↵Information and Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions are listed below. This section will be updated based on the time of the year and any "hot topics" that may need to be addressed for our baseball community. Please check back often as this page will change as needed. If you have specific questions, please submit your question through the contact us page and we will respond to your question within 72 hours and/or we’ll add it to the FAQ's. We hope to answer most of your questions here!
League Questions
Registration Questions
Terms & Definitions
League Q&A
Who is Aliso Viejo Little League (AVLL)?
Aliso Viejo Little League (AVLL) (operated as a 501(c)3 Non-Profit Charity) is sanctioned by Little League, Inc. of Williamsport, PA, the largest youth affiliated program in the world.
What are the AVLL League boundaries?
Aliso Viejo is part of District 55 in Southern California To confirm your address falls within the AVLL league boundary please visit the league finder found HERE.
How do I access or Login to the New Website
Although most of the information is public, as a previous member you probably already have an account to gain access to member only data, you just need to get your password. To do this, just click on the LOG IN link in the top right corner of the screen and enter your EMAIL ADDRESS ONLY then click LOG IN again. Your password will be emailed to that address. If for some reason you’re still having trouble logging in Click here for more help.
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Registration Q&A
How do I know which division to register my child up for?
Little League divisions are based on the League Age of the player. Below are the divisions:
| Division |
Age |
Notes |
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| Juniors |
13-14 yrs old |
60/90 distance. Traditionally 14's only in AVLL due to Intermediate now avail. |
| Intermediate |
13 yrs old |
50/70 distance. 12's can try out, must be drafted by 4th round. |
| Majors |
11-12 yrs old |
46/60 distance. 10's can try out, must be drafted by 4th round. |
| Minor AAA |
9-11 yrs old |
9's can try out, must be drafted by 4th round. |
| Minor AA |
8-10 yrs old |
first year of kid pitch |
| Minor A |
7-9 yrs old |
machine/coach/kid pitch |
| Rookie |
6-7 yrs old |
coach pitch |
| T-ball |
4-6 yrs old |
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For our AA and up divisions, all players must participate in the evaluation day and teams are formed by a draft. You will receive notification from the league regarding player evaluation day and reporting time.
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How do I determine my child’s league age?
In April 2014, the International Congress approved the new league age determination amendment for Little League Baseball®. To implement the new amendment, it was decided to include a three-year waiting period to execute the change, starting in 2018. Questions from the field were raised about the impact the change would have on players that were currently league age 8 under the traditional system. Using feedback from Little League® parents through our District Administrators, the Little League International Board of Directors adjusted the April-approved implementation strategy in order to modify the impact on all of our minor and major division players. The adjustment also allows for an easier transition for players in the early years of Little League participation.
As a result of this recent adjustment to the implementation strategy, effective immediately, any player born on or after January 1, 2006 who will turn the ages of 4-9 before 9/1/2016 will be eligible to participate in a local Little League program and will use the new age determination date of August 31 for the remainder of their Little League Baseball career. Players will still be assigned to a division based on local league divisional structure.
Consequently, players born prior to January 1, 2006 will continue to utilize the current age determination date of April 30 for the next three Little League Baseball seasons. Starting with the 2019 Little League Baseball season, all players will utilize the age determination date of August 31.
There are no exceptions to this cut-off date.
You can read more about the change to league age determination by clicking HERE, or Click here for a league age Chart
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My player is league age 5 yrs old and this will be his/her 2nd year of Tball—can I request to move him/her to the Rookie Division?
Yes, thanks to a rule change from Little League International, participants league age 5 and 6 are permitted to advance to Minor League Coach Pitch or Machine Pitch after participation in Tee Ball for one year.
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Can I make friend requests or request a specific coach?
AVLL allows for one friend request for our non-drafted divisions (Minor A, Rookie and T-ball). We do our best to accommodate requests, however, given the number of requests we receive, requests not guaranteed. You will be able to indicate a friend request during the registration process. AVLL does not accept coach requests.
Friend requests are not allowed for our drafted divisions (AA, AAA, Majors, Jrs).
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Can I make a request for a team who practices on certain days?
Unfortunately, we do not assign team practice times or finalize our game schedules until after teams are formed. There is no way to know this information ahead of time. We encourage all members to work with their coaches. Practice times can be any day of the week and games are typically on Saturdays or Sundays for our younger, non-drafted divisions (Tball, Rookie, Minor A). For our non-drafted divisions, there is generally one practice and one game each week. For our drafted divisions (AA, AAA, Majors, Jrs), there is typically a couple practices each week and 2 games each week (one during the week and one on Friday, Saturday or Sundays).
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What is involved with registering my player and what information/documents do I need?
All players, regardless if new or returning, must register online, followed by participating in one of our in-person age and residency verification days. All fees must be paid in full, age and residency must be verified, and your snackbar deposit checks are received prior to your player being placed on a team.
Please see the key dates for our upcoming Spring 2017 registration process:
| October 1- Oct 31 |
Registration opens –save money registering by Nov 1! ($195/player) |
| Nov 1 - Dec 1 |
Regular Registration ($245/player) |
| Nov 5 - 9am-12pm |
Age/Residency Verification Day #1: Dick's Sporting Goods - Laguna Hills |
| Dec 3 - 9am - 12pm |
Age/Residency Verification Day #2: Dick's Sporting Goods - Laguna Hills |
| Jan 13-15, 2016 |
Player Evaluation Day for Drafted Divisions: AA, AAA, Majors, Int, Jrs @ LHLL |
| Week of Jan 23rd |
All players in all divisions contacted regarding team placement |
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February 25, 2017
May 6, 2017
May 7, 2017
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AVLL Opening Day
Annual Fundraiser
All Star Manager Meeting
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Documents that are needed for the age/residency verification day are:
- Passport or Player’s birth certificate - ORIGINAL with the raised official seal (copies of birth certificates, passports or CA-abstracts will not be accepted)
- 3 forms of proof of residency showing that you live within the AVLL boundaries. The proofs of residency documents must be issued after Sept 1, 2016. Documents issued prior to 9/1/2016 will not be accepted. Only one of these items can be an online print out, the other two proofs of residency must be an original bill. Suggested items are as follows: utility bill, cable bill, car registration, property tax bill, medical bill.
- Snackbar Volunteer Duty Deposit check(s). $150/player. Separate checks for each player. Please make your check out to AVLL, along with your child’s name in the note area. Checks will be collected at age verification day but not cashed. Your checks will be destroyed after your assigned snackbar volunteer assignment is completed. If you do not fulfill your snackbar duty, your check will then be cashed at that time. Placement of your player on a team will not be final until your snackbar deposit check(s) is received. Snackbar deposits will not be accepted on our online registration system.
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What type of equipment will my player need?
All AVLL players will be provided with a uniform as part of your registration fees. Other equipment that is needed is a baseball helmet, baseball cleats, bat, glove and protective cup for boys. Update on bats for 2018:
http://www.littleleague.org/learn/equipment/baseballbatinfo.htm
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What do I do if I am interested in coaching or managing a team this coming season?
As you are registering your child you will be asked to specify a volunteer position. There will be choices to be a team manager or a coach. Please make your selection here. All managers will be contacted, and interviews and background checks will be conducted, in addition to request for approval by the AVLL Board of Directors. Attendance at one of our managers/coaches training meetings is also required.
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How many players are placed on a team?
Our goal each year is to have no more than 12 players on a team at the 4-12 year old level so that we can maximize participation and development opportunities. However all teams are based on the availability of coaches and the appropriate interest levels of players. Some teams may have more or less than 12 players, but our goal is 12.
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For our drafted divisions (AA, AAA, Majors, Int., Jrs): What is expected at player evaluations?
Players will be evaluated on their baseball skills during player evaluations and tryouts. Please visit the website after Jan 1st for specific tryout times. All players in our drafted divisions (AA, AAA, Majors and Jrs), in order to be eligible to be drafted to a team, must participate in player evaluations. Evaluations are conducted by the player agents, division commissioners, and team managers. In general players will be evaluated on their hitting, throwing/catching, fielding, and running ability. Player Evals typically happens the weekend prior to the draft.
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Practices are scheduled and conducted based on field availability. At the younger levels, Single A, Rookie and T-ball, there is normally 1 practice and 1 game per week. At the AA and above levels, there are more games and more practices per week. For our AA and above divisions, typically this equals 2 games/week—one weekday and one weekend game. Based on the # of fields we have available, team practice times will be scheduled any day of the week, including Sundays.
Practice times are assigned after teams have been formed in January and you’ll be notified by your team manager of your team’s assigned times. We will not have team practice times prior to player placements. Typically, we have a temporary practice schedule from late January until opening day. Then the season’s regular practice schedule starts after opening day.
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For our tball, rookie and Single A divisions, there is one game/week and games are typically held on Fridays, Saturdays or Sundays, depending on the final schedule. For our AA, AAA, Majors and Jrs divisions, during the regular season, there is usually one weekday game, in addition to a weekend game that will be scheduled on either Saturday or Sunday, depending on the final game schedule. Game schedules are not finalized until after player placements.
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How long is the spring season?
For all divisions for our Spring 2017 season, Opening Day will Saturday, February 25 and the regular seasons runs through early June. For our drafted divisions, post season play begins in mid-May through early to mid-June.
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Why is the League Collecting Deposit Checks for the Snack Bar?
Due to the increasing number of no-shows for assigned snack bar duty, AVLL is implementing a snack bar deposit policy this year. Your snack bar deposit check(s) will be collected (but not cashed) at one of our age/residency verification days. Your checks will be destroyed after your assigned snack bar volunteer assignment is completed. If you do not fulfill your snack bar duty, your check will then be cashed. Placement of your player on a team is not final until your snack bar deposit check(s) is received. The Spring 2017 snack bar deposit is $150/player in the league. One check/player please. Check(s) need to be made out to AVLL and please include in the note area: snack bar deposit for XXX (player name and division). Your deposit check will be collected at our in person age/residency verification day…you will not be able to take care of this via our online registration.
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What is the refund policy?
Spring Refund Policy
- Prior to the draft you will be refunded your registration fee less $25
- No refunds will be issued after the league has formed teams
Fall Refund Policy
- No refunds will be issued after September 1st
*Please allow 30 days to process your refund
Terms & Definitions
Western Region - The District Administrators report to the Regional Director, of which there are five in the United States. As part of the staff of Little League Baseball, Incorporated, the Regional Directors work out of Regional Centers at Warner Robins, Georgia; San Bernardino, California; Indianapolis, Indiana, Bristol, Connecticut, and Waco, Texas. Representatives for the International regions of Little League maintain offices in Puerto Rico, Canada, Japan and Poland. As part of the Western Region, Southern California alone contains 40 districts.
District 55 - For administrative and tournament purposes, roughly 10 to 20 leagues in a given area usually comprise a district. The District Administrator is an experienced volunteer elected by the constituent leagues to counsel, direct, and provide leadership in the policies and rules of the Little League program and to serve as liaison between the leagues and the Regional Director. The District Administrator organizes the district tournament and attends the periodic International Congress where Little League rules and regulations are democratically reviewed and revised for the betterment of the program. There are more than 600 District Administrators worldwide, each with a staff of assistants to help more effectively serve their leagues. District 55 is comprised of 9 leagues in Orange County; Aliso Viejo, Irvine Ranch, Laguna Beach, Laguna Hills, Laguna Niguel, Newport Beach, Northwood, Rancho Niguel, and Saddleback Little Leagues.
Majors (46/60) - The Little League Baseball Division (sometimes known as the Major Division) is for boys and girls ages 9–12. A local league may choose to limit its Major Division to 10-, 11-, and 12-year-olds, or 11-12-year-olds. The diamond used is a 60-foot diamond and the pitching distance is 46 feet. The local league has an option to choose a Tournament Team (or "All Stars") of 11-12-year-olds from within this division, and the team may enter the International Tournament. The culmination of the International Tournament is the Little League Baseball World Series, featuring teams from around the globe. All expenses for the teams advancing to the World Series (travel, meals, and housing) are paid by Little League Baseball." A standard Little League field has base paths of 60 feet, and a pitching distance of 46 feet (measured from the back point of home plate to the front edge of the pitcher’s plate).
Intermediate (50/70) - In 2012, Little League announced plans to add a new division of play for the 2013 season, the Little League Intermediate Division. This Division is played on a field with a 50-foot (15 m) pitching distance and 70-foot (21 m) base paths. It is open to players ages 11–13, but may be limited to ages 11–12 or 12–13 or 13 by a local league. Players in this division will be able to lead off and steal. Rules will follow rules similar to those of the Junior, Senior, and Big League Divisions of play. Little League holds a World Series in this level of play, officially called the Intermediate Little League World Series, in Livermore, California.
Tournament of Champions (TOC) - The tournament of champions is typically played as a single elimination tournament between the top teams in each competitive division from leagues within the district. District 55 often allows leagues the ability to send their two top teams from each competitive division beginning in AAA.
All Stars – Different from TOC, in that each league will take their top players in each age division and form a special “All-Star” team of the top 13 ranked kids from within their league and divisions. These teams will then play against other “All-Star” teams from other leagues in the District, and then if successful, move on to Sectional, Regional, and hopefully the World Series for that division.
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