The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Hope remains for local, state tournament play
The Little League World Series was canceled Thursday for the first time since it began 75 years along with the corresponding Regional tournaments.
Connecticut has a history of success when it comes to Little League, ranking second in the United States (tied with New Jersey and Pennsylvania) with four LLWS titles.
Connecticut’s most recent LLWS Champion dates back to 1989 when Trumbull took home the title, while five Connecticut teams have advanced through the New England Regional since 2008 (Shelton National in 2008, Westport in 2013 and Fairfield American
in 2010, 2012 and 2017). Windsor Locks (1965), Norwalk (1952) and Stamford (1951) have also won world titles. Bridgeport (1950) and Stratford (1963) were each runners-up.
With trips to Bristol and Williamsport no longer on the table, Connecticut Little League District Administrators are doing all they can to make sure there is a season of some kind.
“I was holding out hope that we would be able to do it, but we very much understand the circumstances. It just wasn’t safe enough to hold these events at this time.” District 1 administrator Perry Pierce said. “I am glad Steve Keener (President and CEO) and the leadership at Little
League opened the door for the ability for leagues to still hold their regular seasons as states open up and are allowed to do gatherings again, and at the state level to allow us to compete and do some kind of state tournament. This will give kids who would have aged out of our program next year an opportunity for a real tournament experience.”
Though there is no definitive plan as of now, it seems plausible that there could be a season of some kind in the upcoming months.
“I am on the board in Madison for Little League,” Little League State Coordinator James Maynard said.
“What I am very hopeful for, and obviously, a lot of things would need to loosen up before this happened, but I do see us playing our eight-week Little League season, whether that would-be June, July or August, assuming we can get the go ahead and the fields are opened by our local towns.”
Last year Maynard was the manager for the 12U Madison baseball team which represented Connecticut in the regional tournament.
“As far as Little League goes, I would say as far as looking back at last year, knowing the talent that we had coming into our 12-year old season last summer, we would have been crushed by getting the news of a cancellation like this,” Maynard said. “I feel terrible because I know there are Little League programs from different towns around the state that feel that same way coming into this summer and it just is not going to happen for them. But to put things in perspective with this pandemic, all youth sports, including Little League are pretty far down the line when it comes to importance and priority.”
For now, administrators are playing the waiting game, as many of the decisions moving forward are in the hands of local and state government.
“It comes down to when Governor Lamont and the local level municipalities allow us out,” Pierce said. “In some cases there may be cities or towns that will enforce a lockdown longer, so we may have to deal with those issues as well. If that happens, we will have to adjust and work through it.”
The idea of a postseason extending into the fall has even been floated around by district administrators.
“I am one of the regional hosts that got canceled,” District 4 administrator Denis Haley said. “We host the Junior Girls Softball regional in Orange every year and have for 28 years. We have a state meeting May 12th via Zoom and we will probably try to figure out what we can do regarding the state tournaments we could play. We are looking at any time we can start, right up until they go to school as Little League has said we can play right into the fall. Once you get into August and early September, you have to work the schedule around youth football and soccer as well.”
With the season being delayed in a sense, littleleague.org has released potential rule changes to accommodate new potential schedules.
“Our birthdate is August 31st, but the difference this year is that players who would turn 13 by the time a pushed back postseason comes around will still be eligible.” Haley said. “If the league goes until September, it is going to let those players play out the year with the 12-year-olds. If you had a team that was advancing to a state tournament, it would not be penalized for having kids who turned 13.”
Despite the present uncertainty, there seems to be an optimism heading into the coming months, with passionate coaches and administrators doing what they can to get youth baseball and softball players on the field again.
“We as an organization really want to put on local, sectional and state level tournaments so at least the players can get the experience,” Pierce said. “If they feel like they are good enough to be the Connecticut State champs, we want to give them the opportunity to compete for it. While I can’t offer a trip to Bristol or Williamsport, at least knowing they can compete for a state championship is as much as I can do for them.”
The Little League World Series will add four teams in 2021, two from the United States and two international teams. This will lead to two new regions in the United States, including the Metro Region, which will include New York, Connecticut, New Jersey and Rhode Island.
Connecticut is presently in the New England Region, and will leave behind Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts in the new alignment.