams for the Minors age group in the Spring Season. For each Spring Season, we will attempt to form four advanced play teams, if the numbers allow:

• 10U-A team
• 10U-B team
• 9U-A team
• 9U-B team

These advanced play teams participate in 4-5 local weekend tournaments within a 60 minute drive of Boyertown. The 9U-A and 10U-A teams represent Boyertown for their age group in the Cal Ripken district, state, and national playoffs (if advancing). The season for all advanced play teams in the Minors age group begins with tryouts and practices in early April and concludes in late July.

Players participating in advanced play teams are expected to also play on and practice with a BMBL Minors rec team. Participants will practice with their advanced play team on Saturdays and Sundays throughout the season. If a scheduling conflict arises between the advanced play team and the in-town rec team, the rec team should be the priority.

Players selected to a BMBL advanced play team should understand that being a member of an advanced play team is an honor and comes with an expectation of a commitment to that team. Participants should also remember that they are representing Boyertown as a member of this team and act accordingly. To be eligible for advanced play teams, each parent and player must sign the advanced play code of conduct, which details the expectations of players and their families. Fielding positions and playing time are not guaranteed on advanced play teams and are determined by the head coach and his coaching staff.

Minors advanced play team members must pay an advanced play fee, in addition to the rec team fee. This extra fee goes toward 2 jerseys, a hat, and the 4-5 local tournaments.