T-Ball (ages 4-5)
Objective: introduce the game of baseball in a simple, fun way
Format: instructional
Goals: players develop care for the game, fundamental skills and confidence
Details: all players and coaches get together once a week for a clinic focused on skills development and game play. Clinics will be organized and run by Tiverton Baseball and coaches. All players will get a chance to learn in a structured but fun way with a focus on the fundamentals. Skills will include hitting, catching, fielding, throwing and base running. We will also teach positions and the simpler aspects of the game. After skills, the players will break off into teams and play 2 innings of game play (with education and coaching mixed in). Each player will hit and play the field twice. To keep players engaged, we aim to keep the entire session including skills and game play to under 1 hour.
Rookie (ages 6-7)
Objective: teach the fundamentals and have players gain confidence in their skills
Format: game play (coach and player pitch)
Goals: players develop an understanding of the game, individual skills and learn teamwork
Details: coaches and teams practice independently. Coaches will run clinic-style practice focused on individual skills (hitting, catching, fielding, throwing, base running and position play) and situational game play/teamwork. Players will also start to learn pitching and playing the catcher position. Games will have a 90-minute limit and will be a mix of coach pitch and ideally 2 innings of player pitch. There will be at least one game and one practice per week.
Minors (ages 8-10)
Objective: build on the fundamentals and have players learn game play basics
Format: game play (player pitch)
Goals: players develop an understanding of the rules, sportsmanship and competition
Details: coaches and teams practice independently. Coaches will run clinic-style practice focused on individual skills (hitting, catching, fielding, throwing, base running and position play) and situational game play/teamwork. Players will learn pitching and playing the catcher position. Games will be fun and competitive. There will be at least two games and one practice per week.
Majors (ages 11-12)
Objective: ease the transition from the 46/60 diamond to the larger (60/90) diamond when players graduate to Babe Ruth (ages 13+)
Format: game play on 50/70 diamond
Goals: players develop an understanding of what a “real game of baseball” looks like
Details: the distance between the mound and home plate will increase from 46 feet to 50 feet and the base paths increase from 60 feet to 70 feet. Coaches and teams practice independently. Coaches will focus on individual and team skills and teach players new rules as they start their transition from the smaller diamond of our lower divisions to Babe Ruth: taking leads, holding runners, pick offs, balks, hit and runs, advancing runners, etc.
Babe Ruth (ages 13-18)
Objective: typical baseball on a larger (60/90) diamond where players and teams learn maturity and advanced skills
Format: game play on 60/90 diamond
Goals: players solidify their love of the game through fun and competitive baseball
Details: Coaches and teams practice independently. Coaches will focus on individual and team skills needed to continuing developing character as a player and person