Team Store Is Open!

The Team Store concept has been a net-positive to the organization, but there have been some growing pains in regard to business operations and speed of fulfillment. Various changes were made, and we hope to provide an improved service for May! The Team Store will be open from May 9th to May 16th. Fulfillment targeted for early June.

Facilities

It became clear early on that we had a bottleneck at Warrington South, the field 11U/12U/13U primarily play on. For the 2024 season, the 47’s have access to the Public Works baseball field in LITH. This field offers us flexibility in field configuration and can be used by all teams (10U - 13U). In addition, we were able to find a professional quality temporary mound for a great price that adds to the quality of the facility.

What will it take to have more facilities in Huntley? It will take all of us. Contact your local government and let them know more facilities are needed. Huntley Little League has over 500 players this Spring between Baseball and Softball and numbers will grow in future years. Additionally, Huntley Little League is competing with multiple travel baseball organizations in the area for a limited number of resources.

Umpires

Another pain point this season has been umpires. Overall, Official Finders has been great and their admin staff are very professional. There have been a few no-show umpires, late umpires and umpires that do not know the rules. It’s frustrating, but the situation we are in is an indictment of youth sports in general. What can we do about it?

• Maintain Positivity

• Players, Parents and Coaches must realize that it does not matter what actually happened, the call by the Umpire is binding

• Only a Coach can ask for clarification of a call from an Umpire

• Very rarely does a game come down to one blown call - move on to the next play

• Offer the Umpires encouragement

The only way to stop the bleeding is to chip away at the problem with positive actions game by game, inning by inning and pitch by pitch.

If you want to know more about Official Finders and what type of organization they are, please watch this video.

First Year Growing Pains

Our admin team appreciates the grace you have shown us as we grow the 47’s program. Without your support none of this would be possible. Our intention is to provide maximum value to players and parents. Along the way we are noticing what I’m guessing is obvious to anyone initiated.

Competition
I’m an assistant coach on the 11U team and there are a few things going against us.

First, most teams we play are on their 3rd year together. Not an excuse, but a reality, and it is painfully obvious. The only way to get better at baseball is to play baseball.

Second, our players are, for the most part, smaller and undersized. When we play out of Little League and go to USSSA tournaments, our teams are playing up. The age cutoff is August 31st for Little League which makes sense because it follows grade levels. For USSSA baseball, the cutoff is April 30th. Take 11U as an example. Under USSSA rules, the 11U team is:

• Two (2) 11 Year-Olds

• Nine (9) 10 Year-Olds

• One (1) 9 Year-Old

Going forward, there are waivers, but we are playing tournaments under 3 different sanctioning bodies so it would not be an administrative nightmare to petition playing down to 10U. As we develop and progress, I suspect this will become less of an issue.

System
Every organization we played so far are years, and sometimes decades, into their programs. All had hitting philosophies, pitching philosophies and almost all were class acts with great sportsmanship and integrity.

What are our priorities 1/3 the way through our inaugural season?

Sportsmanship: Our opponent is not an enemy, but a friend in a quest to get better.
Development: Practice, repetition, team-building and creating an aggressive but smart demeanor in all phases of the game.
Competition: Compete above all else. If down big or up big, focus on the present and exude maximum effort on the next play.

If we focus on those 3 facets, doing the right thing will become instinctual.

Safety First!

All coaches have been equipped with a medical bag with the following items

• Small Red Backpack

• Compression Bandage Wraps

• Sting-Kill

• NeilMed Sterile Saline Wash

• Instant Ice Packs

• Minor Wound Care kits (Bandages, Gauze, Neosporin, Medical Tape)

My only criticism now looking back is I forgot sunscreen! If anyone else can think of other items that would be beneficial, please send me a note. I don’t want to be in a situation where we are lacking resources.

Coming Soon

• LLWS Updates

• 2025 Tryout Information

• Fall Ball Program