05/16/2026
Worth sharing again for the new families!
To: All Baseball Fans
From: John Lacey, Coach
RE: The path to High School Varsity Baseball
February 27, 2025
Dear Baseball Fans,
This document will lay out the baseball playing options from Little League through High School Varsity.
Little League baseball ends for players once they turn 13. Where the birthday falls matters. If the player turns 13 before
August 31, he / she will not qualify to play Little League that year. If their birthday falls AFTER August 31, they will be able to
play Little League that year as they will not be 13 during the season.
OK, so what happens after that?
In Vermont there is a VPA Sponsored Middle School baseball league. This league is for 7th and 8th graders and you play for
your school. This is NOT a town league and not connected to Babe Ruth, Cal Ripken or any other nationwide league. This is
strictly a school sponsored baseball league.
So whether you attend Harwood or Crossett Brook, you may play “Middle School Baseball.” There are NO CUTS at this
level. Every player who signs up is put on the team with the expectation that they will play. Safety is a concern for players
who have never played baseball before and who decide to start in the 7th grade.
Generally, the Middle School season runs from early April until the end of May/beginning of June. Most of the time it starts
out with inside practices until the fields become available. This is a school sponsored sport, so there is no cost to play, the
uniforms are provided and a code of conduct is applied.
The Babe Ruth season starts immediately after the middle school season ends. Our local Babe Ruth team is incorporated
under the Mad River Valley Little league for a couple of important reasons that are all related to the operation of the league
and not the playing of the game. Mad River Valley Little League runs the Babe Ruth Registration and is in charge of
providing hats and uniforms.
The Middle School season will be approximately 10 games long with home games being played at Harwood Union. Once
the fields are open; the practices will take place there as well. Usually from 3:30pm until 5:00pm and the varsity then
practices from 5pm until 7pm. If Varsity has a game, then practices are cancelled for that day as the game time for them is
usually, 4:30pm. The game time for all Middle School games is also 4:30pm.
The Babe Ruth schedule is created “on the fly” once the schedulers know how many teams will be able to participate. We
don’t usually get the schedule until very late in May, but we know the general schedule: every Monday, Wednesday and
Friday night at 6:00pm. These are not really “night games” because the fields we generally use do not have lights, so
darkness can play a role – but it’s June in Vermont and it says light until at least 8-8:30pm. The season usually runs first
week of June until at least July 4th, sometimes including the week after July 4th. Our “division” has us playing some away
games about a 45 minutes’ drive away.
Babe Ruth is for those players aged 13-15, again, if you turn 16 before August 31 of that year, you are not eligible to play
Babe Ruth anymore (Legion next).
The best way to continue to play baseball in the Valley is as follows:
1. From say 6 or 7 years old until 12, you play Mad River Little
2. At the end of your last year in LL, you should play FALL BALL at the Babe Ruth level. Players will usually still be 12, but it is a great introduction to the next level since the playing field itself increases dramatically between LL and “real baseball.”
3. In the 7th and 8th grades you play Middle School baseball
4. Also in the 7th and 8th and even 9th grades you can play Babe Ruth
5. Each year of Babe Ruth has a Fall Ball
6. You try out for HS Varsity in the 9th or 10th grade and hopefully can play at that level. Cuts are allowed and in fact, safety demands it.
7. There is NO JUNIOR VARSITY at Harwood, YET.
If you play Middle School ball and Babe Ruth baseball, you have the opportunity to play in as many as 30 games per year if
you include fall ball. The MS season is 10 games; the BR season is approx. 15 and the Fall Ball BR is approx. 6 games. That’s
about 90 games by your sophomore year in HS.
The GOAL here is the provide the residents of the Valley, specifically the baseball players, the best training and experience
in baseball, (both the physical and mental aspect of the game) so that by the time they are trying out for Varsity, they are
really ready.
For players who want to continue playing after turning 16, the State of Vermont has a LEGION Baseball League. This league
is for players 16-18. This is a “regional” set up, so the players who live in and around the valley must play for either
Montpelier or Barre usually. This is very competitive ball and usually works around the HS Varsity Baseball season.
Lastly, we are always looking for coaches… The coaches are the KEY to making players. Get involved.
Warm Regards,
John Lacey
Coach…and still playing
On behalf of MRVLL
