Greater Pittston Area’s T.J. Johnson rounds the bases after hitting a solo home run against Back Mountain National last year in Sectional play. There will be no District 16 or 31 tournaments this year, but area Little Leagues are gearing up to resume play.
Little Leagues inside Pennsylvania District 16 and 31 have been given permission to resume activities.
District 16/31 administrator Bob Bertoni made the announcement Tuesday, clearing the way for activities to resume Friday, although it was left up to individual leagues to decide when they want to get on the field. Districts 16 and 31 encompass 18 leagues in Luzerne County with the exception of the Berwick and Hazleton areas, which are in different districts.
Friday coincided with the date Luzerne County moved into the green phase of Gov. Tom Wolf’s plan to reopen the state during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The original plan for Districts 16 and 31 was to wait until Luzerne County was phased out, meaning there would be no restrictions.
“The guidelines, the 250 (maximum gathering number) was a lot more than we thought it would be,” Bertoni said. “Quite honestly, the leagues are anxious to get started. There’s a lot of participation, so I left it up to the leagues if they wanted to start.
“As long as they follow the CDC guidelines, have at it.”
The Greater Pittston Area Little League went to work on field clean-up and preparation at Pittston City Friday and Avoca/Dupont Saturday.
The CDC guidelines likely mean there will be social distancing factors to consider, so dugouts won’t be utilized. Instead, players will be seated in the bleachers or elsewhere when not on the playing field. Numerous other restrictions will be in place.
Teams must practice two weeks before playing, so the earliest start date for games would be July 3.
Bertoni said it would be up to each league to determine what levels of baseball and softball it would offer. Bertoni is hoping the 9-12 age bracket will be the main focus, but leagues are allowed play teeball, coach pitch and other divisions if there is enough participation.
Greater Wyoming Area Little League is making plans for a summer season, but has announced that there will not be any teeball or coach pitch conducted this year.
Interleague play is discouraged.
“We’re not recommending they do a lot of traveling between leagues,” Bertoni said. “That is one of the guidelines that was discussed.”
The length of the season will be at the discretion of each league. Bertoni said in late May that leagues could run through October, which would eliminate fall ball but give kids a chance at a longer regular season. There will be no district tournaments or local tournaments run by individual leagues.
Prior to the decision to cancel district tournaments, the Little League World Series and related regional events had already been canceled, followed by state tournaments.
“I told the leagues to make sure they follow the CDC guidelines because you don’t want to become liable if someone ends up getting sick,” Bertoni said. “I’m a little hesitant about opening up, but I’m going to leave it in the hands and good judgment of our league presidents that they are going to oversee a well-run program.
“I’m cautiously optimistic about it.”
