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Is too early to prepare for Spring 2026? (never!)

Our (first) NYSA Fall Tball has concluded to what I would consider a successful first season, now it’s time to turn our attention to the Spring.

For our Co-ed Spring NYSA TBall, this will exist as three 4U teams (players that are 3.5-4.9 years old) and seven 6U teams (5-6.9 years old). 

Dates of the our 2026 Spring 4U/6U Season:

Registration opens February 2nd at 7:00AM
Registration closes February 20th at 5:00PM (note*)

*Commissioner's Note: The last 2 Spring sessions as well as our first Fall session have all filled up.  With 4U moving up, younger 6U players returning, and with 3/4th of the Fall program being new-to TBall, I would anticipate the Spring session filling up prior to registration closing....please don't wait to sign up.  while we have a waitlist, I have traditionally not activated very many players.*

6U Tryouts:
(4U will not have tryouts, I as the commissioner will create these teams)
February 25th, Field 3:
Last Names A-M 5:30-6:30
                           N-Z 6:30-7:30

Weather make up tryout:
February 27th, Field 3.  5:30-7:30PM

Coaches Draft/Teams are made:
February 27th: 6:00PM

Field Clean Up: (we are all volunteers, please come out and lend a hand to get our Fields ready to go)
Saturday Morning, February 28th 9:00AM.

Practice starts the week of March 2nd.

Opening Day is March 28th, games will start the following week.

Season will conclude ~2nd week of May to be complete prior to Memorial Day.

FAQs:

1: I think my 4U player is ready for 6U/they have a sibling already on the 6U team, can I play them up into the 6U program?
or
My 8 year old has never played before, can they play down into 6U?

I’m not opposed to it, but no, there is not going to be a natural method for them to ‘play up/down.’  Given the size of this league, first priority will go to players whose age falls within the specified range (~does your player turn 5 by the start of the season and not turn 7 by the end).  I will work with you on a case by case basis HOWEVER: the ability to play out of your primary age group will only be used IF the 4U or 6U waitlist is completely used up by the time tryouts take place from players who are primary aged for this division.  
In full transparency, I have rarely used more than 3-4 players off a Spring waitlist (that got up to 20 players long), and the full waitlist of players in the primary age bracket will have priority. 
In order to be considered for an out-of-age bracket session, you must first register within your primary age bracket, and then we work things behind the scenes to move your registration.

2: We had a great experience with our coach this past Spring and want to get put on their team this season…. There is not a method for a Coach to build up the team they want or individually ‘freeze’/pick the their team.  This is done eventually at the draft to try and ensure an equitable spread of talent across the league.

3: I have church/work/obligations on XXX day, can I get on a team that doesn’t have those days or still play if I can’t make it then?  This comes up every year, and we understand scheduling issues or team preference….but we can’t honor that.  Basically why is that Coaches will ‘draft’ a set practice schedule and then also draft their players. I can’t simultaneously allow coaches the freedom to draft their own team while also picking pairs of players to play together or restrict who they can draft based on when their team’s practices are and when a player’s availability is. 
I can discuss this more as needed, but in order to fair to everyone universally, aside from siblings, no players are paired or preselected. 

4: I haven't played before, can my player still play this Spring?  Yes.  There is no prerequisite experience to play in any of the NYSA’s 4U/6U TBall leagues.  They are all focused on instilling the fundamentals and allowing for as equal a playing opportunity as we can.  There may be some players who have played more, but don’t let that stop you from coming out this year, everyone has to have a first year sometime!

5: What do I need to purchase and what will be provided?
Provided: the NYSA (as part of the registration fee) will provide the equipment used by the team for practices and games (baseballs, tees, field paint, pitchers mask, etc) as well as a hat, jerseys, grey pants, and socks for each players.

You will need to provide: Batting helmet, cleats, glove, bat, bag, water bottle, and sunglasses (optional).  

Of note: Our jersey's will come with the last name (or a name you would like) printed on the back.  So please ensure the spelling of your player's name and the correct size during registration.

6: Why are there tryouts?  The term ‘tryout’ is a holdover.  This is more an evaluation of your players abilities.  All players (who have paid their dues) will be allowed to come to tryouts where they will have ~3 hits from a tee, run the bases, then catch and throw a ball.  All the coaches for the teams that year will be evaluating the players at this time.  The coaches will then have a draft allowing them to try and balance the playing talent across the teams.  If your player does not make tryouts or comes up off the waitlist, their name will be drawn randomly to assign them their team.

Please feel free to reach out to me with questions at:

Michael Tucker 

NYSA TBall Commissioner

[email protected]

8504667027

https://www.nysasports.com/Default.aspx?tabid=801539

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1175787454255353/

Basic Division Outline:

As the TBall commissioner, I run the 4U and 6U divisions.  So what are the differences?

The 4U is for 4 year olds only (both boys and girls.)  This is a developmental year for both our first year players….but also for you first year coaches.  

—What makes it different? Given this is everyone’s first year, we will provide coaches with a structured ~12 week practice guide that focuses on having fun to help keep everyone involved while having our players learn baseball basics “by accident” as a side product of a fun baseball experience.  Games will be ‘umpired’ by coaches and score will not be kept; there will not be a playoff or AllStar game at the end of the season.  

Parents and players can expect a maximum of 2 events per week, each lasting 45-60 minutes.  The cost for 4U is reduced to $140.

6U (co-ed) is where we start to model the league to follow a baseball structure.  HOWEVER, it is expected that this will also be many players’ first introduction to the game.  So, there is no assumption or requirement for your player to have played in our 4U league before entering the 6U league.  The age cutoff will be for 5 and 6 year olds (it will be age based not school grade-level based). The time requirement will be 2-3 events per week, each lasting 60 minutes.  The cost for 6U is $175 (NYSA raised the player registration fees for sports, so TBall is raising in concert to this price adjustment)

I will be making some changes to how TBall has been traditionally run based on my above mentioned philosophy about equal chance to participate.  I view TBall as an introduction to the game and the fundamentals….winning is NOT one of my priorities when designing and structuring the league.  The reworked rule book will be posted prior to tryouts, but the basic changes are:

1: 3 outs do not end the inning—the entire batting order will get to bat.  After 3 outs, no further runs will be scored for that inning. 

—-why? Every effort will be made to balance the teams, however, should a team get an all star or two that can carry the team and get the opposition ‘3 up, 3 down’ multiple times, this reduces the playing opportunities for more junior teams to participate in the game/get at-bats.

2: The entire order will bat, however, each new inning the batting order will rotate (ie: first at bat will start with the top of the line up, but second inning will start with ~5th batter and run 5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,1,2,3,4).  Then the 3rd at bat would start with the 10th batter).

—-why? Those normally at the bottom of the batting order often do not get the chance to learn base running as their at bat ends the inning as ‘last batter’ and the inning ends after their hit.

3: Positions will rotate each inning.  There will be an “A” set of positions and a “B” set of positions.  “A” positions will include the infield+the pitcher, “B” positions will include 4 outfielders+the catcher.  Players will not be allowed to play the same set of positions 2 innings in a row; they must alternate A, B, A, B, etc.

—-why? This division is designed to develop the overall player; not to specialize in developing one player as a first baseman.  Too often the younger player, or the ones later to develop ‘get stuck’ playing outfield or catcher all season and are not given opportunities to develop as a player across the season.

These rules will apply only to the regular season, during the post-season playoffs/tournament, these new rules will no longer apply. A fuller breakdown of these rules will be included in the rulebook to be published prior to tryouts.

For both divisions (4/6U) I am moved the vast majority of the post-registration logistics of the league to the free app ‘GameChangers.’  In this app, rosters, team and league-wide communications, practice and game schedules, scoring (6U) and more will all be centrally aligned through this single app.  It is free to download and use as a user, so please consider downloading and familiarizing yourself with this app.  Emails and Facebook shall still be utilized and I will do my best to respond to the “[email protected]” as expeditiously as possible.

Non-Season specific FAQs:

Do you offer scholarships?  Yes-if the registration fees or supplies are a potential hurdle, please reach out to me.  I will NOT guarantee a scholarship, but when warranted, we will do what we can.  The TBall divisions are all self funded, so your registration fees and fundraisers are vital to a successful season.

Can I get a refund? A large part of your fees go to purchasing uniform items, which we can not return.  So refunds are possible up until uniform items are purchased.

Can my player play another year down in 4U or play up into 6U? Maybe.  Priority will go to players who are registered into their age correct age bracket.  If registration is low or the numbers are a few short of filling out a final team, age waivers will be considered, but these decisions will be based on a lottery system after final registration is complete.

I can’t make practices on Tuesday (or a specific day) due to ‘insert reason,’ can I get on a team that practices on different days?  I cannot guarantee a deconflicted practice/game schedule.  Teams will be made prior to practice schedules being assigned and honoring multiple requests to change teams causes too great a difficulty for the league to get set and coaches to communicate build their teams.  

I was on Coach Doe’s team last year and my player really enjoyed playing for him, can I get on his team again?  It may happen by chance, but all coaches have equal opportunity at selecting their players in a draft.  For 6U, there will be a ‘tryout’ for all players where head and assistant coaches will be able to evaluate the skill level of the players.  Each coach will be allowed to ‘freeze’ (select prior to the draft) their own kid and 1 kid of their assistant coach (freezes will not be allowed for a player whose parent has not volunteered to coach).  After the tryout, coaches will pick their teams based on factors discussed at the coaches meeting.  But unless you volunteer to coach, there is no available to set your player on a team separate from the draft.  If your player is not frozen and cannot make the tryout, based on age/years of play, they will be randomly assigned to a coach/team.

I missed the registration window, is it too late to still sign up? Probably….many decisions about how big teams are or how many teams we needs (which drives the number of coaches we need or practice schedule etc) are driven based on registration.  Adjusting those numbers noticeably after our numbers are ‘set’ may not be feasible and therefore will most likely not be honored.

I tried to register but got put on a waiting list saying the league is full, is that accurate?  Likely.  In order to ensure teams do not swell too large, we have to cap the teams around 12-13.  From there, given the number of fields available to use and the hours useable to practice in a given week, we are limited to the total number of teams we can have combined of 4U and 6U.  The league filled up last year and given the success of 4U last year and those players moving up to 6U, it is possible (likely) that the league will fill up prior to the end of the registration period….so please consider making your decision early.

What does my registration fee cover? The fee is two part, first is the NYSA membership fee per family, then a registration fee per player/season.  This covers basic operating expenses (quite literally turning on the lights) as well as league supplies, umpires, and other basic expenses.  But for you, it will cover your players uniform (jersey, hat, socks, belt, and potentially pants depending on vendor pricing).

DID YOU KNOW...that NYSA is an all-volunteer organization?  Yes, with exception to the umpires, all commissioners, committee members, coaches, and team moms are 100% volunteers.  This means that throughout the season, your assistance will be requested to aid with running the concession stands, picking up trash, keeping the scorebook, operating the scoreboard, partaking in our once-a-season field day preparations, and participating in fundraisers.  NYSA was built on the backs of volunteers.  We cannot continue to grow and prosper without YOUR help!  Many of us look at NYSA as the ballpark our children will grow up in and create countless, unforgettable memories that one day they will tell their kids about.  We greatly appreciate any and all help that you can provide throughout the season.   

*registration may close once capacity is reached at which case registration will remain open for waitlist applications

REMINDER:  Coaches/Players/Parents/Spectators please review the Baseball Code of Conduct (BCoC), and the NYSA Code of Conduct before the season begins.  During the registration process, all coaches and parents are required to read, acknowledge, and sign that they understand the BCoC prior to signing up your child.  Violations of the BCoC and NYSA CoC will be strictly enforced. 


For more information please contact me [email protected]