How We Build Teams
We believe the most important goal of the season is for your child to fall in love with baseball or softball and be excited to get out on the diamond for practices and games. To make that happen, the experience must be fun and teams be evenly matched.
We provide balanced teams built jointly among managers, coaches, the division commissioner, and our player agent. We aim for each team to include players from different schools, ages, skills, and experience. We expect that as your child progresses through their CHLL "career," they will get the opportunity to be teammates with a vast number of kids from all across the Hill community.
To create these balanced and mixed teams, we cannot prioritize accommodating parent requests to be with specific coaches, players, or (carpool) neighbors. The same goes for requests to play in a different division than your child's age would dictate.
Whatever team your child is placed on, we will work to ensure each player has a fun and positive experience and grows their love for baseball and softball.
How We Build Teams
Each division has a different process for determining rosters. The chart below details how teams are assembled for the spring season. We assemble teams based on parents' information, specifically regarding practice night availability. Once rosters are announced, we may be unable to make changes and ask families to work with their assigned coach to make all practices and games.
A
baseball
Ages 5-6
Teams hold 60-90 min. practice one night during the week (Mon-Fri) and play a game each Saturday
The division commissioner assembles teams, ideally of 10 players but up to 12, based on several factors, including practice night availability and diversity of schools. We try to keep the pre-arranged coaching staff to a maximum of 3 to prevent coaches from building their teams. Aside from declaring conflicts for 1-2 practice nights, we don't allow for parent or coach requests and avoid having a team with too many players from one school. The commissioner works to balance the teams as best as possible.
A
softball
Ages 5-7
Teams hold 60-90 min. practice one night during the week (Mon-Fri) and play a game each Saturday
This division is primarily instructional softball and is meant as an introduction to Little League. This program is open to girls with little or no previous softball experience required. Players will learn basic softball fundamentals and techniques and are assigned to a team with a volunteer manager and coaches. Organized 4-inning games are played, where Players bat from a tee or by coach pitch. No standings for competitive purposes will be kept. Games will be played primarily on Capitol Hill but may also occur in partnership with other DC leagues.
AA
baseball and softball
Ages 7-8
Teams hold 90 min. practice one night during the week (Mon-Fri) and play a game each Saturday
A preseason workout is held where all players are evaluated on basic skills such as hitting, throwing, catching, fielding, and running. Teams of 12-14 are assembled through a collaborative player selection made up of the division commissioner and managers. We strive to have teams evenly balanced by skill, with an equal number of 7 & 8-year-olds spread across the division. Pre-arranged coaching staffs are limited to 3, and aside from declaring conflicts for 1-2 practice nights, we don't allow for parent or coach requests.
AAA
baseball and softball
Ages 9-10
Teams hold 90-120 min. practice one night during the week (Mon-Fri, excluding Tues) and play a game each Tuesday evening and Saturday
A preseason workout is held where all players are evaluated on basic skills such as hitting, throwing, catching, fielding, and running. We require all teams to have an equal number of players, made up of 12-14, through a draft of the division managers. We strive to have teams evenly balanced by skill, with an equal number of 9 & 10-year-olds spread across the division, but ultimately, individual managers will select players. Pre-arranged coaching staffs are limited to 3, and aside from declaring conflicts for 1-2 practice nights, we don't allow for parent or coach requests.
Majors
baseball
Ages 10-12
Teams hold 90-120 min. practice one night during the week (Mon-Fri, excluding Weds) and play a game each Wednesday evening and Saturday
Baseball: A preseason workout is conducted by an independent team of professional coaches where all players are evaluated on basic skills such as hitting, throwing, catching, fielding, and running. All teams will have an equal number of players, with a target of 12 players per team. We strive to have teams evenly balanced by skill, but ultimately, players are selected through a draft by individual managers who take into account the results of the independent evaluations and confidential input from other league managers and coaches. Pre-arranged coaching staff are limited to a manager and one coach. Aside from declaring conflicts for 1-2 practice nights, we don't allow for parent/guardian or coach requests. Prior to the draft, player evaluations will be reviewed by the Majors Commissioner, Player Agent, and Competition Committee Chair to assess scoring anomalies and inconsistencies.
Majors
softball
Ages 10-12
Teams hold 90-120 min. practice one night during the week (Mon-Fri, excluding Weds) and play a game each Wednesday evening and Saturday
Softball: A preseason workout is held where all players are evaluated on basic skills such as hitting, throwing, catching, fielding, and running. We require all teams to have an equal number of players, made up of 12-14, through a draft of the division managers. We strive to have teams evenly balanced by skill, with an equal number of 11 & 12-year-olds spread across the division, but ultimately, players are selected by individual managers. There is no pre-arranged coaching staff, only an assigned manager. Aside from declaring conflicts for 1-2 practice nights, we don't allow for parent or coach requests. Games may be played on Saturday or Sunday in DC or Virginia. Players interested in summer all-star tournament teams must play a minimum of 8 games in a season to be eligible for tournament team play. Please note that the softball in the majors division is larger than the lower divisions – the softball has a circumference of 12 inches and a diameter of 3.8 inches.
Juniors/
Seniors
baseball and softball
Ages 13-16
Teams hold 90-120 min. practice one night during the week (Mon-Fri) and play a game each Sunday
A preseason workout is held where players are evaluated on basic skills such as hitting, throwing, catching, fielding, and running. Teams are 12-14 players as compiled by the commissioner with coach input. We strive to have teams evenly balanced by skill. Aside from declaring conflicts for 1-2 practice nights, we don't allow for parent or coach requests.