Post Tryout Registration Policy

An athlete will be considered a hat pick and assigned to a team in draft order if any one (1) of the following conditions are met regardless of that athletes league status (returning or new):

1. An athlete registers after tryouts.
2. An athlete registers after the draft.
3. An athlete fails to appear at tryouts and does not arrange for a private tryout.

Returning athletes who register after tryouts or the draft will NOT be returned to their previous team. They will be treated as hat picks and will be placed on the next available team in draft order.

Athlete Remediation/Playing Down

What is athlete Remediation

Athlete Remediation is commonly referred to as "playing down" a division. There are a multitude of reasons parents might request that their child be allowed to participate an additional year in a division that they have age out of. Some of the more common are as follows:

• I want my child to play on a team with his friends
• I feel that my child would benefit from the confidence boost of being the oldest
• I am worried that my child is smaller than the other children in this division
• I am worried that my child does not have the skill sets necessary to compete at the next level
• I am worried that my child can not safely compete at the next level

While all of these items are legitimate concerns for parents athlete safety is Lakeland Little League number one priority. It is important to keep in mind that we have to balance the concern for safety of all our athletes with the benefits gained from athlete remediation. When considering athlete remediation a parent must also consider the following:

Things You Should Consider

1. Little League age eligibility rules are not based on January 1st (start of the year) December 31st (end of the year). Instead Officially Chartered Little Leagues across the nation base their age eligibility rules in accordance with Williamsport guidelines. Under this structure the year runs from September 1st (beginning of the year to August 31st (end of the year) because of this your child's actual age may be slightly different from their "league age". Frequently this age differential is not isolated to one or two athletes in a division.
2. Athlete remediation creates an age bubble for the athlete in question. In other words the athlete being remediated will lose a year of eligibility in a subsequent division and perpetuates the issue of the athlete being behind in age appropriate skill development. When remediated the athlete will refine old skills but they will in all likelihood not develop new age appropriate skill sets thus the remediated athlete is not one year behind in terms of skills rather they are two years behind. As the athlete ages and advances through the divisions this skill gap becomes more and more difficult to bridge. For athletes who continually play a year down due to remediation may desire to continue to compete beyond Lakeland Little League at the high school level. These athletes may find themselves competing for a roster spot with the skill sets of a 12 to 14 year old against athletes who have the skill sets of 15 to 16 year olds or better.
3. Are you more concerned about the new division than your child? Children are not naive. While as a parent your concern surrounding your child's movement from one division to the next comes from a place of caring it is important to consider whether or not your child shares these concerns. As well intentioned as our actions may be it is important to remember that young athletes are very observant. When they are remediated they are frequently very excited to be the "ringer" or the oldest player on the team. This confidence boost, however, is short lived as the athlete begins to realize that a majority of his peers are playing at the next level. As the player realizes this they tend to attribute their success less to hard work and skill development and more to the fact that they are competing against a younger opponent. In the end more often than not a parents effort to boost an athletes confidence through remediation sadly backfires.
4. Some divisions have restrictions for remediated athletes. For example a common division for athlete remediation requests is the AA Minor level. In the AA Minors 9 year old athletes are prohibited from pitching during competition. The best a 9 year old can hope for is to pitch batting practice in a non competitive setting. This rule was implemented to ensure the safety of all players within that division. It is important to consider the restrictions your child may face due to remediation
5. Have you explored alternatives to remediation? Frequently an athlete is not a far behind in skill development as the parent might think. All athletes develop at a different pace. It is easy to compare your child to the "ringer" on last years team. It is important to remind yourself that the ringer on a team is the exception and not the norm. Have you considered how your child stacks up against the norm? Would a skills camp be a more appropriate and beneficial experience for your child?
6. Are you aware that Lakeland Little League will remediate an athlete without parental request? If an athlete demonstrates that he or she lacks the skill sets to safely compete and experience success at the age appropriate level League officials will often suggest remediation to the parent. In this scenario the parent can either accept the suggestion or request that the athlete play in the age appropriate division. The advantage to this course of action is that league officials can often more readily weigh the pros and cons of remediation and often do so only if the benefit to the athlete is greater than the potential hurdles doing so creates down the road. 

Remediation Process

In the interest of safety, fairness, and transparency Lakeland Little League has implemented the following process that must be followed for player remediation. This objective of this process is to first and foremost to ensure the safety of all players. Second to that objective is to ensure fair play and third transparency. The end goal for remediation is to equip the athlete with the skill necessary to be competitive at the next level of play. As stated above the remediated athlete will need to bridge additional skill gaps in order to make the transition from one division to the next. As such transparency is necessary so that the athletes needs can be properly identified and the appropriate course of action can be implemented to ensure the maximum potential for success now and in the future. The remediation process is as follows:

1. The parent or guardian must inform the board via email, mail, phone call, or by attending a board meeting of their desire to have their child play below their age division.
2. The parent or guardian is informed of and acknowledges the potential future social and developmental pitfalls of their child playing below their age division.
3. The parent or guardian will make themselves available to attend a board meeting for further inquiry if requested by the board.
4. The athlete attends tryouts for the age appropriate division.
5. It is determined by managers and board members that it would be unsafe for the athlete to participate in the age appropriate division.
6. The athlete's participation in the lower division does not threaten the safety of athletes in said division.

Questions You Should be Prepared to Answer

1. Why are you requesting to play down?
2. Has the manager of last years team suggested that your child play down?
3. Are you aware of and have you carefully considered the ramifications of remediation?
4. What is your primary objective that you hope to accomplish through remediation?
5. Have you carefully weighed the pros and cons of remediation with that of your expressed objective?
6. Are you aware of alternatives to achieve your objective other than remediation?
7. Have you given these alternatives careful consideration?
8. What if anything is keeping you from further exploration of those alternatives?

Scott Schumacher Scholarship

Lakeland Little League will offer up to 5 scholarships for the amount of 100% of in house or “club” registration costs. Scholarships will be awarded on an individual basis if the following conditions are met:

1. Parent, Guardian, or athlete applies for scholarship no later than one full week prior to registration close.
2. Parent or Guardian commits to and completes 15 hours of volunteer service in concessions or grounds crew per scholarship recipient.
3. Applicant is approved by sitting members of the Scholarship Committee.

Adopt-A-Clause

Volunteer managers and or coaches without a child playing in the division in which they have volunteered to manage or coach will be awarded one pre-draft pick from the tryout pool. The selected athlete will be given a consensus draft pick value and the selecting team will be assessed the appropriate draft pick. The Manager will retain this athlete through the duration of their time in the division and will not be allowed to claim an additional athlete in the pre-draft session until the athlete has aged out of the division. If the Manager changes divisions with the athlete or the athlete decide to re-enter the draft pool at any time the manager is not obligated to select the same athlete and may excise the adopt a clause provision made for managers of teams who do not have a child in the division in which they are coaching.