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Youth sports organization

Little League Baseball and Softball (officially, Little League Baseball Inc based in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania, United States, that organizes local youth baseball and softball leagues throughout the United States and the rest of the world. Founded by Carl Stotz in 1939 as a three team league in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, and formally incorporated on October 10, 1950, Little League Baseball encourages local volunteers to organize and operate Little League programs that are annually chartered through Little League International. Each league can structure itself to best serve the children in the area in which the league operates. Several specific divisions of Little League baseball and softball are available to children and adolescents ages 4 to 16. The organization holds a congressional charter under Title 36 of the United States Code. The organization's administrative office is located in South Williamsport. The first Little League Baseball World Series was played in Williamsport in 1947. The Little League International Complex hosts the annual Little League Baseball World Series at Howard J. Lamade Stadium and Little League Volunteer Stadium, and is also the site of the Peter J. McGovern Little League Museum, which provides a history of Little League Baseball and Softball through interactive exhibits for children. Many Major League Baseball (MLB) players played in Little League.

Carl Stotz, a resident of Williamsport, Pennsylvania, founded Little League Baseball in 1939. He began experimenting with his idea in the summer of 1938 when he gathered his nephews, Jimmy and Major Gehron, and their neighborhood friends. They tried different field dimensions over the course of the summer and played several informal games. The following summer, they felt that they were ready to establish what later became Little League Baseball. The first league in Williamsport had just three teams, each sponsored by a different business. The first teams, Jumbo Pretzel, Lycoming Dairy, and Lundy Lumber, were managed by Stotz and brothers George and Bert Bebble. The men, joined by their wives and another couple, formed the first ever Little League board of directors. The first league game took place on June 6, 1939, when Lundy Lumber defeated Lycoming Dairy, 23–8. Lycoming Dairy became the champions of the first half of the season and then defeated Lundy Lumber, the second half champions, in a best of three championship series. The following year, a second league was formed in Williamsport, and from there Little League Baseball grew to become an international organization of nearly 200,000 teams in every U. S. state and in more than 80 countries. According to the Little League Baseball and Softball participation statistics following the 2008 season, there were nearly 2.6 million boys and girls in Little League Baseball worldwide. Of these, approximately 400,000 are registered in softball leagues (including both boys and girls). Starting in 2022, For tournament purposes, Little League Baseball is divided into 20 geographic regions: ten national and ten international. Each summer, Little League operates seven World Series tournaments at various locations throughout the U. S. (Little League softball and Junior, Senior, and Big League baseball and softball).

The best known event on the Little League Baseball and Softball calendar is the annual Little League Baseball World Series, which is held every August in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania. Local and regional tournaments leading up to the World Series are held in the U. S. insular areas of Puerto Rico, the U. S. Virgin Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands, and throughout the world. In 2003, for example, there were tournaments in Canada, Latin America (Mexico, Aruba, Curaçao, Panama, Peru, and Venezuela), Europe (Germany and Poland), and Asia (Japan, Philippines, South Korea, Taiwan).

Little League Baseball has several baseball divisions based on age.

Tee ball is for boys and girls ages 4–7. In tee ball, players hit the ball off of a tee located atop home plate; live pitching is not allowed. The purpose of the division is to teach young children the fundamentals of hitting and fielding.

The Junior League, Senior League, and Big League Baseball divisions operate similarly for different age groups. All three use a conventionally sized baseball diamond, with 90 feet (27 m) between bases and a 60 feet (18 m) pitching distance. Similarly to the Major Division, local leagues can form "All Stars" teams from each age group and enter a tournament, again leading up to a "World Series", for each division. The Junior League consists of 12–14 year olds, the Senior League consists of 13–16 year olds, and the Big League was for 16–18 year olds.

Little League introduced the Challenger Division in 1989 to provide opportunities for children with physical and intellectual challenges to participate in the Little League program. The Challenger Division utilizes a "buddy system" in which Little Leaguers assist Challenger participants in the areas of batting, running and fielding. Challenger Division games are typically non competitive in nature.

Introduced in 1989, the Little League Challenger Division is for participants ages 4–18. Games are played on a 46/60 field and are non competitive.

Approved at the 2014 Little League International Congress, the Senior League Challenger Division launched in 2015. This division is for participants ages 15 and above (no maximum age). Games are played on a 60/90 field and are non competitive. Leagues may request permission to play games on a smaller field as well.

As of 2018, nearly 1,000 Little Leagues in 10 countries around the world offer the Challenger Program, providing an opportunity for more than 31,000 individuals with physical or intellectual challenges to participate in the Little League program.

Playing rules for the baseball divisions essentially follow the official baseball rules defined and used by Major League Baseball, especially with respect to the upper divisions (Junior, Senior, and Big League). Some major exceptions are outlined in the following sections, and these apply to Little League (Minor and Major, ages 7–12) except as otherwise noted.

Bats (all levels) may be made from wood or other materials (such as aluminum) and must be approved for use in Little League Baseball. For the Majors division and below, the maximum bat length is 33 inches (838 mm) and barrel diameter may not exceed Since 2009, all Little League bats must be labeled with a Bat Performance Factor (BPF) of 1.15 or lower. Bats for the Junior League level may have a maximum length of 34 inches (864 mm) and a maximum barrel diameter of Bats for the Big and Senior League levels may have a maximum length of 36 inches (914 mm) and a maximum barrel diameter of Non wood Big and Senior League bats must meet the Batted Ball Coefficient of Restitution (BBCOR) testing standards that are currently used in the NCAA and NFHS (high school). Intermediate Little League bats must meet Junior League specifications.

When the pitcher is ready to pitch, a baserunner may not leave the base until the pitch reaches the batter in Minor League and standard Little League. In the upper levels, including Intermediate Little League, the runner may leave the base at any time while the ball is in play. If a fielder is waiting at the base with the ball, an advancing runner must attempt to avoid contact. A runner may not slide head first except when retreating to a previously held base. In the upper levels, runners must still make an attempt to avoid contact if possible, and may not maliciously initiate contact with a fielder.

The upper limit of the strike zone extends to the batter's armpits. In tee ball, Minor League, and Little League (if the uncaught third strike rule is waived by the local league), the batter is out after the third strike regardless of whether the pitched ball is held by the catcher. In Little League (both standard and Intermediate), Junior, Senior, and Big League, a batter may attempt to advance to first base on a dropped third strike if first base is unoccupied with less than two outs, or if first base is unoccupied or occupied with two outs. If the batter is hit by a pitch, the batter receives a base on balls automatically. However, if the batter does not make an attempt evade the pitched ball, the home plate umpire may continue the at bat.

Players who have been substituted may return to the game under certain conditions, though a player who is removed as pitcher may not return to pitch.

Local leagues have a certain amount of flexibility. For example, a league may opt to use the "continuous batting order" rule (4.04), under which each player on the team's roster bats, even when not in the defensive lineup. Leagues may also waive the "ten run rule" (4.10(e)), which ends the game if one team is ahead by ten or more runs after four innings.

Van Auken, Lance and Robin. Play Ball: The Story of Little League Baseball, Pennsylvania State University Press, 2001.