Cooperstown Team
Each summer Needham sends a 12U team to compete in a weeklong baseball tournament in Cooperstown, New York, home of the Baseball Hall of Fame. Needham’s team will compete at Cooperstown All-Star Village Baseball Complex (now part of the Cal Ripken Baseball Experience). Needham Baseball & Softball Little League rising 12-year-old for the upcoming Spring baseball season are eligible to be considered for this tournament team.
Teams will be staying in the complex at the Cooperstown All-Star Village, in barrack-like accommodations with their teammates and three coaches. Meals and drinks are included, as well as laundry service for the kids uniforms etc. There are more than 50+ teams in the complex each week from across the country, so this is a great opportunity for the kids to meet ball players from coast to coast. Families of participants often travel to the area and stay in nearby hotels or rental homes/Air BNBs. There are many resources and reviews online covering the tournaments and the facility itself.
Please see this website for more details on the complex and the overall experience for the kids:
The cost per player to participate on this tournament team, should your child be selected, is approximately $1,850. This payment covers the player costs and a shared portion of the coach and umpire costs and certain other applicable fees. A first payment of $1,250 will be due within 2 weeks of team selection with the balance due in the spring. Team members will be expected to take part in fundraising efforts to help defray a portion of the costs and allow for reimbursement of a portion of the team fees to parents. Team selection will be made in October 2023.
The criteria for team eligibility and selection is as follows:
- All players who are registered to play as 12 year old in the Needham Baseball Spring season (or intend to register for Spring baseball) may register to be considered for the team.
- Players must be available for the entire tournament timeframe, staying in the bunkhouses. [Note that dietary restrictions and medical needs will be accommodated and addressed].
Needham Baseball and Softball has created the Cooperstown Committee which will oversee the team selection process which will be similar to the process currently used to select Little League tournament (Williamsport) teams. The committee be comprised of
- Summer Baseball Director
- VP of Baseball Operations
- Director of Majors Division
- Majors managers from prior season
The Cooperstown Committee will evaluate all the players who have registered and select the first 9 members of the team. Selection criteria will include past tryout scores, recent coach evaluations, summer team participation and past all-star tournament selection. The team manager will be selected from the pool of coaches who expressed interest and have a child in the group that has been selected by the committee.
The team manager will select the two assistant coaches and the final 3-4 members of the team.
The tournament will be a wonderful experience for the kids to cap off their Needham Little League career. Nearly every child who has participated in this Cooperstown week considers it one of the highlights of their baseball lives. We strongly encourage you to take advantage of this opportunity
