Baseball, hot dogs, and a working knowledge of meteorology

It has come to my attention that parents are dropping off their kids at the Little League fields in town without the proper equipment or preparation.

Given the mobility of the modern family it is certainly possible that many of you aren’t from ‘these parts’, and so are unaware of how the game is played in New England.

So, as an experienced Little League administrator and parent, I thought I would use my column this week to inform you of some basic ‘truths’, and perhaps run down the list of equipment and special rules that make baseball in this area so.. well, unique.


First, metal cleats are against the rules, for safety reasons. If you want to have the latest foot ware for your young ballplayer I suggest the LL Bean combination baseball shoe and wader. It keeps the youngsters feet dry, even when standing in base path water up to their thighs, and provides remarkable traction rounding second.

Insulated jackets or fleece pullovers should not be worn on the field. During games the official team jersey must be on the outside of any other clothing, and tucked in to baseball pants. This helps teams differentiate each other on the field, and guards against the ball disappearing in to a fold of clothing. Ask the coach for a shirt three-times as large as you need, so you can comfortably fit the thermal underwear and sweatshirt underneath.

Your young ball player should also never go to the field without a copy of the ‘Little League Guide to Basic Meteorology’. This wonderfully concise little book gives even the youngest player an understanding of the basic kinds of weather they can expect to confront on the field, and how that weather impacts play.

Low hanging clouds, fog, impenetrable mists, and hail are not officially recognized by the manual as ‘weather’. Instead, think of those phenomena as you would dust: annoying yes, but not an impediment to play.

Snow, sleet, acid rain, cats & dogs, frogs, locust, and any other of the Seven Plagues of Egypt are officially recognized as weather, but are not a guarantee of postponement. The standard rule of thumb when confronted by these conditions on the day of a game is to go to the field and wait for an announcement. In New England a forecast of rain throughout the day will often turn out just to be intermittent showers –punctuated by lightning, the glow from which can really brighten up a ball field.

Parents of players should also go to the park with the expectation that they will be needed to help prepare the field prior to a game. Don’t wait to be asked! Bring your own wheelbarrow, shovel, and kitty litter (a great drying agent!) and pick out a particularly muddy or snow-covered section of the infield to work on.

Do not, under any circumstances, make mud caricatures of the opposing team’s coaching staff, as this can often delay the start of the game.


Many parents and coaches alike have asked me for an easy way to determine if, after inclement weather, a field is suitable for play. Simple: if a player can walk the entire base path from home plate to home plate, without becoming lost or having one or more pieces of clothing sucked off by the mud, ‘Play Ball!’.

Yes, yes, I know, they do things differently where you come from. But you’re in New England now. We invented the game. In fact, we invented basketball and volleyball too.

You may think it’s crazy to play in these kinds of conditions, but after being stuck in our cabins for six months, being crazy outdoors seems less crazy by far.