Correction: Rescheduled 78ers Rainouts

We made a mistake in our recent announcement about rescheduled 78ers rainouts:

• Seth vs Stuursma: Your game on Sunday June 2, will be played at 3:00pm on the West field, not at 1:00pm as previously announced.

The online schedule was correct. Only the announcement was wrong.

Congratulations 2013 Juniors Baseball Family Day All-Stars

Congratulations to the following juniors baseball players who were chosen by their teammates to play in the all-star game on Family Day. The game will take place on Saturday, June 1, at 7:30pm on the Henwood field.

American League:
Fulton Group - Coach Murray:
     Elliot Bergsma, Will Kortz, James Murray, Micah Hoekstra, Max Vicari
Skyzone - Coach Winkle:
     Emmett Warners, Nolan Heerema, Matthew Winkle, Noah Groen, Henry Breems
River City Mechanical - Coach Malewitz:
     Mike Malewitz, Peter Burns, Doug Gale, Jack Liszewski, Elliot Jung

National League:
Buffalo Wild Wings - Coach Hoppman:
     Mark Primus, Ben Burrows, Justin Varineau, Andrew Vernum, Easton Schultz
Alger Ace Hardware - Coach Sajdak:
     Alex Bergsma, Andrew Bojas, Jacob Elzinga, James Klein, Jon Oostindie
Law Weathers - Coach Lundeen:
     Joe Huffman, Max Lundeen, Jack Teitema, Jack Foy, Ryan Jacobsen

Congratulations 2013 Minors Baseball Family Day All-Stars

Congratulations to the following minors baseball players who were chosen by their teammates to play in the all-star game on Family Day. The game will take place on Saturday, June 1, at 7:30pm on the West field.

American League:
Coach Stadel: Aiden Stadel, Luke Aardema
Coach Gelderloos: Trent Elzinga, Jake Noordewier
Coach Tucker: Isaiah Hicks, Elijah Heerema
Coach Murphy: Ike Keller, Sean Murphy
Coach Mcintyre: William Butler, Dominic Vicari
Coach Westerbeke: Nate VanDyke, Jack Peterson
Coach Hollern: Trevor Seth, Nick Hollern

National League:
Coach Kolk: Mitchell White, Alex Kolk
Coach Kirchgessner: Thomas Edwards, Nathan Milanowski
Coach Walters: Ben Walters, Gabe Shultz
Coach Kuzner: Slater White, Luke Fynewever-Muyskens
Coach Gardner: Jordan Bergsma, Aiden Callahan
Coach Force: Elijah Ooms, Grady Gooch
Coach Lee: Donovan Shearer, Declan Lee

Rescheduled Rain-Outs in 78ers Baseball

We have rescheduled the following games in 78ers baseball:

• Fox vs O'Connor: Sunday, June 2, 1:00pm, West field
• Seth vs Stuursma: Sunday June 2, 3:00pm West field
• Potter vs Fox: Sunday, June 9, 1:00pm West field
• Seth vs O'Connor: Sunday, June 9, 3:00pm West field

The online schedule has been updated to reflect these changes.

Rescheduled Rain-Outs in Majors Baseball

We have rescheduled the following games in majors baseball:

• Pohlman vs Warners: Sunday, June 2, 3:00pm, East field
• Hebert vs Billo: Sunday June 2, 1:00pm East field
• O'Connor,P vs Warners: Sunday, June 9, 3:00pm East field

The online schedule has been updated to reflect these changes.

Congratulations 2013 Majors Baseball Family Day All-Stars

Congratulations to the following majors baseball players who were chosen by their teammates to play in the all-star game on Family Day. The game will take place on Saturday, June 1, at 7:30pm on the East field.

American League:
Coach Mundell: Nolan Gardner, John Shelton, Lee DeHaan
Coach Patrick O'Connor: Hayden Taylor, Reily O'Connor, Clayton Fee
Coach Sullivan: Ben Biermacher, Ryan Smith, Ryan Sullivan
Coach Eric O'Connor: Myles Beale, Aidan O'Connor, Jonah Witte
Coach Hebert: Nate Fournier, Nick Lambert, Josh Verstraete

National League:
Coach Jacobsen: Peter Kratt, Griffen Caul, Alex King
Coach Pohlman: Tommy Pohlman, Jack Ward, Luke Elzinga
Coach Billo: Jack Billo, Cam Knuble, Billy Bernecker
Coach Warners: Banks Boender, Aidan Jennings, Carson Warners
Coach Passinault: Luke Passinault, Jake Passinault, Mark Boeve

Raffle Ticket Turn-In

Raffle tickets may be turned in at the raffle table by the concession stand all day on Saturday. More tickets may be purchased all day long as well. Cash or checks to “Southern Little League” are acceptable forms of payment. The player who sells the most tickets, writes their name on the back when turning them in, AND turns them in by 1:00 Saturday, will win a Wilson A2000 baseball glove. The raffle drawing for the cash prizes is at 7:00pm on Saturday. Tickets may turned in and more purchased up until the drawing. You need NOT be present to win.

Thank You Firefighters!

With a little help from our friendly neighbors at the fire station, we were able to hang our new flag at Southern the easy way! See you all on Saturday for Family Day!

Final Umpire Sign-up

The fourth and final umpire sign-up will take place this Saturday, June 1, at 7:00am. Please have your own baseball schedule handy to avoid any conflicts.

All Games Canceled

All games for Tuesday, May 28, are canceled for the remainder of the night.

Family Day Volunteers Needed

Southern is asking that each team supply two volunteers each for a two-hour time slot on Saturday, June 1. The time slots start at 8:00am and go every two hours until 8:00pm. Besides volunteering, it is a ton of fun. You can sign up at the concession stand. We will also be coming around each game this week with the signup sheets. You can also email Bob Hams at director@southernll.org

Thank you for helping to make Family Day and Southern’s 60th Anniversary such a special event!

Sign Up Now for Big League Baseball

It is now time to sign up for Southern's Big League Baseball. Big League is for 16, 17 and 18 year olds who played high school baseball at the varsity level. The cost is $130. Play starts June 10. Click here to sign up.

2013 Baseball Seniors Schedule Available

You can view those by clicking on the Schedules link on the right sidebar of the website. Or you can just click here. Coaches will be contacting players in the next 48 hours.

60th Anniversary Celebration and Family Day at Southern Little League

For the first time ever, every Southern baseball and softball team plays on Family Day! And we have a special souvenir for every player!

• Saturday, June 1st, all day
• Great food
• Water slide and bounce land with slide
• Baseball and softball games all day
• Minor, Major and Junior Baseball All-Star Games at 7:30pm
• Bring the whole family – grandma, grandpa, aunts and uncles, too
• Look for 60th Anniversary T-Shirts for sale

Juniors Baseball Schedule Changes

Team tournaments for juniors baseball starts on Saturday, June 22. Because of this earlier than expected start date, we are canceling the following games:

• Thursday, June 20
  7:30pm - Lundeen vs Sajdak
• Friday, June 21
  5:30pm - Winkle vs Hoppman
  7:30pm - Malewitz vs Murray
• Saturday, June 22
  9:00am - Winkle vs Lundeen
  11:30am - Hoppman vs Malewitz
  2:00pm - Murray vs Sajdak

We have also rescheduled the following games. These are only time changes on the same date:

• Saturday, June 1 (Family Day)
  8:30am - Hoppman vs Sajdak
  10:15am - Lundeen vs Murray
  12:00pm - Malewitz vs Winkle
• Saturday, June 8
  2:30pm Hoppman vs Winkle

Finally, we've added a Juniors Baseball All-Star Game on Family Day:

• Saturday, June 1
  7:30pm - Juniors Baseball All-Star Game

Schedule Change in Majors Baseball: Pohlman/Hebert/O'Connor,E/Mundell

We have made a change to the majors baseball schedule on Saturday, June 1:

• Teams O'Connor,E & Mundell: Instead of playing each other at noon, your game will now take place at 3:30pm.
• Teams Pohlman & Hebert: Instead of playing each other at 3:30pm, your game will now take place at noon.

All Games Canceled

Due to the weather, all games at Southern and Manhattan for Wed-22-May are canceled.

Police Report Update

Southern Little League Parents,

After further investigation by the Grand Rapids Police Department, new information has been reported. The car involved in the incident was not a dark colored sedan, it was a white sedan, nice, possibly a Kia. There was a woman in the passenger seat and what the player said appeared to be 2 to 3 children in the back seat. He assumes it was a family.

We hope you will all continue to be vigilant with the safety of all of the players at Southern and continue to keep Southern a safe and fun environment as it has been for 60 years.

Bob Hams
President, Southern Little League

Next Umpire Signup

The third of four umpire sign-ups is this Saturday morning, May 18, at 7:00am. Please have your baseball schedule handy to avoid any conflicts.

Schedule Changes in Juniors Softball: Crampton

We have made a change to the juniors softball schedule:

• Team Crampton:
• You have an additional game on Monday, June 3, at 6:00pm at Manhattan against Algoma. It will be a double-header.
• Your game on Saturday, June 8, will now be played at 3:00pm at JC East. It will be a double-header.

Schedule Change in 78ers & Majors Baseball: O'Connor,E/Billo/Potter/Sova

We have made a change to the 78ers baseball schedule and to the majors baseball schedule on Tuesday, May 21:

• Teams Sova & Potter: Instead of a 7:30pm game on the West field, you will now play at 5:30pm on the East field.
• Teams O'Connor,E & Billo: Instead of a 5:30pm game on the East field, you will now play at 7:30pm on the West field.

Last Call for Seniors Sign-up

It is now time to sign up for Southern's Senior League Baseball. The season starts after the Memorial Day weekend. Please sign up as soon as possible so we have time to organize teams and contact everyone. The deadline for signing up is midnight on Thursday, May 16. After that, there is a wait list and a $20 late fee. Click here to sign up.

Alert to Parents

Good Morning All Southern Little League Parents,

An incident was reported to us that happened on Saturday, May 11, at Southern and the JC Park. A Caucasian male driving a newer model dark colored sedan stopped his vehicle and tried to persuade one of our 11 year old baseball players to get in his car so he could help the player find his parents. The player immediately ran to the concession stand and found his mother. A police report has been filed, and the GR Police will patrol more often during games. No other incidents similar to this have been reported in the last 30 days.

Southern is a great place for the community and is safe as long as we all keep an eye out for suspicious activity. Let’s all keep Southern a great place for the area youth to enjoy!

Bob Hams
President, Southern Little League

Details from Police Report

• Description: white male with brown hair, possibly in his 40's, wearing a gray shirt.
• Car: white 4-door possibly a Kia model
• Police report: #13-038108

Partial Cancellations - Please Read

• 2:30pm minors baseball games are canceled.
• 3:00pm minors and majors baseball games are cancelled.
• 4:00pm 78ers baseball games are canceled.
• All games 5:00pm and later are still on for now.

Stay tuned for more weather updates!

Saturday is Picture Day

Sat-11-May is picture day.

• Each team has been given a specific time slot for pictures, and by now your coach or team parent should have contacted you about what time you need to be there. If not, please contact your team parent for details.
• There's also an opportunity for players to have individual pictures taken.
• Even if you're not planning on purchasing a team or individual photo, as a courtesy to others on the team, please make sure your child is present for the team picture anyhow.
• Pictures are taken over near the Mackay Jaycee soccer fields, under the pavilion in the woods, near the playground.
• They run a tight ship, so be on time for your team's scheduled slot.
• RAIN OR SHINE! Regardless of any possible weather-related game cancellations, picture day will go on as scheduled.

Coaches: Soft Toss Into Fences

There is absolutely NO soft toss allowed with hard softballs or baseballs in to the fences at the city JC fields or the Southern fields. The city called yesterday and observed one of our teams doing that Monday night at JC fields. Joe Malewitz has had to ask 3 teams/coaches not to do it at Southern. It ruins the fences.

2013 Softball Juniors Schedule Available

You can view those by clicking on the Schedules link on the right sidebar of the website. Or you can just click here. Schedules for other leagues will be published and announced as soon as they are available. Stay tuned.

Sign Up NOW for Seniors Baseball

It is now time to sign up for Southern's Senior League Baseball. We look forward to all of you signing up for the Senior League which has a rich tradition of competitive baseball with a great sense of community. Under the direction of Jim Henwood, Southern’s Seniors program is second to none. The season starts after the Memorial Day weekend. Please sign up as soon as possible so we have time to organize teams and contact everyone. Click here to sign up.