New “50-70″ Pilot Program Introduced for Little League

Starting this 2010 season, Little League is adding a new “50 – 70″ Pilot program  for children ages 12 – 13 years old.  The goal of this program is to provide an intermediate field size and level of play for young teens.

A traditional field size for teen players in Little League has a 60 ft., 6 in. base pitching distance and a 90ft. base path, the same size as a professional baseball field.  Youth Little League fields, on the other hand, have a 46 ft. pitching distance and a 60 ft. base path.  the “50-70″ pilot program will have fields with a 50 ft. pitching distance and a 70 ft. base path to help transition players to the larger size of the teen playing fields.

In addition to the intermediate field size, base runners can take lead offs, steal at any time, and slide head first.  Batters will also become runners on a drop third strike, and their bats can have a diameter of 2 5/8 in.  On deck batters are also permitted.

To find out more information about the Little League’s new “50-70″ pilot program, visit www.littleleague.org.

Source: Little League

What do you think about the Little League’s new pilot program?  Do you like the change, or should they just let it be?  Leave a comment and let us know what you think!