March 19, 2009

Play Ball!

Baseball, the Almaden Challenger Yankee way

By Carol Rosen and Kevin Jones

If it’s spring it must be time for baseball. And by now you have obviously seen kids learning and practicing America’s favorite pastime.

Clockwise, from top left: Gavin swings, reads the Little League Pledge; Cassie Wootan is at bat; a player gets another base hit; a Yankee catcher waits for the pitch; Sasha warms up by playing catch, and a nice crowd looks on at the first Challenger game in Almaden. Photos by Kevin Jones

In Almaden, there’s a separate Little League division, called the Challenger Division, that enables boys and girls with physical or mental challenges to enjoy playing the game we all love. The children in the division are between 5-18 years old or haven’t yet completed high school.

Some teams are quite large, up to 20 players, and all are set up according to ability rather than age. The division offers three levels of play: T-Ball, Coach Pitch or Player Pitch.

Each player gets to bat. Sides are retired when the entire roster has batted, or when a pre-determined number of runs have been scored or, as usual, when three outs are recorded. Little League recommends that no score be kept during games. The Challenger players wear the same uniforms, shoulder patches and safety equipment as other Little League players.

Yankee player Cassie Wootan reacts to the applause at introductions; right: a Yankee Challenger slugger. Photos by Kevin Jones

One benefit of the Challenger Division is it encourages “buddies” for Challenger players. The buddies assist the Challenger players, and, whenever possible, encourage the players to bat and make plays themselves. They are always nearby to help when needed. This also gives unchallenged players a chance to do community service and develop more confidence in their skills.

Yankee Coach Chris Connelly said he was coaching another Challenger team last year when an Almaden based buddy asked why the community didn’t have a Challenger team. “Jake was one of the few buddies who came to our games and helped the kids. His family is friends with one of the players on my team last year and I believe that’s how he got started with volunteering as a buddy. Anyway, Jake and a couple of his friends interacted so wonderfully with the kids and really helped make a difference in the game for them – for my son especially.”

Sister and brother Alex and Nick Ajluni watch as their buddies are introduced.

The Almaden Challenger Yankees team came from a young man’s vision and a lot of hard work by Almaden Little League families, many who got to experience the joy of watching their special needs child play baseball from the stands – a very rare occurrence for most families of special needs children, he added.

“Several Challenger families have come from other area teams and commented that they definitely made the right choice to switch leagues. They were overwhelmed by the support, acceptance and warmth they received from our Almaden community,” Con-nelly said.

He noted their appreciation of the buddies. “These parents are on 24/7 support to their kids and it’s nice for them to sit back and just watch. One family said that at first their son is usually very shy and won’t easily work with others. They were amazed that he went with his buddy and didn’t need to stay with his parents. Another child who has sound sensitivity had a bit of a meltdown in the dugout, but through the patience of our amazing buddies he was able to work through it and rejoin the game.”