Downey Letter

Summer Baseball

Parents

February, 2009

MVHS Baseball Parents,

 

The purpose of this letter is to outline the summer baseball opportunities for MVHS high school students.  It's a topic that I receive a lot of questions on; I know it can be confusing.  My intent here is to provide some perspective, and then refer you on to those that can really answer any questions you may have.

 

SAYB sponsors teams for 14 and 15 year-olds similar to the teams for 13 year olds. Since most of you are familiar with SAYB, nothing new here...  Registration for the SAYB "Big League" (13-15) has been open for some time, and is done online at www.sayb.org - I believe registration closes on February 7th.

 

Beginning with 16 year-olds, things get a little different:

 

Age 16: SAYB sponsors teams that are affiliated with the VFW and MYAS. 

  • VFW: VFW eligibility is open to players who attend a 621 District High School, including those that do not live within this district.  Those who live within the 621 School district but enroll in a different high school are also eligible for VFW.  VFW is the ONE organization that has a different birth date cutoff than all the other summer baseball organizations: the VFW birth date cutoff is "age through May 31" (all others are "age through April 30"). There are 2 VFW teams, with the goal being one with MVHS students and one with Irondale High School students - there could be circumstances where this could be different if it led to more opportunity for some kids.  I coach one of the VFW teams, and Irondale High School Coach Chris Fink coaches one of the VFW teams. 
  • SAYB also sponsors one or more teams that play in MYAS.  The geographic boundaries are slightly different than VFW, and as noted above, the birth date cutoff is different. 

 

Age 17/18: SAYB is affiliated with the Senior Babe Ruth association.  Senior Babe Ruth eligibility is open to players who live within the 621 School district only. Players who attend a 621 School District high school but do not live within the 621 school district boundaries are NOT eligible to participate (Senior Babe Ruth regulations).  

 

Age 17-19: One American Legion Baseball team is sponsored by the Tri-City American Legion which is open to Mounds View High School students or students who live within the Mounds View High School boundaries but do not attend Mounds View High School (they attend a private school, for example).  The corresponding American Legion Baseball team for Irondale High School students is being sponsored by SAYB.  With the age-cutoff being 19, some players who have completed their freshman year of college are eligible to play legion baseball.  There are also some regulations allowing players to "move" to a different legion team if they are not selected for their "home base" legion team; I don't pretend to fully understand, so I won't attempt to explain.

 

Registration for the SAYB 16-18 and Tri-City Legion opportunities will occur in early spring.  When I am notified on the dates, I will post on the MVHS Baseball website.

 

One part of the confusion/complexity relates to the fact there are several different organizations that sponsor summer baseball: MYAS, VFW, Senior Babe Ruth, and American Legion Baseball.  Matters of where you live as well as age cutoff dates can differ somewhat with each organization. 

 

The bottom line is that if you live within the Mounds View High School boundaries, and your son does NOT have a May birthday, it's pretty straightforward.  If you live outside the Mounds View High School boundaries and/or your son's birthday is in May, then it can get more confusing, and you may want to contact one of the people below to insure you have a clear understanding.

 

I think it's important for players that want to improve to play summer baseball.  The high school season is extremely short (about 1/2 as compared to sports like basketball and hockey for example), so the summer baseball experience is important.  SAYB and Tri-City Legion work hard within all the regulations to place players on teams that afford them with the most competitive opportunity to play baseball.

 

Hopefully, I've helped provide some perspective versus created more confusion.  I am more than happy to try and help, but I am not the expert on all the regulations - Please feel free to contact the SAYB and Tri-City American Legion contacts below to answer any questions you may have.

 

SAYB: www.sayb.org, Mike Anderson, SAYB President: mianderson@lifetouch.com, (651) 592-6744

 

Tri-City American Legion: www.tricitybaseball.org, Rus Poser, Coach: rusposer@comcast.net, (651) 343-4500

 

 

 

Mark Downey

612-716-1088

markdowney@charter.net