La Jolla Youth Baseball made this past spring season quite a hit, capturing several championships along the way.
The 2007 spring season saw 44 teams competing in the following divisions: Shetland (5- to 6-year-olds) with a total of 10 teams; Pinto (7- to 8-year-olds) with a total of 12 teams; Mustang (9- to 10-year-olds) with a total of 11 teams; Bronco (11- and 12-year-olds) with a total of seven teams; and Pony (13- and 14-year-olds) with a total of four teams.
All divisions with the exception of Shetland (10 games and no tournament) played close to 20 games during the regular season and all teams played in their own end-of-year tourneys.
The Pinto League saw Seaside Fence win the regular season, crown with a 9-2-1 record. The team ran the table and won its tournament along the way.
In Mustang play, the top two teams during the regular season were SDG at 8-1-3 and Zenbu at 9-3. The two met in the title game, with SDG winning.
In Bronco action, third-seeded King Stahlman (6-5-1) and Morgan Stanley (7-4-1) met in the title game after Morgan Stanley had won four games in a row in the consolation bracket to get to the final. King Stahlman won the title game by a 14-8 score.
In Pony play, RBC Dain (3-8) emerged from the consolation bracket and topped Merrill Lynch with a record of 7-5 in the championship game.
According to Kevin McMahon, league secretary for LJYB, the Pinto, Mustang and Bronco divisions each have two teams competing in the Pony Baseball League.
Pony baseball is the sanctioning league for LJYB, similar to Little League All-Star tournaments. The Pony division will have one team during the tournaments.
Each team carries about 12 kids and teams can advance all the way to the Pony League World Series held in August. The first tournament (Sectionals) will start June 23 and run until July 8 at the baseball fields located at the Paradise Hills Ball Park.
McMahon noted that LJYB has had a great year.
“Overall, the league was a big success this year,” McMahon said. “There were close to 550 kids that played, and we look to having that many or more for next season.”
LJYB has been meeting the baseball needs of youth in the area since 1952.
This year the league used local businesses for team sponsors, so instead of seeing the traditional team names, such as the Padres vs. Cardinals or the Tigers vs. Reds, the league had Harry’s Coffee Shop vs. Wahoo’s Fish Tacos, or Donovan’s Steak House vs. Gillen Painting.
“With this approach, the league was able to generate some added income to help pay for the always growing maintenance costs for the fields,” McMahon noted.
All sponsors were recognized with banners in the outfields and each team had the sponsors on their custom uniforms.
For further information on LJYB, visit www.lajollayouthbaseball.org.