Questions about West Deptford Little League are flowing in steadily. Whether it's your first time or you've been around for many seasons, it's natural to wonder what the upcoming season will hold. Hopefully this FAQ can help answer some of your concerns!

Q: Can my children who are in the same division be placed on the same team?
A: Absolutely! The only exception might be at the older ages if kids need to be split up to keep teams fair.

Q: Can we make sure that all of the kids who play soccer/hockey/track together be placed on the same team?
A: In order to keep the teams balanced, we will be implementing a draft for all divisions above tee ball this year. Coaches will only be allowed to reserve a limited number of players before the draft. Maintaining a balanced league where teams are as fair as possible and everyone can have fun is important to us.

Q: Do you know what night practices/games will be?
A: Unfortunately, until we know the number of players and teams in each division, it's impossible to know when practices and games will be held. Field availability limits the amount of flexibility that we have in scheduling but coached will be heavily involved in choosing dates/times. We try to schedule most everything on weeknights with the exception of tee ball games which are mostly Saturday mornings.

Q: What equipment does my child need?
A: Your child needs a glove. Baseball pants and cleats are recommended but not required at the younger levels if you're just trying out the sport. The league will provide each team with a bat, helmets, catchers gear, balls, etc. The league also provides a uniform top and hat (headbands will be provided for softball this season).

Q: Will we have to jump through hoops to get our uniforms again this year?
A: NO! We heard the feedback loud & clear! The snack stand will be managed much differently this year and uniforms will not be tied to volunteering or providing an additional check!

Q: We're still on the fence. What happens if we sign up after January?
A: Your child will absolutely still get to play! After January 31st, the cost to register will increase. This is due to the fact that we plan to place our initial uniform and equipment order in mid-February and additional orders will lead to additional fees. Late registration also impacts our ability to evenly distribute the players and ensure we have enough coaches at each division. If we have 10 new players sign up late in a division we may need to create a new team which impacts the number of teams on each field, which impacts schedules, which makes everyone unhappy!

Q: When will we know what team we are on and when do practices start?
A: We are as eager to know this information as you are!! That's why it's critical to SIGN UP ASAP! We will do a "soft" closing of registration on January 31st. We hope at that time to be close to our final numbers so that we can determine how many teams are needed in each division. Tryout/Evaluations will be held on February 1st and 8th for coaches to get a look at the players to help ensure a balanced draft. Teams will be drafted the week of February 9th with hopes to be notifying all parents of their team assignment the following week. Practices are expected to start in the first two weeks of March.

Q: What are "tryouts" and do we have to attend? Is my child at risk of not making ateam?
A: Tryouts is probably the wrong word to use here as no child will be refused a team assignment! The purpose of the tryout is to evaluate talent levels to help ensure that teams are distributed as evenly as possible. As an example, we are trying to avoid a scenario where one team has all of the best pitchers in the league but no experienced catcher.  Following the tryout dates, all players will be drafted by the coaches evenly. All players in the Minors and Majors division will be invited to attend one of two brief sessions. While attendance is not mandatory, we strongly recommend that all players try to attend in order for our coaches to properly evaluate. Emails regarding these tryouts will go out in mid-January. 

If you have any additional questions, please feel free to email wdlittleleagueboard@gmail.com