All Stars

ALL STAR INFORMATION

All Star Tournament Teams

GCLL proudly supports Little League's tournament tradition. Since 1947, in the summer months Little Leagues around the world select an All-Star team made up of players from its league. These All-Star teams compete in district, state, and regional tournaments, hoping to advance to the Little League World Series for their respective divisions.

Each year, GCLL charters All-Star teams in multiple divisions depending on numbers for each age group (8-10 year old Special Games for baseball and softball and Majors baseball and softball). Depending on interest and ability, the league typically charters All-Star teams in the Juniors division as well.

All-Star teams are carefully selected and require an enormous commitment of time and energy from potential All-Star players and their families.

ALL-STAR COMMITMENT INFORMATION

All-Star Tournament play is intensely competitive and requires dedication beyond the requirement of a regular Little League season. Consequently, only those players, managers, and coaches who desire to commit their time and effort will be considered.

To be considered, a player must:

Be available for all practices (usually five-six days a week) for the weeks between regular season and prior to the games starting (late-June/early-July);
For the Majors and Juniors divisions, be available through August if the team continues to advance
Have played in 8 GCLL team's regular season games (unless medically excused in compliance with Little League rules and regulations);
Provide an original and copy of the player's birth certificate

Participation on an All-Star team is voluntary. But potential players and families must understand that there may be costs involved for travel and different mandatory/minimum play rules that govern All-Star Tournament play. If selected, the player's family will be required to agree to respect and accept all coaching decisions concerning line-ups and playing time without complaint.

2024 Tournament Calendar

Selection Process

Manager Selection

To be considered for an All Star Manager position, a Manager from the respective Division during regular season play must submit their intent for consideration in writing to the GCLL Board of Directors. The GCLL Board of Directors will schedule an interview process for approved Managers. MANAGERS WHO HAVE BEEN DISCIPLINED BY THE LEAGUE MAY BE DISQUALIFIED FROM MANAGING AN ALL-STAR TEAM. Managers are then selected by a majority vote of the Board. After a Manager is selected, they will submit their top 2 nominations for Coaches to the Board for review and Approval.

If the selected Manager cannot accept the position, the next Manager recommended will be contacted. It is recommended that regular season managers be considered for All Star coaches. A Manager will only be considered if he/she is willing to manage the team if their player is not selected.

Player Selection

The method of selecting a Tournament Team is to be determined by the local league Board of Directors. While methods vary, Little League recommends multiple groups within a local league participate in a fair selection. These groups may include players, league officers, team managers, team coaches, and volunteer umpires. Little League believes players should have a say in who makes a Tournament Team. It is the organization’s experience that players are often objective in the selection process, have an intuitive respect for fellow players, and appreciate the opportunity for their opinions to be heard.

Players are eligible for All-Star teams if they have participated in the current number (or percent) of games required by Little League International.

For 8-10 year old All-Star teams, players will attend a try out and be evaluated by the selected manager and their representatives. The team will be selected by the manager/coaches with oversight by the Player Agent, VP Baseball, VP Softball and President.

For all other All-Star divisions, the Player Agent (or the designate) will organize the balloting and will maintain team rosters, including alternates. If after selection, a player is unable to participate, the first alternate will be assigned to the team. At no time shall any player know how they were selected to the all-star team, nor should they know how many votes that they received.

All division players, and up to three division team Managers / Coaches from each team in the respective division will be required to vote for 12 or less eligible players. The ballots will be collected and counted by the League President, Player Agent, Vice President of Baseball, and/or Vice President of Softball (Ballot Committee).

The Ballot Committee will tally the votes, starting with the players’ ballots. The top three players from the player ballots receiving the most votes will be selected to the team.

Next, the Ballot Committee will tally the Managers / Coaches ballots. The top five players from the Managers / Coaches ballots receiving the most votes will be selected to the team. If any of the top five Manager / Coach selections were selected in the top three player selections, they will be skipped, as those players are already selected to the team.

The All-Star Manager and/or Coaching Staff will select the next four players to the team. The intent will be to create the most well-rounded, competitive All-Star team possible. If the All-Star Manager and/or Coaching Staff would like to select more than 12 players, the President and VP of the respective division will approve the addition of a 13th and/or 14th player to the team.

The Ballot Committee will identify two alternates. The Ballot Committee will not divulge the names of the alternates. If after selection, a player is unable to participate, the first alternate will be assigned to the team. At no time shall any player know how they were selected to the All-Star team, nor should they know how many votes that they received.

Team Assignments

GCLL All Star teams will be comprised as follows (as Little League dictates based on Local League registration numbers and availability of manager/coach volunteers):

There will be one 8/9/10 Baseball Team comprised of the 8, 9 and 10 year old players from the Minor (AAA) Baseball Division. The Minors All-Stars Manager and Coaches will conduct a tryout for all eligible players to attend for selection to the team.

There will be one 10/11/12 Baseball Major Division All Star team comprised of all 10, 11 and 12 year old players who played the minimum number of games during the regular season. The Major Managers and players will vote for the Major team.

There will be one Junior Baseball Team comprised of all 13 and 14 year old Junior division players. The junior Managers and players will vote for this team.

There will be one 8/9/10 Softball Team comprised of all 8, 9 and 10 year old Minors Division players. The Minors All Star Manager and Coaches will conduct a tryout for all eligible players to attend for selection to the team.

There will be one Major Softball Team comprised of all 10, 11 and 12 year old Major division players. The Major Managers and players will vote for this team.

There will be one Junior Softball Team comprised of all 13 and 14 year old Junior division players. The Junior Managers and players will vote for this team.

Five Need-to-Knows for Tournament Parents (from littleleague.com)

Each summer, tens of thousands of Little Leaguers® are selected to International Tournament teams, with the dreams of experiencing a run to one of the seven Little League® World Series or even just capturing that District Championship banner. Parents and guardians are also along for the ride, but having a first-time all-star in your home can lead to some rookie mistakes.

Whether you’re new to tournament season, or who have traveled this road before, here are some Little League parent pitfalls that can potentially dampen this special summer experience.

The Time Commitment

Too often, families plan a vacation a year or more in advance, so when the chance comes to play on a tournament team, a tough decision needs to be made. Don’t make the mistake of trying to do both during June or early July because the pressure can make both experiences less enjoyable. If you have a family vacation already planned, you need to be up-front with those plans and how it might impact your child’s availability to participate and be a part of the team.

Also, when considering placing your Little Leaguer® into the league’s tournament selection pool, remember to ask what the practice schedule is going to be. It’s likely that it will be much more demanding than your regular season experience. Understand that each team is typically guaranteed a minimum of two games in a double-elimination tournament format or more games, if a tournament follows a round-robin format. A team’s tournament run could be done in a week, or it may take many days, or even weeks depending on success. When deciding to make your child available for selection, remember that their commitment of time is also your commitment of time for the duration of the team’s time in the tournament.

The Selection Process

There are established player selection methods for local leagues to use to choose tournament teams as outlined in the current edition of Little League Rules, Regulations, and Operating Policies. If your Little Leaguer® is eligible for tournament play and decides to enter the league’s tournament selection pool, it would serve you well to know what process is being used by the league to assemble the team(s).

Avoid guessing what criteria is being used to assess the players, and simply ask the league’s Player Agent, division Vice President or Coordinator, or the League President. These volunteers will be involved in assembling the team and should have no issue with sharing the player selection process, including what criteria is considered, the ages of the players, and the dates of the district tournament.

The Rumor Mill

Don’t rely on hearsay as confirmation of a tournament team roster spot or any information during tournament time. Whether it’s at your concession stand or on social media, wait until you have official word from the tournament team manager.

When your local league formally announces the tournament team rosters after June 1, your player will receive a call from the team’s manager or is directed to review the roster posted at the league’s field facility, social media page(s), or website. For a player to be a member of a team, his/her name must be listed on the team’s tournament affidavit, which is considered the official roster that is reviewed by the District Administrator. There may be other instances during tournament time when the rumor mill starts back up, whether that’s about scheduling, starting line-ups, etc. It’s best to communicate directly with your manager when it comes to tournament information.

The Team Role

The Little Leaguers selected to a tournament team are often referred to as “All-Stars” because they are considered to be the better players in the league. Put another way, each player on the roster is expected to be one of the better players on their regular-season teams, or may have a certain skill that the team manager believes can help the team compete and succeed in tournament play.

A player can be chosen to the team for an assortment of reasons. Those reasons may not be only physical and how the player is used by the tournament team manager may be different from the way he or she was used during the regular season. Not every player can bat clean up, and only one shortstop can play at a time. Each roster spot is important on a tournament team, and the manager chose your Little Leaguer for a reason, and the league’s Board of Directors approved the team’s manager and coaches, so it is best for you and your player to trust that the motivation and intention of the coaching staff. Before your games start, if you have questions about the role of your child on the team, calmly approach the coach and plan to speak with him/her away from practices and games. Having those expectations before games start can make the experience a lot better for everyone.

The In-Game Access

The tournament season is much different from the regular season for parents who tend to want to “check in” with their children during a game. Regardless of the field facility where the games are played, certain areas are designated “off limits” to parents during tournament games. The dugout is just such an area. “Leaning into the dugout for a pep talk,” or getting “just a couple of seconds” with your child are not permitted.

Like the regular season, only three coaches are permitted in the dugout during the game. This rule remains in play at tournament time and is strictly enforced by the umpire and tournament assistants overseeing operation of the game. Even when an injury occurs the manager and coaches are responsible for tending to the player, unless additional, immediate medical attention is needed. All the coaches to coach and the players to play. Your role during the game is to enjoy the action and be supportive from outside of the fence, and it’s an important role.

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