Starting Saturday, March 13, Oyster Bay Little League Baseball will hold its spring training and player evaluations for the 2004 season. Following Little League Baseball's guidelines, every registered player will be placed on a team and play during the games throughout the season. The purpose of these sessions is not at all to make "cuts" but rather to provide the most equitable distribution of players on each team and ensure each player is playing in the division that fits them best so they will get the most learning benefit from the season. With that in mind, players should try to attend at least one of the sessions.

The two Spring Training Sessions will be held on Saturday afternoons on March 13 and 27 at the Oyster Bay High School gymnasium. Only players ages 8 - 12 need to report to the Spring Training sessions. The schedule is as follows: 8-year-olds, 2:30 - 3:30 p.m.; 9-year-olds, 3:30 - 4 p.m; 10, 11 and 12-year-olds, 4:30 - 6 p.m.

The actual team picks will be made by the coaches during the last week in March with each coach calling his respective team during the week of April 5 to set up practices beginning on Saturday, April 10. The first games of the season for all divisions will be played on Saturday, April 24. The exact locations and game times will be published on the league website (www.mylocalteam.com) by the week of April 19 as well as being handed out by the coaches during practices.

"We have been extremely busy getting all the details in place for this coming season," said League President, Phil Robinson. "Thanks to the cooperation of the Town of Oyster Bay Department of Parks, this year we have added two Friday night games for the Major League Division to be played on June 4 and 11 under the lights at the Roosevelt Beach Park. This promises to be a very exciting community event and a first opportunity for those in our community to watch Little League Baseball night games right here in town. I know the players will be very excited to have that opportunity to play their games under the lights."

This year, in addition to the Player Clinics, the first "Coaches Clinic" was also setup, a concept originated by Mr. John Piropato, director of physical education, health and athletics at the Oyster Bay-East Norwich Central School District. The Coaches Clinics were specifically designed to help some of the parent coaches provide an increased level of instruction to the younger players in the community and ensure a more uniform base of instructional play. Mr. Piropato coordinated the efforts of the Varsity and JV district school team coaches on a volunteer basis to provide an overview of strategies and drills they use in their day-to-day environments. Phil Robinson said, "We greatly appreciate the interest and effort that was exhibited by Mr. Piropato and his coaching staff as well as the support our League has received from the School District. It has allowed us to create a great environment for the players. This demonstrates a clear and common goal of building successful programs that benefit the children of our community."

If you have not already registered for the season, it is important to do so by March 13. Having all the registrations in prior to the teams being picked provides a much smoother process for the coaches to determine teams. The Registration Form can be picked up at the Oyster Bay High School gymnasium on Saturday, March 13 or can be printed via the League's website at www.mylocalteam.com. The registration fees are: $75 for "T" Ball (ages 5-6) and $95 for International, Minor and Major League players (ages 7-12).

You can contact the League with any questions by e-mail at info@mylocalteam.com or at their hotline number, (516) 628-2555.