Frequently Asked Questions About Our Spring Baseball Programs
- Where do I register? Use our Online Registration page
- When is the spring registration deadline? February 4th, 2023
- Do you fill up? Space gets tight! Please register early to ensure a place.
- Who can play? Our spring baseball programs are open to boys and girls ages 4 through 12 who are residents of Newtown or Edgmont Townships or attend a private school within those townships. Private schools include St. Anastasia, Episcopal Academy, and Delaware County Christian School.
**Please note that the Sports Connect Website, used for registration, attempts to validate your home or school address. There seems to be some issues with the school address validation. Please ignore any errors you receive , and note they will not prevent you from registering.
- What does it cost?Registration fees vary with the player’s age:
- 4-Year-Old Junior Tee Ball: $125
- 5/6-Year-Old Rookie: $125
- 7/8-Year-Old Farm: $150
- 9–12-Year-Old Minors/Majors: $195
- When does the season start? Our spring season starts the first week of April and ends approximately June 10th
- Can I request a teammate? For younger players (Rookie, Farm), you may request that your child be placed on the same team with other players who is registered in the same age division.
- What division will my child play in? Please review this link Little League 2023 Age Chart to determine your child's age for Little League. Note: per Little League policies, NELL must verify birth certificates in 2023. 10U players and new players to the league will be asked to bring their birth certificate to their assigned tryout.
Majors: 12U & 11U
Minors: 10U & 9U
Farm: 8U & 7U
Rookie: 6U & 5U
Rookie: 4U
Please note that the website will add you to the correct age group.
- Are there player evaluations before the season? For players generally ages 7 (Farm division) and up, yes. Players 7 and up are assigned to teams based on a coach’s draft system in mid-February. The draft system is designed to yield teams of similar overall ability within each age division. For this reason, we generally cannot accept teammate requests for the minors and majors’ divisions.
- When are player evaluations held? Evaluations will be held from 11am- 6pm February 12th (farm) and 26th (minors and majors) at the Flanigan Center Indoor Baseball Facility on the NELL Complex Additional details will be posted on the league website before evaluations are held. We encourage all players to participate in evaluations during their scheduled time slot – make ups will only be offered for illness or emergency. If your child needs special consideration for any reason, please email [email protected]
- What if the fee is a financial hardship and I can't register in time? Please contact us at [email protected]
- After I register, when will I hear from you next? All Farm, Minors, and Majors player's parents will be contacted in late February/early March by their team coach, who will provide information regarding the schedule and players on the team. Please be sure we have your preferred email addresses on file when you register.
- Who are the NELL coaches? Our coaches are volunteer parents who enjoy working with kids, love baseball and appreciate everything youth baseball can teach kids about sportsmanship, working as part of a team, developing baseball skills and good judgment and having fun together.
- What equipment does my player need to have to play at NELL? Due to COVID-19, we ask that all kids have their own helmet, bat, and glove. In Farm, Minors, and Majors bats must be on the USA Baseball approved bat list https://usabat.com/ . To help ensure proper length and bat weight this guide can be very helpful for all ages https://protips.dickssportinggoods.com/sports-and-activities/baseball/choosing-the-right-baseball-bat . NELL recognizes the rising cost of equipment and encourages parents to contact us if they need help securing the proper equipment
- How are you planning to provide a safe environment given COVID-19? Nell will follow Little League guidelines and best practices to provide a safe environment for players, coaches, and parents and is continuously refining to accommodate CDC guidelines.
- When are games and practices held? Dates and times vary by age division. For 4-Year-Old Junior Tee Ball and Rookie, games are held Saturday mornings and early afternoon. The Farm, Minors, and Major Divisions practice at least once a week with 1 to 3 games a week. Games are held on weekday evenings and Saturday.
- Where are games held? All games and practices are held at the NELL Baseball Complex located at 323 Bishop Hollow Rd Newtown Square, Pennsylvania 19073. Field locations can be seen at our Field Map on our site.
- What does my registration fee pay for? Registration fees cover, in part, the cost of the team equipment, player's uniforms, field expenses, insurance, umpires at games (9-year-olds and up), and required background checks of the coaches. We are an all-volunteer, non-profit organization.
- Why do registration fees vary with age? Older players’ uniforms and equipment are more expensive, they use far more baseballs over the course of the season and upper division teams have umpires at games.
- Why do you require birth certificates for new players? Little League International requires that we verify the ages of first-time players to ensure that every player is placed in his/her age-appropriate division.
- Do you need volunteers? Yes! We gladly accept offers to help with coaching, fundraising and special events. Please check the box to volunteer in one of these areas when you register your child online and we will contact you before the season starts.
- Do volunteer coaches receive training? Yes. NELL runs coach pre-season training sessions each year for the coaches at all age divisions.
- Where can I get more information? Please explore the links at left on our website, or contact us at [email protected]