Altoona Area Baseball Association, Altoona PA

History of Altoona Area Baseball Association

The Altoona Area Baseball Association began in 1948 as a four team league, without an official name, playing games on a field at Mansion Park.  In 1952, the league was chartered by Williamsport as the Altoona Little League and moved to a field on 17^th Street and Logan Avenue.  Here, the league leased property from Robert DiVentura for $1 a year.  Two founders of the league, Boots Emerick and Joe Riley, used their homes as collateral in order to borrow money for the fencing and other field improvements.  The league played from 1952 until 1983 at this site which became known as Joe Riley Field.

In 1983, the expansion of 17^th Street forced the league to find a new home and the current 9^th Street field was constructed.  In 1991, the league changed its name to the Altoona Area Baseball Association.  As the league prospered and the number of children interested in playing baseball increased, the 10^th Street field was constructed and opened for play during the 2006 season.

Artificial turf was installed and completed on our 9th Street Field prior to the 2022 season.

On opening day of 2023,  Our 9th Street Field was renamed to John Kraft Field and our 10th Street field was renamed to Carl Cacciotti field after long-time managers at AABA for their dedication to youth baseball in the Altoona Area.  

Artificial turf renovation was completed on Carl Cacciotti Field in the fall of 2023 to be ready for the 2024 season.

Prior to the 2025 season, new LED lights were installed thanks to the generosity of the Sheetz family.

Our beautiful facility is named the Joseph M. Sheetz Youth Baseball Complex after a long-time league manager who was instrumental in the construction of the 9^th Street field.