How do I determine if my player is eligible to play with Gig Harbor Little League?

Gig Harbor Little League provides programs for players who meet the Little League age and residency requirements. 
To be eligible to play in GHLL, players must be between “League Age” 4 to 16 and reside or attend a school within the GHLL boundaries - postal codes 98332, 98335, and 98333, 

You can determine your child's league age by clicking this link -  League Age Calculator. 

Click here to use the Little League Finder to determine if you reside within our league boundaries. 

• SCHOOL ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS:
  

If you do not reside within our league boundaries, but your player attends one of the following schools, you are eligible to play in GHLL: 

• Artondale Elementary School
• Discovery Elementary School
• Harbor Heights Elementary School
• Pioneer Elementary School
• Purdy Elementary School 
• Voyager Elementary School
  
• Swift Water Elementary School
• Goodman Middle School
• Harbor Ridge Middle School 
• Kopachuck Middle School
• Gig Harbor High School 
• Peninsula High School
• Gig Harbor Academy
• Harbor Christian School
• Harbor Montessori School
• Hosana Christian School
• Lighthouse Christian School
• St. Nicholas Catholic School

When does the season begin?

Typically, and depending upon the division of play, the regular season begins in March with pre-season practices, and games begin in early April and continue through mid June. 

Additional playing opportunities exist for players who are selected to play on GHLL's All Star teams for participation in Little League International Tournaments. Tournament play can last until late-July for Minors Division All Star Teams or extend into mid-August for Majors, Juniors, and Seniors Divisions. 

Regular season games for Juniors and Seniors divisions may extend through late June.

What days and times are practices and games played?

Coordinating practice and games schedules for over 75 teams across all our divisions is not an easy task, and as a result, our practice and game schedules are usually not finalized until early March. 

*Practices may be scheduled any day of the week after school hours, on Saturdays, and on Sundays after noon.

*Games are typically scheduled in the evenings Monday through Friday and on Saturdays throughout the day and evenings. Games are not scheduled on Sundays as Sunday afternoon is reserved for rain-outs and make-ups. 

Practice and game frequency and duration varies by division. 

• Tee Ball - teams generally practice for one hour once a week, and play one game per week on Saturdays. 
• Coach Pitch (“A") & Player/ Coach Pitch ("AA"), Baseball and Softball ("AA") - teams generally practice for 1 ½ hours, twice a week, and play two games per week. 
• Minors Player Pitch ("AAA") Baseball and Softball - teams generally practice for 1 ½ to 2 hours, two times a week, and play two games per week. 
• Majors Baseball & Softball - teams generally practice for 1 ½ to 2 hours, two times a week, and play two games per week. 
• Intermediate, Juniors, and Seniors Baseball, Juniors/Seniors Softball - teams may practice for 2 hours, 1 to 3 times per week and play two and possibly three games per week.

When will I find out what team my child will play on?

Players and their parents will be directly contacted by their manager by phone or by email in late February/early March.  If you don't hear from a manager by the start of practices, please contact the VP of Baseball or the VP of Softball.

Can a player ask to be placed on a team with his or her friends?

Due to Little League Rules regarding the operation of our league and our draft process, for our Baseball and Softball programs, we cannot accommodate any teammate, carpool or scheduling conflict requests, nor can we switch players to another team once the teams have been drafted. 
Our Tee Ball division is the only division in which we accommodate teammate requests if possible. 

If a player decides not to play, is it possible to get a refund?

If a player decides to withdraw, a refund of registration fees minus a 10% operations fee is available only up to the time of a player's first game. Parents should contact the Player Agent (for Baseball) or VP Softball (for Softball) about the decision not to play and a refund.

Where are games played?

Gig Harbor Little League games are played at the GHLL Fields and various fields at schools and parks throughout Gig Harbor.

Some of our divisions play against teams from other league in our area and will require travel to other District 2 Little League facilities in the South Sound/Kitsap County/Olympic Peninsula area.

What days and times are the games played?

Tee Ball & Quickball teams are scheduled to play at least one game per week. Our Baseball and Softball teams are scheduled to play at least two games per week.
Games are typically scheduled in the evenings Monday through Friday and on Saturdays throughout the day and evenings. Games are not scheduled on Sundays as Sunday afternoon is reserved for rain-outs and make-ups.

What equipment will a player need to bring to the first practice?

Players should arrive at their first practice with a bat, helmet, glove, hat, appropriate pants, rubber molded cleats (tennis shoes are fine for Tee Ball), and water bottle. 

Use of an athletic cup is mandatory in Baseball Minors Division and above. (“A” Coach Pitch through Seniors)

For all of our Softball Divisions, all batters must wear a batting helmet with face guard. 

When will the practices begin?

Practices will begin in mid-March. Practice times, dates, and fields are assigned by the League Scheduler. 

How often and long are practices?

Practice frequency and duration varies by division and is determined by the League Scheduler. Tee Ball teams generally practice for one hour once a week. A, AA Baseball, and AA Softball generally practice no more than 1 ½ hours, twice a week. AAA Baseball and Softball teams generally practice 1 ½ to 2 hours, two or three times a week. Majors Softball and Majors, Intermediate, Juniors, and Seniors, Baseball teams may practice for 2 hours, 3 to 4 times a week prior to the season and 1 to 3 times per week after the season starts. Practices may be scheduled any day of the week after school hours, and not before noon on Sundays.

Where are practices held?

Gig Harbor Little League schedules practices at various schools and parks throughout Gig Harbor. Batting Practices are held at the Batting Cages at the GHLL Fields. Your team manager will inform you about the location of practice.

What equipment or uniform items are players required to provide?

A uniform consisting of a jersey and cap/visor, will be provided by Gig Harbor Little League to each player. Players provide their own pants, socks and belts. The team manager will provide details about the color and style of pants required to complete the uniform.

Molded rubber cleats are highly recommended for all players at the Majors level and below. Metal spikes are not allowed at the Juniors and Seniors level.  

- Each player provides his/her own Little League approved bat, batting helmet and glove. Leather gloves are highly recommended. Vinyl and simulated leather gloves can be less expensive but can cause a player a great deal of frustration. Non-leather materials may become slick in our wet weather and it is difficult to form a pocket in these materials. These problems make it more difficult for the player to catch a ball safely and effectively. NOTE: Softball players should use a softball glove, not a baseball glove. The pocket on a baseball glove is too small to accommodate a softball and players will struggle to catch a softball if they are using a baseball glove. 

- All players should dress appropriately for the weather. A windbreaker, jacket, or sweatshirt should be brought to every game and practice, particularly early in the season. Athletic undershirts are very effective at providing warmth in cold weather and perspiration wicking in warm weather.

If a player decides not to play, is it possible to get a refund?

If a player decides to withdraw, a refund of registration fees minus a 10% service charge is available only up to the time of a player's first game. Parents should contact our registrar about the decision not to play and a refund.

What division should my child sign up for? 

Little League International sets minimum age requirements for certain levels of play. You cannot register a player to a division for which he or she does not meet the minimum age requirement.

Our registration is set up for the various divisions with the age ranges as a general guideline, meaning most kids that age are playing at that level of play, so for most players you should only see one option to register for during yhe registration process. We do recognize that some kids are capable of competing at a higher level of play than their peers (“playing up”), and that some kids may not be quite ready to move up to a higher level of play with the other kids their age and choose to refuse a call up to a higher division or "play down" a level from where they are registered.

When you register your player for GHLL Baseball or Softball , it is simply a means to get your player enrolled in our system and fees paid, and then we use Player Evaluations to determine what division of play is the best fit for them.

For a player who wishes to be considered to "play up" in a higher division, GHLL policy is to have that player attend an Evaluation session for both the division they are registered in, as well as an evaluation session for the other division they wish to be considered for. NOTE: All Player Pitch Baseball & Softball “AAA” players (League Age 10-11s) are automatically evaluated for the Majors division, so they will automatically be considered for and may be drafted to a Majors division team.

If  you have a concern about the division your child is registered in division being too challenging, please have your player attend their scheduled evaluation session, and then coaches and our Player Agents will  make the determination if they are ready to compete at that level or if they'd benefit more from playing in a lower division of play.
However, just because a player is evaluated for a different level of play than they registered for, that does not guarantee they will be drafted to a team in that division. It is ultimately the coaches and player agents determination what the best level of play is for a player.