Whether you have a preschooler who has never played baseball or an elementary schooler who wants to take his game to the next level, read on for ways to play baseball in Darien.
Get Started
For young preschoolers, try an intro to t-ball class through Darien Parks & Rec run by USA Squirts. Classes are typically held in the spring and fall for 3 and 4 year olds. For older preschoolers, look to Bobby Valentine’s Sports Academy. They run a popular indoor Little Sluggers class that’ll teach your child the basics of baseball. In the spring, Darien Little League often runs a 6-week outdoor program for 4 year olds in preschool or pre-K held on Sunday mornings..
Play On a House Team
House baseball is run by Darien Little League. All teams are parent coached, and second grade players have an extra weekly skills clinic run by professional coaches. The season always kicks off with a fun opening day baseball parade in April.
K-2nd Grade House Baseball
Kids can start with spring tee ball in kindergarten where they’ll hit off the tee. In first grade, kids move on to A ball, where the coach pitches to batters. Both programs are held for one hour on Saturdays and include part practice and part game. Second graders play AA ball, which includes a professional coached Monday clinic and a Saturday game each week. Players will begin pitching in the second half of the season. Kindergarten through second grade games always end in a sweet and spirited relay race around the bases.
3rd-6th Grade House Baseball
In third grade, boys play AAA baseball, and this is when the sport becomes a bigger commitment. This is the first year that kids will pitch the whole season and they’ll have three days of baseball each week – a practice or game on Thursdays, practices on Saturdays and games on Sundays. Fourth graders play in the Minors with practices on Fridays and Sundays and games on Wednesdays and Saturdays. In fifth grade, players either continue with the Minors or move up to the Majors after a January tryout. Majors teams, which are mostly made up of 6th graders, have practices or games on Tuesdays and Thursdays, practices on Sunday morning and games on Saturday afternoons. AAA, Minors and Majors all end their seasons with playoffs and fun skills competitions. The Majors also host a home run derby that is fun to watch.
Summer & Fall Ball
If your child likes spring baseball, they can also play summer ball or fall ball. Fall ball is an easygoing 7-week season of baseball for kids in 1st through 7th grade. There are no practices and games are usually played on Saturdays, with some Sunday games. Summer ball is for kids who just finished playing baseball in K-3rd grade. Games are played on Saturdays from late June to early August and there are no practices.
Build More Baseball Skills
If your child loves baseball, sign up for an extra skill building clinic. Try a Darien YMCA hitting clinic taught by DHS baseball coaches at McGuane’s batting cages or Bobby Valentine’s Sports Academy clinics that cover pitching, catching, hitting and more in Stamford.
Try Out for Travel
For serious baseball players, the Darien Little League offers Darien Blue Hawks Travel Baseball starting at age 9 – the 9U team is mostly third graders. Look for tryouts in November to play the following spring and fall seasons. Travel teams play in the Greater Hudson Valley league throughout the spring season and also enter 1 to 2 tournaments. They will have practices multiple days a week with multiple professional coaches. Winter workouts in hitting, pitching and fielding are also included.
Level Up With a Club Team
If your child doesn’t make the Darien Blue Hawks, wants to start playing more competitively in second grade instead of third (when Blue Hawks begins), or if you’re just looking for a different competitive baseball option, you can explore local baseball club teams. Many Darien kids play travel baseball for Connecticut Wolfpack Baseball out of Bridgeport, Clubhouse Baseball out of Fairfield and Tucci Baseball out of Norwalk. Tryouts for club baseball teams typically happen in the fall for the following spring and summer travel seasons.