ESC Howlers indoor baseball league (ages 9 to 12)

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WHEN: EVERY FRIDAY (NON-HOLIDAY) FROM 6 TO 8

COMMITMENT: MONTH TO MONTH

Our Erie Sports Center Howlers indoor baseball league is designed to provide a fun month to month baseball environment for all of our community's baseball players throughout the Erie offseason. This league includes skill development practices and a scrimmage each week as players develop. The focus is on player development and NOT competition. All scrimmage games will be on field instructional games.  It is our goal to help our athletes build their skills during the offseason before they head back to their summer programs. This allows them to enter summer programs prepared and confident which will increase their likelihood of success.

• ESC Howlers AA Division is NOT CO-ED and is exclusively player pitch using conventional (hard) baseballs. 
• This is an instructional division to continue building on the fundamentals of baseball, emphasis is on developing pitching by giving all players the opportunity to pitch in practice and multiple games.
• Players begin stealing bases with limitations in place for the first part of the season. Stealing home is not allowed.
• Practices will consist of groups that continue to develop players individual skills and build on the fundamentals of the games. 
• This age will continue to improve the fundamental skills as well as develop defensive and offensive skills including: batting techniques, base running, stealing and other offensive situations as well as defensive situations that include pitching, defending steals, working the cut off, working backup in positions, shifting the field, general fielding and awareness.
• Games will have players assigned to specific teams on each practice and will consist of on-field coaching. Games will be designed to promote the most amount of on-field participation possible and may be 5v5 environments. 
• As the season goes on the coaches will allow the games to become more competitive while remaining positive for the players to develop.

• ESC Howlers AAA Division is NOT CO-ED and is exclusively player pitch using conventional (hard) baseballs. 
•  This division of promotes a higher level of competition than “AA” and emphasizes more of the standard rules of Little League baseball. 
• The focus in “AAA” remains on education, development and teamwork while encouraging a deeper understanding of the game and advancing skill development in order to prepare players for successful participation at the Majors level. 
• Practices will consist of groups that continue to develop players individual skills and build on the fundamentals of the games. 
• This age will continue to improve the fundamental skills as well as further develop advanced defensive and offensive skills including: batting techniques, base running, stealing and other offensive situations as well as defensive situations that include pitching, defending steals, working the cut off, working backup in positions, shifting the field, general fielding and awareness. 
•  Games will have players assigned to specific teams (5-7 max players per team) on a weekly basis and will consist of on-field coaching. Games will be designed to promote the most amount of on-field participation possible. Games will be played on reduced size fields (dome will be split into four (4) fields) to promote as many touches by players as possible to focus on development.  As the season goes on the coaches will allow the games to become more competitive while remaining positive for the players to develop 
• It is critical that the managers and coaches of this division provide sound training and good balance of playing time and position rotations for all players. Besides building upon the skills taught to them at the preceding levels, players should successfully understand the advanced rules of the AAA Division and developer finer baseball skills. 

OLDER PLAYERS? Private lessons can be schedule with our staff based on their schedule and facility availabilities. Please email jrseawolves@eriesportscenter.com for more information

Information is also listed on Erie Sports Center at https://eriesportscenter.com/leagues/indoor-baseball-league/