2024 AA information
WELCOME TO THE 2024 AA SEASON OVERVIEW
General Info: Raptors will play in the Arapahoe Youth League (AYL). AA teams will play in in one of two divisions (National-intermediate & American-advanced).
Important dates for the 2024 season:
Early Registration opens: October 15, 2024
Early Registration closes: December, 31, 2024
Regular Registration opens: January 1, 2024
Player Evaluations: January TBD, 2024
Uniform fittings and orders start: January 30, 2024
Uniform orders close: February 12, 2024
Season Practice Start Date: Starting the week of February 27, 2024
Regular Season Games Start Date: April 1-2, 2024
Regular Season Games End Date: June 4, 2024
AYL Night at Coors Field: May 10, 2024 and June 14, 2024
Playoffs start: June 10, 2024
Playoffs conclude: June 22, 2024
Ages Offered: 6U & 7U (Coach Pitch), 8U (Modified Coach Pitch), 9U, 10U, 11U, 12U & 13/14U.
Age Determination Date: Age as of May 1, 2024.
Approximate Number of Games in Season: 10-22 including playoffs. Games will be overscheduled to allow for as many games as possible without creating the need to reschedule potential games lost due to weather related issues. There are no guaranteed minimum number of games.
Format for League Games: AA Season starting in April for all ages, typically one (1) game every Saturday and one (1) game every Sunday per weekend will be played.
Format for Championship: Two (2) games/double elimination playoff with a single elimination championship game.
Number of Practices per Week: Two (2) 90-minute practices per week within the town of Castle Rock from March - June. Optionally, teams are permitted to practice more than two (2) times per week if practice times are available. Below is our general guideline for when each age group will practice.
5U - 8U 5:00pm - 7:30pm
9U - 10U 5:00pm - 8:30pm
11U - 14U 5:00pm - 9:30pm
Practice Locations: Practices are held on Town and County fields within Castle Rock.
Primary fields are the Douglas County Fairgrounds (DCFG). We will use the fields at Metzler, Paintbrush, Butterfield Park, Centennial Park, Mitchell Gulch, Founder's Park and others upon availability.
Preseason practices in March will be held exclusively at DCFG and Metzler fields. Once the season starts we will use the other fields due to losing some field availability because of AAA game schedules and loss of permits for various reasons. Below is a guideline of where teams will practice throughout the season.
13U/14U – DCFG fields 1 and 2, Any Metzler or Paintbrush field
11U-12U – All fields above and DCFG 3
10U – All fields above and Mitchell Gulch
8U-9U – All fields above and Butterfield Park or Centennial Park
6U and 7U – All fields above and Founder's Park
If needed, Raptors will also use available fields provided through Douglas Count School District at Rock Ridge Elementary, Sage Canyon Elementary, Castle Rock Elementary, Soaring Hawk Elementary, Buffalo Ridge Elementary, Sedalia Elementary. Larkspur Elementary, DCHS and CVHS
Raptors is also working on obtaining field availability in Castle Pines North (Retreat Park and Coyote Ridge Park) and Larkspur (Larkspur Community Park)
Cost to play for 2023 (All Ages): $550 Early Bird (October 15 through December 31, 2023), $600 (January 1+). Multiple child discount of $20 dollars per player applies if registered at the same time.
Cancellation of registrations: If you wish to cancel your players registration prior to the start of the season, you will need to send an email to the Baseball Director stating your desire to cancel the registration and have your player removed from the system
Refund requests: The registration fee is 100% non-refundable. Optional registration insurance can be purchased at the time of registration.
Location of Games: Local area and greater Denver area fields provided by Aurora Spartans, Cherry Creek Bruins, Parker Hawks, Elbert County Wranglers, Highlands Ranch Warriors, South Jeffco, or Littleton Thunder.
Returning Player Deadline for Priority Registration: December 31, 2023 (If you played Raptors AA baseball in 2023).
Registration Opens: October 17, 2023 to returning players, November 1 to new players.
Registration Deadline: First come, first served and/or when teams are full. If registration fills, then a waitlist will be provided. Returning players on the waitlist will take precedence over new players if spots open up. Players are not considered registered until they are paid with at least their initial payment.
How to Register: Interested players should register and pay online by clicking on the registration button on the home page of Raptors baseball.
PLEASE NOTE: Weekends that show no games does not mean it will not have games, weather does impact baseball and games will be loaded on available weekends for play.
· At the conclusion of the league game schedule, ALL TEAMS will be seeded for the double elimination playoffs. Teams will play until they have lost twice with the exception of the championship game. Playoff games will begin Mid June 2023 with the World Series played late June (6/21/2024).
· Please Note: All seeding is done by the AYL baseball board.
· The above described season is subject to change at any time by the AYL Baseball BOD.
Raptors AA - Basic Information
Practice Commitment:
- Please arrive to practice on time as teams move on and off the field on the field will have overlapping practices.
- Practice schedule is updated every two weeks and sent to the head coach for communication to the team.
- Canceled practices due to weather or game related make-ups will not be rescheduled.
- Practice schedule (days and times) will change when permit availability changes on a monthly basis.
- We do our best to ensure that team practice time slots and fields are consistent; however, there are times where you may be switching fields and times which will be different from the prior week/month.
- There is no trespassing on any field that is locked
- If weather is inclement, please call the appropriate (Douglas County or Town of Castle Rock) weather line for updates
Game Commitment:
- There are two games per weekend and can be scheduled on Saturday or Sunday. Most teams will have one game on Saturday and one game on Sunday per weekend during the season.
- AYL will not make concessions to play on Friday nights due to any religious restrictions.
- Games are held around the south Denver metro area
- Raptors teams plays against other club member teams in the AYL, including other Raptors teams
- Raptors home game fields are the Douglas County Fairgrounds fields and Metzler Ranch
- Most coaches ask, and athletes are expected, to arrive one hour prior to game time to warm up
- AYL Baseball is committed to the experience of the season and will cancel games at it's discretion due to weather related issues.
- All game changes are updated and posted in the AYL League Website
- All teams in AA will participate in the season end double elimination tournament. This is not optional, and it is expected that the athlete will be available to play with their team through the end of June 2024.
- It is expected that any summer vacations will not be taken until the conclusion of the baseball season.
TEAM FORMATION: There are no try-outs for the AA level of Raptors baseball. However, there will be player evaluations held in Mid-January to make sure players are assigned to the appropriate level of play. Teams will be formed by 2/20/2023
TEAM FORMATION
- Returning head coaches are granted returning players to their team
- Returning Head Coaches will receive a discount on their season fees for volunteering to coach
- Head Coaches will pay for season in full and will receive a refund of their fees once the season has concluded and all equipment loaned to them is returned.
- New head coaches interested are required to fill out coaching documents including application and subject to background check
- New Head coaches will receive a discount on their season fees for volunteering to coach
- Coach receives immediate access to roster to begin communications
- Team roster is filled based on registration questionnaire and
- Once a team/s for a particular age group are full, interested athletes will be rostered on a wait list
Levels of Competition:
· AA National(Intermediate): At minimum, athlete has previously played at the recreational level and has more than a beginner knowledge base of the game. Athlete must have an advanced beginner skill set and is looking to become part of a more competitive and committed team. This is the next level up from recreation baseball. If your athlete has not played recreation baseball, that is most likely where they should start. The exception to this is brand new players at the 6U-8U levels with no prior experience. After the 8U year, we reserve the right to evaluate the athlete and suggest recreation baseball as we have seen players without a beginner knowledge base and skill set struggle to perform in our 9U-14U national league levels. Raptors will not cut anyone from the program, but we will make suggestions based on those evaluations and we want it to be very clear that AA baseball is not usually the best starting point for true beginning players in 9U and older. Again, we will do everything within our power to make sure the experience meets the expectations. All AA National teams who win their respective world series will be moved to AA American the next year
· AA American(Advanced): Athlete is experienced with at least one prior season playing in AYL, or coming from a higher competitive level league such as USA Little League or another non-recreational league. The athlete must possess a higher-than-average skill set and have advanced awareness, knowledge and understanding of the game. Athletes wanting to move up to AA American will participate in a mandatory evaluation to make sure their skill set corresponds with this level of play. Returning AA American athletes will not be subject to evaluations. 8U - 14U AA American teams will also play in at least one CABA sanctioned tournament per year (Memorial Day weekend) with an additional $70 cost per player for the tournament fee to be billed once the team roster is finalized. All AA American teams who win their respective world series will be moved to AAA the next year