The governor’s statement on Monday provided a lot of information for us to consider, and brought some optimism that we may find ourselves on a field this year. As we have mentioned in the past we will rely on the State and Local government to open fields and allow youth sports to begin before we begin any kind of baseball or softball activities.
Our approach is to do everything we can to provide our families with a safe way to play baseball and softball this summer, but we also understand that our families will make their own choices in view of their individual circumstances and preferences.
The purpose of this email is to poll our families to see what kind of interest everyone has in participating in summer leagues. This is a very quick and easy poll to complete and will help us determine the programs we can offer if we are cleared to play.
Your response to this poll will give us insight on what could be a reasonable plan for the summer and how much participation to expect. Please remember that having a summer season is not guaranteed. We are still awaiting further state guidance on youth sports, and summer leagues have not yet made any final decision. Our board will be making decisions on Bedford teams participating in the summer leagues in the mid-June time frame.
Currently, we are considering participating in our traditional travel baseball and softball summer leagues for ages 9 and up, as well as options for in-town play only. Due to the expected difficulty in managing social distancing among younger players, we do not plan a summer program for youth under age 9.
As of now, all leagues are planning to run a modified season for the summer, including Bay State Baseball and Middle-Essex Softball for ages 9 and up. These leagues may all be modified in some way, but typical weekday game schedules would likely remain the same (1 home game and 1 away game). We will know more in the upcoming weeks, but we need to commit team numbers as early as June 1st for some of the leagues. At this time all leagues are planning on starting early July. You can find a good description of the summer program on our website under the tab: “Summer Goals and Purpose”.
We would like you to complete the poll by May 29th.
Procedures for Returning to Play
If games are allowed to occur, they will look and feel different from last year. We will need to employ strict social distancing requirements, which will likely include masks, not sitting in dugouts as a team, maintaining 6 ft. distance in-between innings, reduced fan numbers, and no contact with players and coaches outside of game situations. Click here for the current plan issued by the National Babe Ruth Association, which is subject to change, for your review. Similar requirements will likely be issued for each of our leagues, and we also expect more direction from the state. Additionally, the national Babe Ruth organization, under which we are chartered, will require leagues to have families sign a waiver that acknowledges the risk of being exposed to COVID19 while playing baseball or softball.
Plan for Fall Ball
The BBRBS Board has also been discussing options for a fall baseball and softball season. Currently no plans have been set and will depend significantly on how the summer goes and guidance from the state regarding safe play. It is our hope that we can offer a more substantial fall program this year than in years past, to give kids a chance to play another low-contact sport while we can still be outside. We will provide more information as our plans develop.
Additional Information
Bedford fields remain closed until June 29th. Please observe town rules regarding use of recreational facilities.
Massachusetts Current Information regarding returning can be found here:
Thank you for taking the time to participate in our poll. Please stay healthy and safe!
