More information on Evaluations and Frequently asked questions…
When and where are Evaluations?
Evals will be held on February 25 at North Rockford Middle School. Baseball will run from 8am-noon, softball will run from noon-2pm.
Does my child really need to attend?
Kid pitch teams are 100% drafted. Evaluations let us know where your child falls within his/her age group. This allows our coaches to draft balanced, competitive teams! We encourage every player to attend this event! New in 2023: If your player participated in the 2022 All Star Tryouts, your player is exempt from evaluations as we’ll use those assessment numbers! We will need many volunteers to run this event. If you’re interested, please contact Cindy at [email protected]. Are you coaching a kid pitch team? This is a great opportunity to volunteer and scout the talent you’ll be drafting!
What if we cannot make Evals? Is there a make-up date?
We know families are busy and have a life outside of playing ball. If you cannot make evaluations because of other plans, you’re going to be out of town, another sport, whatever…it’s not the end of the world! If your child has played RLL in previous years, we’ll use previous years evaluation or All-Star assessment numbers. Unfortunately, there will not be a make-up date. It’s very costly for RLL to rent the school gym and it also takes a lot of time and effort for our volunteer board to put together and run. Players that do not attend evaluations will be a “hat pick” at draft night. Their name will literally be drawn for team selection.
What happens at Evaluations?
Your child will get signed in and will proceed to the warm-up area for 5-10 minutes. We’ll be running everyone through in groups of 15 max. We anticipate it taking no more than 40 minutes to sign in and run through all 5 stations. Players should bring a glove. Bats and helmets will be available for use, or a player can bring their own equipment. NO CLEATS, tennis shoes only, please! Each player will be assessed on their skills so we can rank them within their age group for division drafts.
Players will be evaluated at 5 different stations:
Infield
Outfield
Hitting
Pitching
Running
How long will it take for my child to finish his/her evaluation from start to finish?
Please plan on 40 minutes per child.
When can we sign up for an evaluation slot?
We expect to have a signup available via signup genius the night of February 18. The link will be posted on Rockfordll.com and sent in an email. When signing up for a slot…….
· Each child will need their own time slot. Please leave your child's name in the comment box upon signup!
· Try to signup within your child's age group. We understand everyone has a busy Saturday and this may not be possible! If you have more than one child attending Evaluations, they can sign up for the same time frame. No need to come back twice...unless you want to.
How are coach’s kids drafted?
Coach’s kids will be ranked and drafted in the order they would have been selected based on collective evaluations from that division. If a coach’s kid does not attend drafts, 2022 All Star evaluation numbers will be used. If RLL does not have 2022 All Star numbers for that player, they will automatically be a number one draft pick for that coach’s team.
What do we need to bring to Evals?
Bring a glove and water bottle. Your child can use their own helmet and bat, or RLL will have some available for use.
Do you need volunteers?
We will be looking for MANY volunteers to make this event a success. If you are a coach this season, this is a great opportunity to help us and scout players at the same time (wink, wink)!
When does ________ begin?
February
15-End of “Early Bird” registration (CP, AA, AAA, Majors, Int)
22-Registration Closes (CP, AA, AAA, Majors, Int)
25-Evaluations
27-Drafts (Majors BB/SB) coaching clinic/ safety meeting
28- Drafts (AAA BB, AA SB) coaching clinic/safety meeting
March
2 - Drafts (AA BB) coaching clinic/safety meeting
13 -End of “Early Bird” registration, Tball, Juniors
20 - Practices begin (CP-Intermed)
20 - Tball, Juniors Registration Closes
April
3 – 9 SPRING BREAK (Practice optional)
10 - T ball, Juniors Practices Begin
24 - Games Begin (CP-Intermed)
May
1- T ball Games Begin
What nights are practices and games?
The practice schedule for most divisions will come out mid to late March (tee ball and juniors schedules typically come out a week later). Teams will have one weeknight (M-Th) and one Saturday practice. Practices run until games begin; once games begin, there are no further scheduled practices. Games for tee ball, coach pitch, and player pitch (minors) consist of one weeknight (M-Th) and one Saturday game. The weeknight game could vary from week to week. Majors games will be held M-F (two per week) with no Saturday games. Schedules are still to be determined for Intermediates and Juniors, but most likely will consist of two games per week also.
Can I request specific days of the week for practices or games?
Unfortunately, we cannot guarantee a specific day for practices or games. Practice days will be consistent each week for your child's team, but game days can vary week to week.
What equipment does my child need?
Your child will need to have his or her own ball glove, baseball/softball pants (traditionally white, black or grey), rubber soled cleats (Intermediates and above can wear metal cleats), batting gloves (if desired), and an equipment bag/backpack (if desired). Rockford Little League will provide jerseys and hats for baseball players and jerseys and headbands for softball players. There will also be team helmets, bats, and catching equipment although players are welcome to bring their own if preferred.
Do I really need to submit a birth certificate?
Yes! We are required to verify the age of each player. This only needs to be done ONCE in a player’s RLL career! Birth certificates are removed after verification. You may also show a copy of a birth certificate at Walk Up Sign-ups or make other arrangements by emailing [email protected]
Can my child play a division other than what Sports Connect automatically pulls up for my player?
T-ball ages 4-6
Baseball:
Coach Pitch: ages 6-8
AA Minors: ages 8-10
AAA Minors: age 11, roster filled with drafted players
Majors: age 12, roster filled with drafted players
Intermediates: age 13 (parents can request their 11-12 yo in this division)
Juniors: age 14
Seniors: ages 15-16
Softball:
Coach Pitch: ages 6-8
Minors: ages 8-10
Majors: ages 11-12
Juniors: ages 13-14
Seniors: ages 15-16
There are some age overlaps which allow you to decide whether your child should play up or down a division based on ability and family needs. If age allows, we require one season of T-ball before your child advances to the coach pitch division. We follow Little League International's age chart to determine age. Email us with any questions!
How is Little League age determined?
Use this link for baseball/tball age chart 2023 Baseball Age Chart (littleleague.org)
Use this link for softball age chart 2023 Softball Age Chart (littleleague.org)
When does registration close?
Registration closes for everyone except Tball, Juniors, and Seniors on February 22, and we'll take late registrations until our rosters are full.
Registration closes on March 20 for Tball, Juniors, and Seniors with late registrations continuing until rosters are full.
***Early bird registration saves you $10 per player! Don’t miss out!***
We have decided not to play RLL, can I get a refund?
No refunds are given once you have signed your player up. We pre-pay for many things such as our Little League Charter, equipment, insurance, web site work, fields, etc.. and it’s just too much work having to re-organize a team and update all the necessary league attributes. Our volunteer board asks that you make sure your players are certain that they really want to play before you register.
Any questions can be directed to [email protected]