CANDIA BASEBALL
Candia boys and girls may participate in baseball through Lamprey River Little League (Boys and Girls Baseball, 4-12 years old). Girls may also participate in softball through Lamprey River Softball by signing up and playing through a surrounding town.
League Contact: Jamie Cote (Director) baseball@cyaasports.com
Facilities
At the CYAA, we have three fields: a T-ball field plus two Little League diamonds where Majors, Minors and Coach Pitch teams practice and compete. At the town-owned Moore Park, we can use the softball field for practices and Coach Pitch games. In addition to these outdoor fields, we have access to the indoor turf at the CYAA field house, a valuable asset that allows for winter programs and practices during inclement weather.
Lamprey River Softball League
Candia is part of the the Lamprey River Babe Ruth Softball League. We have not been fielding Candia-based teams in the league. If you are interested in softball contact the director to learn about options for individuals to play in a neighboring town on a non-Candia based team.
Lamprey River Little League
The Lamprey River Little League consists of the towns of Auburn, Candia, Deerfield, Northwood, Nottingham and Raymond. If your child plays in the Coach Pitch, Minors or Majors Divisions you will be traveling to these towns to play games. Our home games are played at the CYAA Fields or Moore Park. All T-Ball activities are not affiliated with the league but are Candia-only and held at the CYAA.
We kick off the season with winter clinics from January to March. Registration for the spring season opens by February with a mid-March deadline. An evaluation session is typically held on the indoor turf in mid- to late March. Practices start in April and the first games start during the first week in May. A 12-game season plus playoffs wraps up by mid-June.
For T-Ball only: The registration deadline is the end of March and April is used to organize and train volunteers for a May start to the clinics.
All players who meet Little League’s strict residency requirements are eligible for Lamprey River Little League sanctioned All-Star and Tournament teams, which play into July and possibly August. In past seasons we have fielded teams in the Little League State Tournament for 10U and 12U, while fielding an 8U tournament team and a 9-10 year old Matty Dobens Tournament team (Manchester LL). The 12-year-old State Tournament champion moves on to the New England Regional Tournament which leads to the Little League World Series in Williamsport, PA.
Lamprey River Little League Website
Divisions of Play
Important Note: All age information is a reference to your child’s “League Age”, which is often different than his/her actual age. Please look up and know your child’s “League Age”.
Little League’s official age determination calculator can be found here:
https://www.littleleague.org/downloads/2024-baseball-age-chart/
Majors Baseball – Player Pitch (Ages 10-12):
2024 Fee: $125
2024 Deadline: March 17
Majors Baseball is the highest competitive division of baseball in Lamprey River Little League. The team is comprised of 10-12 players and governed by the official Little League rules. Players must attend Evaluations in order to participate in the Majors division. Any player not selected to a Majors team will automatically be selected by a Minors team.
As a general rule all players age 11-12 should be playing Majors. 10-yr olds who are ready for more competitive baseball will be considered for Majors.
In 2024, we expect to send Candia players to a neighboring town to play on a Majors team. Majors teams typically play or practice a total of 4-5 times per week. Games are typically held on Tuesdays, Thursdays or Saturdays and practices are held on the off days at the discretion of the coaching staff.
Minors Baseball – Player Pitch (Ages 7-11):
2024 Fee: $125
2024 Deadline: March 17
Minors Baseball is a less competitive player pitch division. Lamprey River Little League follows a two division format for Minors, “AAA” and “AA”. AAA is more competitive and geared toward 10 year olds. The division follows official Little League rules with only some minor modifications. The “AA” division, geared toward 8-9 year olds, is less competitive and features more rules modifications such as scoring limits and stealing restrictions. All players who will be playing either division of Minors must attend evaluations.
As a general rule, all 10-yr olds should be playing AAA. 9-yr olds who are ready for more competitive baseball will be considered for AAA as well.
AA is for 8-yr olds and most 9-yr olds. 7-yr olds who are ready for more competitive baseball may attend evaluations and be considered for AA.
For 2024, we expect to partner with a neighboring town for a AAA team and field a Candia-only team in AA. AAA teams typically play or practice a total of 4-5 times per week. Games are typically held on Tuesdays, Thursdays or Saturdays and practices are held on off days at the discretion of the coaching staff. AA teams typically play or practice a total of 3-4 times per week. Games are typically held on Wednesdays and Saturdays and practices are held on off days at the discretion of the coaching staff.
Coach Pitch Baseball (Single A)– Coach Pitch (Ages 6-7):
2024 Fee: $100
2024 Deadline: March 24
Coach Pitch Baseball (Single A) is an instructional coach pitch division designed to help players develop the fundamental skills necessary to move on to play at the AA level. While games are played, results are not tracked and the rules are highly modified in order to emphasize skill development over competitiveness. Roster size is designed to be less than 10 players and coaches are on the field interacting and working with the players. Six-year-olds should have played a year of T-Ball before participating in Farm. Attendance at Evaluations is not required.
For 2024, we expect to field two Candia teams in the Farm Division. Teams typically play or practice a total of 3 times per week. Games are typically played on Mondays and/or Saturdays with one or two mid-week practices at the discretion of the coaching staff.
T-Ball – (Ages 4-6):
2024 Fees: Advanced – $80 / Beginning – $60
2024 Deadline: April 1
2024 Program Dates: May 4 thru June 8 (no May 25)
T-Ball is an introductory program for familiarizing players to the game of baseball. Here, they begin to develop their fundamental skills of throwing, catching, and hitting. T-Ball is a clinic style program designed to involve both parents and kids. Advanced T-ball is for 6 year-olds and meets twice per week with the goal of preparing players for the Coach Pitch division. Beginning T-ball is a basic introduction to baseball for 4-5 year-olds and meets once per week.
The Clinics start on the first Saturday in May and end in mid-June. Both T-ball divisions will meet on Saturday morning. The Advanced division will hold the second meeting on a weekday evening at the discretion of the coaching staff.