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Prospect Park Baseball Association
Youth Coed Baseball • Girl's Softball
Frequently asked questions
The PPBA began operation in 1994 as an association. It transitioned to a Not-For-Profit New York corporation in 2007 and is also recognized as a charity by the IRS as a 501(c)(3) corporation that allows the deductibility of donations. (Click here for a copy of our IRS Letter) Our tax id# is 26-1340053.
The PPBA is a league for co-ed baseball for boys and girls ages 4-17 and girls’ softball ages 10-17. Games are played on the seven diamonds and fields painted in the grass for 4-8 year olds in the Prospect Park Long Meadow and on other neighboring fields. Games are scheduled every day of the week usually starting the first weekend of April and finishes with a tournament that ends the third weekend of June. Weekday games start at 6pm. Weekend games are all day on most fields.
The PPBA sets the rules, obtains the field permits from the NYC Parks Department, creates the team schedules, handles schedule change requests made only by the coaches, hires the umpires (who are trained by a separate umpire organization), and, with the help of parent volunteers, assist in the maintenance of the fields with the Prospect Park Alliance turf crew.
The teams are placed in different divisions that usually contain two age groups. For example, the Cubs baseball division is for 9 and 10 year olds. Players must be no older than the oldest age for each division as of the same date as the public school cutoff date of December 31. Players must play in their age appropriate group. Very limited exceptions must be approved by the PPBA in advance in writing. Some age groups have so many teams, that a division is subdivided into sub-divisions. Teams are placed in those sub-divisions based upon the agreement of the organizations.
The PPBA is a league only. Its members are the organizations listed in the Contacts section. Parents register their children with either of the members. The organizations set the registration fee, place the players on teams, and, among other things, provide the coaches, uniforms, and some equipment. To sign up, contact one of the organizations listed on the Contact page.
Coaches are given defibrillators that, by law, must be brought to every game and practice. No game can start unless one is present at or near the field. Parks Department personnel may come to the fields to enforce this law.
Every baseball pitcher is required to wear head protection and every softball pitcher wear a face mask. Every male catcher must also wear a protective cup. A protective batting helmet must be worn by every batter, baserunner, and person under 18 who is coaching a base.
Details of all serious injuries must be reported to the PPBA President immediately. That email address is presidentppba@gmail.com.
They are usually not posted until 7-10 days before opening day. Opening day will be posted on this website will in advance. A notice that the schedules are available on this site will posted at the same time as when the schedules are released. Schedules are also simultaneously sent to the individual organizations.
Games must start on time. Teams should therefore arrive at least a half hour before the scheduled game time so that the players are warmed up, the field has the bases properly placed, and the coaches complete their pre-game meeting with the umpire.
On weekdays, daylight can be an issue. On weekends, games are scheduled one after the other. The weekend game times are set so that the last scheduled game can be completed before the sun goes down. It is not fair to that last game if earlier delays cause the last game to be shorten due to lack of sunlight.
The PPBA makes every attempt to make up postponed games. Games are made up if there are available open slots, the coaches of both teams confirm that at least 7 members of their team can make it, and an umpire is available. However, we are here to play baseball. If there are fewer than 7 players, teams should share players and play a game. Umpires are required to officiate all such games.
There is a tournament for every division (except the 4-8 year old Pee Wee and Pony divisions) that usually begins the second week in June and ends the third weekend in June. Seeding for all the tournaments is by random draw of the PPBA board. As such we do not keep a record of wins and losses of regular season games. We purposely do that because we are an instructional-recreational league that values player development over winning.
Most tournaments are single elimination. Depending on the number of teams and fields available, there may be double elimination Tournaments with the preference given to the older divisions.
All comments and complaints are welcome and, when appropriate, will be addressed promptly.
Please click the following link to register a complaint about umpire conduct or no show.
https://www.cognitoforms.com/Ppba1/umpirenoshowscomplaintscomments
As a recreational league for boys and girls, we are here to help them learn the skills and strategies of baseball, to learn how to be good teammates and good sports, and to have fun. We rely on all parents to adopt & model these goals, and abide by our rules of conduct, as the best way to protect the coaches, players, and umpires from improper behavior by other parents and spectators.
Our rules of conduct are that of a zero tolerance organization. They are:
All officials, coaches, parents, players, spectators and participants shall
1. respect one another,
2. respect officials' decisions,
3. engage in fair play and abide by all game rules,
4. refrain from engaging in taunting of officials, coaches, parents, players, spectators or other participants by means of baiting or ridiculing,
5. refrain from verbal and/or profane abuse of officials, coaches, parents, players, spectators or other participants,
6. refrain from threatening physical violence or engaging in any form of physical violence,
7. win and lose with good sportsmanship and shall strive to make youth sports programs rewarding for all participants,
8. refrain from heckling and destructive comments,
9. root for their own team not against the opposing team, and
10. report any incident that would put a player in harm’s way.
If there is an issue with an umpire, coach or fan, we need to know as soon as possible. Please be sure to include the day, date, time, field, teams, specific information about the incident, and the name and contact information of any other witnesses to the incident.
Too many times we find out at the end of the season about a problem with an umpire or coach that had occurred early. Please understand that many of the umpires were once players in the organization and are young and may be new. We want the approach to be constructive.
All comments and complaints are welcome and when appropriate will be address promptly. Please address them to presidentppba@gmail.com.
Too often we find out at the end of the season about a problem with an umpire or coach that had occurred much earlier. Please understand that many of the umpires were once players in the organization and are young and new to umpiring. We want the approach to be constructive.
As a recreational league for boys and girls, we are here to help them learn the skills and strategies of baseball, to learn how to be good teammates and good sports, and to have fun. We rely on all parents to adopt & model these goals, and abide by our rules of conduct, as the best way to protect the coaches, players, and umpires from improper behavior by other parents and spectators.
Our rules of conduct are that of a zero tolerance organization. Click here to review our Code of Conduct.
All comments and complaints are welcome and, when appropriate, will be addressed promptly. Please address them to presidentppba@gmail.com(mailto:presidentppba@gmail.com)
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