Dixie Youth Baseball Leagues and Teams
Dixie Youth Baseball was originated in the year 1955 in South Carolina. Having broken away from Little League organisation of Pennsylvania, all-white teams, numbering sixty-one, conducted their own tournament. The sole intention of establishing an organization that would provide pre-teens with a programme of baseball playing was thus put into action and Little Boys Baseball, Inc was formed. The name was later changed to Dixie Youth Baseball, Inc. in 1962.
Initially, 12 leagues and 537 teams were associated with the formation of this sporting body. However, with the passage of time, it has become the second largest youth baseball programme for pre-teens under the age of 12 years. Though at the outset it was a segregated tournament, now they have shed all the racial restrictions and welcome players of any ethnicity, race or color. Michael Jordan, Reggie Sanders and Bo Jackson were some of the prominent players who had taken part in the programme.
Today, Dixie Youth Baseball boasts of hundreds of leagues in eleven Southern states. The reason for this phenomenal increase in numbers is due to the fact that Dixie Youth Baseball has the youngsters' welfare at heart. It believes that a properly supervised baseball programme is instrumental in preparing a child for future challenges in life.
A National Board of Directors, elected by the affiliated leagues, governs the Dixie Youth Baseball. In sharp contrast to organisations of similar activity, the officials from the local level to the top at the Dixie Youth Baseball do not receive any emoluments for their services. All of them are volunteers who are quite conversant with the needs of the pre-teens.
There is a set of Dixie Youth Baseball basic rules. Team restriction is a maximum of fifteen players with no more than eight 12 year-old participants. Four, five or six teams make up leagues. Affiliated leagues are allowed to play no more than 25 and not less than 15 games per season. Those who complete their 13th birthday on or after August 1 are eligible to take part.
One of the striking features of the Dixie Youth Baseball is the sponsoring of educational scholarships for former players. Prospective applicants, preferably seniors in high school, should be former players with a high degree of recommendation and are expected to provide evidence to prove the need for such assistance. This programme is facilitated by the availability of excess funds from membership fees and other revenue.