Tri-Town Little League All-Star Information and Frequently Asked Questions

Q. Is All-Stars an extension of the regular baseball season? 
A. Regular season play is about giving all kids an opportunity to learn and love the game, providing a taste for all positions. All-Star play is about putting the most skilled players in the field and line-up in a position that helps the team win. We still have plenty of fun and it is a great bonding and learning experience for the kids. The greatest difference is the seriousness of the preparation and the expectation that the kids try their hardest to perform. 

Q. How much playing time will my child have? 
A. Variable. Little League all-star changes for 2023 include all teams having a continuous batting order (all players are in line-up).  Amount of playing time defensively will vary. Your child’s playing time will be determined by the coaching staff. Any questions must be directed specifically and privately to the head coach. 

Q. Who will pick the coaches? 
A. Coaches have been asked to indicate their interest in serving as Head Coach for an All-Star team to 3TLL’s Player Agent. 3TLL’s Board President, Player Agent, and VP of Baseball will select the Head Coaches for each division/level and make a recommendation to the 3TLL Board. Should any of those three officers wish to coach an All-Star team, a non-coach 3TLL Board member will be appointed as their alternate for decision-making purposes. Head Coaches will select their Assistant Coaches pending approval from 3TLL’s Board President, Player Agent, and VP of Baseball. Coach selection is based fully on experience, knowledge of the game, coaching philosophy, and recommendations from the 3TLL Board. 

Q. What are the criteria to be selected? 
A. All-Star players will be chosen based on skill level, good sportsmanship, and coach ability as well as individual strength in positions needed. These skills will be determined by your child’s current coaches. Availability to play in practices and tournament games is also potentially a determining factor.  

Q. What is the process to create the team rosters? 
A. The following steps will guide the selection process based upon the pool of eligible players that meet the criteria noted above and who indicate their interest, commitment, and availability by completing the application included in this packet. 

Step 1: The regular season head coaches (with input from their assistant coaches) are asked to nominate players on their teams who have asked to be considered for selection. Each team (1 ballot per team) can nominate up to 5 players in each All-Star age group for further consideration.  Note players that play up a division in the regular season (10-year-olds that play majors) are eligible for the all-star team in their age group (10U team).

Step 2A (for the 12U team): From the list of nominated players in Step 1, the regular season head coaches (with input from their assistant coaches) are then asked to nominate (1 ballot per team) who they think are the top 12 players for the age group.  The combined scores from all head coaches are then averaged to reach a cumulative ranking of the top 12 players. Any players who did not make the initial 12-player list are added as alternates by their cumulative ranking.

Step 2B (for the 10U team): From the list of nominated players in Step 1, the regular season head coaches (with input from their assistant coaches) are then asked to rank who they observed to be the top 12 players for each age group.  The combined scores from all head coaches are then averaged to reach a cumulative ranking of the top 12 players for the 10U team. Any players who did not make the initial 12-player list at either level are added as alternates by their cumulative ranking. 

Step 3: Based on the results of steps 1 & 2 above and the Head Coach’s desired team size, an initial team roster of is recommended to the 3TLL Board or a subgroup of the Board. Any nominated players who did not make the initial player roster are added as alternates by their cumulative ranking. 

Step 4: The Board or a subgroup of the Board confirm the commitment of the nominated players on each team level roster. If a player cannot commit to the All-Star requirements and schedule or if they are deemed ineligible based on District 6 Tournament rules, the first alternate is contacted. That process of contacting alternates continues until a full roster (most likely 12 players) is reached for all teams. **Note** if enough interest and the team and it is capable to field a competitive team, 3TLL will consider a third, 9-10-11 all-star team.

Step 5: The All-Star teams are officially announced to all Minor and Major league players and families as near to the end of season as possible. All Tri Town Little League players will be commended for their participation, hard work, and improvement during the season, and we will wish the All-Star teams the best of luck in their upcoming games. 

Q. What is the time commitment for All-Stars? 
A. Teams will likely practice and play games up to 5 days per week prior to and during the tournament at the discretion of each Head Coach. 

Q. Where are the practices and the tournament held? 
A. Practices will be held at Hunter Road Field in Freeport or Freeport MS Softball field.
A. District 6 Tournament games will take place at the following locations: 
10U Tournament: Windham and Gray-New Gloucester are tournament hosts.
11U Tournament: Cumberland/NY and Scarborough are tournament hosts.
12U Tournament: Westbrook is tournament host.

Q. What is the start/end dates for District 6 All-Stars tournament? 
A. Should the Tri-Town teams reach the district 6 Championship game or states you should be prepared to start and end on the following dates: 
10U Tournament: District 6 June 21st to July 11th, State Tournament July 18th to July 25th.
11U Tournament: District 6 June 21st to July 11th, State Tournament July 18th to July 25th.
12U Tournament: District 6 June 21st to July 11th, State Tournament July 18th to July 25th.  Windham is the state tournament host.

Q. Exactly what dates and times will our games be? 
A. This is unknown until District 6 publishes the brackets. We will share them as soon as they are available. They will be in the evenings and during the day on weekends. Even once the brackets are published, we will only know the dates/times of the first game. Dates/times of subsequent games will depend on the team’s result in the previous game. 

Q. How long does the tournament last? 
A. Each tournament is a double-elimination tournament. Historically, the kids get through 3-4 games, of course each year we hope to win the district 6 title. To do so will take around 2-3 weeks once the tournament starts. 

Q. What happens if we win the district 6 title? 
A. We move on to play in the State tournament.  Typically, mid to late July.  If the team wins states, they advance to the regional tournament.  For 12U division only, if the team wins regionals, they advance to the Little League World Series.

Q. What costs will my family incur? 
A. The fee per player is estimated at $115 to cover the cost of personalized game jerseys that the kids will keep. All fees will be due before a player can receive their uniforms and begin play as a rostered member of the team. 3TLL has set aside money to support the All-Star program to keep costs as low as possible. Should we advance far in the tournament and more costs are incurred, there will be fundraisers as well as a potential individual family cost burden for travel fees.  In addition, the uniforms can be used for summer baseball (open to all 3TLL players) that will begin after the district 6 tournament.  All-star players will not have to register for summer baseball if they wish to continue to play in the summer.