2006 Youth Baseball Age Rule Change

The Warren Baseball and Softball Inc. (WBSI) has adopted a rule change pertaining to the league age determination date for its players beginning in the 2006 season.

The vote, at a recent board meeting was unanimous. The league age determination date is the age a player has attained as of a specific date, for the purpose of placing the player in a particular division. For the past 50 years that date has been July 31 for most youth baseball programs in the United States.

USA Baseball recommended that the league age determination date be changed from July 31 to April 30, for the 2006 season.

USA Baseball represents amateur baseball in the U.S. as a member of the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) and the International Baseball Association Federation (IBAF). Virtually every major national youth baseball organization in the U.S. is a USA Baseball National Member.

Babe Ruth/Cal Ripken, Little League, Pony League and most other major youth baseball organizations and leagues have adopted this change.

Hence WBSI has also adopted this rule.

For example: Under the old regulation, a baseball player who turns 13 in May, June or July of 2006 would have been considered league-age 13 for the entire season. That would be the case, despite the fact that such a player likely would have played most or all of the regular season (which generally ends in June) without having actually reached their 13th birthday. Under the new regulation, such a player will have a league age of 12 throughout the 2006 season.

WBSI has adopted the new league determination date of April 30 for the 2006 season and beyond.

(Charts and additional information and links are listed on the bottom of the page.)

The Babe Ruth League, of which WBSI is a chartered member league, has adopted a new local league option: the 12-Year-Old Swing Player Option, which local Babe Ruth leagues can follow. The league President and governing body of the local league can elect to permit a 12-year old player to play in the 13-15 league.

WBSI has elected to apply this rule for the transition year of 2006 only.

WBSI "Babe Ruth League 12 year old Swing Player Option"

"Babe Ruth League 12 year old Swing Player Option" for this year only for selected 12 year olds.

12 year old players born in May, June or July 1993 will play as 12 year olds [again] (as per new age rule) or

may play as a 13 year old (old age rules). Players using the option would play again as a 13 year olds (new rules) in 2007.

The "Swing Player Option" is only in effect for 2006.

All other players will calculate their age using the new rules in 2006.

Here is a history of the age determination:

When the July 31 league age determination date was settled upon in the mid 1940s, Little League was confined to Pennsylvania and a few other states, and it was the only youth baseball organization (for 12-year-olds and below) of any significant size. The date was chosen because it was the date used in Williamsport schools to divide grade levels.
In the 1950s, other youth baseball organizations were formed, primarily for young teens (Babe Ruth etc.). These organizations and Little League got together and agreed to use one date (July 31) so there would be a smooth transition when a player moved from one program to another.
In the past 55 years, and particularly in the past 20, youth baseball has expanded rapidly. The original reason for the current league age determination date (July 31) no longer exists.
There are now many age cutoff dates for schools, depending on the location and local customs. Since youth baseball leagues operate in other countries as well, the July 31 date has become somewhat arbitrary.
For the past 60 years in Little League, players born in the mid-summer have played their entire 12-year-old seasons without actually being 12 years old. It has been this way for up to 50 years in the other smaller youth baseball organizations as well.
That's why the organizations got together (through their membership in USA Baseball) to recommend the change. All of the organizations have supported it, with the understanding that all would make the change to the April 30 date.
Currently, most youth baseball programs start their seasons before May 1. The change to the April 30 date gives the opportunity to those children born in May, June and July to play all or part of their 12-year-old seasons as actual 12-year-olds.
The overall average age difference in all divisions will only be about four months greater. Little League has been advised, in consultation with experts in this field (including Dr. Barry Goldberg, Director of Sports Medicine at Yale University and Chairman of the USA Baseball Medical and Safety Advisory Board), that the physiological differences (based on this change) in children of this age will be miniscule, and negligible at best.

WBSI 2006 AGE CHART
Match the (top line) and box with year of birth -- League age indicated at right

MAY	JUNE	JULY	AUG	SEPT	OCT	NOV	DEC	JAN	FEB	MAR	APR	AGE/League
2000	2000	2000	2000	2000	2000	2000	2000	2001	2001	2001	2001	5-Tee Ball
1999	1999	1999	1999	1999	1999	1999	1999	2000	2000	2000	2000	6- Rookie
1998	1998	1998	1998	1998	1998	1998	1998	1999	1999	1999	1999	7 *
1997	1997	1997	1997	1997	1997	1997	1997	1998	1998	1998	1998	8 *
1996	1996	1996	1996	1996	1996	1996	1996	1997	1997	1997	1997	9 *
1995	1995	1995	1995	1995	1995	1995	1995	1996	1996	1996	1996	10 *
1994	1994	1994	1994	1994	1994	1994	1994	1995	1995	1995	1995	11 *
1993	1993	1993	1993	1993	1993	1993	1993	1994	1994	1994	1994	12- Major
1992	1992	1992	1992	1992	1992	1992	1992	1993	1993	1993	1993	13-Senior
1991	1991	1991	1991	1991	1991	1991	1991	1992	1992	1992	1992	14-Senior
1990	1990	1990	1990	1990	1990	1990	1990	1991	1991	1991	1991	15-Senior