Bash Sandlot

What is Sandlot baseball?  

Sandlot is the antithesis of little league and travel baseball. No uniforms, no “fans”, no umpires and no coaches. Just pure baseball played by kids, organized, run and officiated by kids.

Back in the day, kids negotiated rule modifications to compensate for things like having fewer than 9 players on each team, or obstacles that may have been in the field (“if the ball hits the oak tree it’s a fair ball…”). They let captains choose the teams and run the team. And they argued about whether a player was safe or out at 2nd base, eventually finding common ground so the game could continue. There wasn’t an adult in sight, and not one kid would have wanted one around.


Why Sandlot now?

Sandlot baseball taught us so much we use in life today:

  • Leadership Skills

  • Conflict Resolution

  • Negotiation

  • Working as a team

  • Independence

The lessons learned on the sandlot raised generations of leaders. Where are today’s kids getting those lessons? Where in their world is there a safe place where adults aren’t making all the decisions?


How does sandlot baseball work?

  • Players choose 2 captains and the captains choose their teams, give out positions and make the batting order

  • Pitchers “lob” the ball over the plate with the goal of putting the ball in play all the time. Why? Action is fun. Watching strikeout after strikeout isn’t. Sandlot is a game of defense, where the fielders are always involved.

  • Players officiate the game themselves. Yes, there are arguments. But without an adult umpire, they learn to negotiate and compromise.


How does BASH Sandlot work?

  • For players ages 9 – 14. Players will be broken down by age group, 9 – 10 year olds and 11 – 14 year olds. 

  • Players sign up individually for as many Sandlot sessions as you like throughout the summer. Sessions will be on Friday mornings from 9 am – noon.

  • There must be at least 12 players signed up for each age group for that session to meet (Remember how much fun a 6 on 6 game was?).

  • There are only two teams for each age group each week so don’t wait to register. When the roster fills each week, that’s it.

  • There will be college age or older supervisors on hand for each session (to supervise, ensure safety and lend guidance when absolutely necessary. They will NOT COACH.)

  • Scores are kept and each player on the winning team will get a Game Point.  Players accrue points throughout the summer; the players garnering the most points will be the Kings of the Sandlot, and will win prizes. To encourage honesty and integrity during disputes, players will choose a “Sportsman of the Game” for each game played. The Sportsman of the Game gets an additional Game Point.

  • We’ll play as many games as time allows. Younger player games are 5 innings, older player games are 7 innings. At the end of those innings, the game ends and new teams are chosen.