UPDATED: February 16, 2023
1. What is Upper Ottawa Valley Little League?
It is a volunteer-run baseball and softball organization serving much of the Upper Ottawa Valley including Pembroke, Petawawa, Laurentian Valley, Deep River, White Water, Eganville, Cobden and Chapeau. All players must reside within or go to school within our boundaries. We run a co-ed house league and competitive baseball teams for ages 4-16 and girls’ softball program for ages 9-12. We are governed by the rules of Little League International and are part of District 8 in Little League Ontario.
Little League is the largest worldwide youth sports organization and provides an inclusive, enjoyable experience for players and volunteers.
A player's playing age is determined by the Little League age eligibility requirements. Click here for the chart used to determine age for baseball. For softball the player must be born between 2008-2014. Unfortunately, we can not accept underage players due to insurance.
If you want to move your player up or down a level, this can be requested at the time of registration on the special requests section but may not be able to be accommodated.
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Mon/Tue games
Thur/Fri practices
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3. T-ball and Rookie (coach pitch)
T-ball has 2 divisions: one in Pembroke and one in Petawawa. These teams only play teams in their division so there is no travelling between sites. There is one game and one practice a week. Games and practices are 45 minutes long and start at 5:15 or 6:15.
Rookie there is some travelling between Pembroke and Petawawa. Typically there is one game and one practice a week. Games are 1 hour and start at 5:15 or 6:30
If your player has played one year of T-ball before and would now be in their last year of T-ball, you have the option to move them up to the rookie age group. This is appropriate for those who are stronger players and will be contingent on them being assessed at an evaluation night with the rookie coaches to ensure they will be safe playing at that age group.
We will have a kickoff event for tball and rookie the weekend of May 27 and 28th. Photos will be done that day and you will meet your coach and get your jerseys. We will also try to do an end of season event, date to be determined but will be mid to end of July.
For minor and above, we play within the District. This means that there are some games against Renfrew and Barry’s Bay. We try to minimize how much travelling there is for each team. We aim for 12 games a season. This usually works out to 2 field times a week, sometimes 3 if we do two games a week and a practice. If we have the interest and coaches available, we will run teams out of either Cobden, Eganville or Deep River where practices will occur there but home games for major and juniors will be in Pembroke so that there is a pitching mound. If we don’t have enough to make a team, or if we have too many and there is overflow, players from those areas will be added to teams in Pembroke or Petawawa. On field practices will start the week after May long weekend. We are working on having a one day mid season tournament within the District in June. There will also be an end of year house league tournament held at our diamonds with dates to be determined but will be in mid to late July.
5. Girl's softball (aka fastball)
We are continuing to expand on this program. This will allow girls ages 9-14 (born 2008-2014) to get introduced to the sport. No previous ball experience required. This is meant to be a fun and inclusive group. All ages currently play together unless we have enough girls to make more teams and then we would try to separate. Emphasis will be on skill development and team development. Field times will be twice a week and will be in both Pembroke and Petawawa with one game a week and one practice. If there is interest, we may be able to make a team to travel to other areas in the region.
Registration is all done online through this website. We will also be using this platform for communication between coaches and teams. Feel free to download the app. Registration will open end of February and run until April 16th and fees are paid online at the time of registration. Registration is first come, first served and once teams are full there will be a wait list. This is also dependent on us having enough coaches and registration could close early if teams are full.
There will be no in person registration this year. If you have concerns registering online, please contact us and we can discuss arrangements. We also accept jumpstart applications.
7. Which city do I register to?
This is based on what your address is. If your address is in Petawawa, Chalk River, Deep River then click the button to register for Petawawa. If you live in Pembroke, Laurentian Valley, Chapeau or Whitewater region click on Pembroke to register for those teams. If you live in Eganville, Cobden, or Micksburg, sign up with the Eganville link. If there are players in Whitewater who would prefer to play in Cobden you may choose to apply there instead. All players must either live or go to school within these boundaries.
8. Can I request to play with another player or coach?
Requests can be made at the time of online registration on the “special request” question. Please be aware that not all requests can be accommodated.
9. What equipment do I need?
Mandatory: Glove, running shoes (cleats are optional), athletic pants (no shorts allowed at any point, including practices), water bottle
Each player is required to have their own batting helmet.
This is a program meant for our experienced players who are wanting to start some training early. These sessions will be starting the week after March Break and will run until May. Spring training registration will be part of the regular season registration. Cost is $30 and is limited to 20 players at each session.
There may also be separate pitching clinics. This is a chance to come learn how to pitch or work on new techniques and get ready for the season. We are also looking at the possibility of running an "intro to baseball" indoor clinics so that new players in minor and major can come out and learn basics before the season starts. These dates are still to be determined depending on coaches availability and if we have interest in running these clinics.
Rules for indoor sessions:
- please ensure you remove outdoor footwear when entering the school and put on indoor shoes.
-No wandering around the school. We must remain in the gyms or washrooms.
-Doors will be open for only 15 minutes around the start of the session. Doors will not be propped open. This is to ensure there are not other people in the school as we are responsible for who is in the school and any damage that is done. Once we confirm your spot, we will provide contact information in case you are late arriving.
- Ensure only indoor non marking running shoes are used
- Only water is allowed in the gyms. No flavored drinks. No food allowed in the gym.
- Remind our players to be careful with equipment; any charges for damage will be charged to the association
- No smoking on school property
Minors: Monday March 27, April 3, April 17, May 1, May 8
6-7:30 Champlain Discovery school gym
Majors: Tuesday March 28, April 4, April 11, April 18, May 2, May 9
6-8 Valour school gym
Rookies: Thursday April 6, April 13, April 20, May 4, May 11,
6-7 Bishop Smith High School Gym
Jr/Sr: Monday March 27, April 3, April 17, May 1, May 8
7:30-9:30 Champlain Discovery school gym
Girls' softball: Friday March 31, April 14, April 21, May 5, May 12
6:15-8:00 Valour High School Gym
Pitching clinic-
dates TBD once we have confirmed coaches
Intro clinic-
dates TBD once we have confirmed coaches
11. What are evaluations?
Evaluations are how we ensure that the house league teams are all roughly equal in abilities. This gives the coaches a chance to evaluate the players and make equal teams. We will confirm by email closer to the date what time and where each player is to attend.
April 24- Pembroke minor and majors
April 25- Petawawa Rookies and Juniors
April 27- Pembroke Rookies and Juniors
April 28- Petawawa minor and majors
12. What is an all-star team?
Also known as competitive, rep, or travel team. Our River Cats program provides players with the opportunity to play a more competitive level. These teams are made up in each division of players from the house league teams in our league. Therefore, all players interested in playing all-star must play house league. The all-star team is then chosen and will have separate practices and will participate in tournaments (as determined by coaches) and playdowns. Playdowns occur early in July within each district with the winner of each district going on to provincials, and if they win there, then nationals. There will be tryouts for this team and there will be additional fees. Proof of residency within our region will be required at try-outs.
Rookie: head coach: Kyle Robinson
Tryouts to occur once season is started as this is more of a development program.
Minor: head coach: Mark Williamson
Tryouts: May 15 - 6:00-7:30 -Champlain Discovery Gym and May 18 6:00-7:30 Bishop Smith High School Gym, outdoor tryout week of May 22nd TBD
Major: head coach: Brent Gould and Bobby Keefe
Tryouts: May 15 6-8:00 Opeongo High school gym, May 16 6-8:00 Valour school gym, outdoor tryout week of May 22nd TBD
Jr: head coach: Kevin Chiasson
Tryouts: May 15 7:30-9:30 -Champlain Discovery Gym and May 18 7:30-9:30 Bishop Smith High School Gym, outdoor tryout week of May 22nd TBD
Sr: TBD
If you are interested in playing on a Senior All Star team with plans to compete at provincials and possibly nationals in June/July, please contact us.
13. What about rain out games?
Rain is a fact of life and if the fields are too wet or there is lightning, games will be cancelled. This will be determined by umpires and if it needs to be cancelled, this will be communicated via the coaches as well as on Facebook.
We will attempt to have rain out games rescheduled to be played on the Sundays’ the week that the rainouts occur.
Riverside Park is the main site with 3 diamonds in use.
We also use Kinsmen diamond particularly for T-ball and Rookie as well as Stafford park which will be used for softball.
T-ball and Rookie play at Civic Center Diamond #3 (far diamond closest to the dog park)
Minor and Major- Norman Street Diamond (AKA Kinder or Kiddyland)
Junior/Senior- Mohn's memorial Diamond (formerly known as Indian Diamond)
Softball- games Civic Center Diamond #2 (middle diamond), practices Civic Center diamond TBD
We are looking for head coaches, assistant coaches and convenors to help run teams and divisions. Without enough coaches, we may need to fold teams meaning fewer kids can play ball. Please consider volunteering your time. All coaches will need police checks. If you are interested in coaching, please indicate it when registering your child and fill out the application on the website.
We are excited to announce that Tim Hortons has sponsored our T-ball and rookie divisions this year and will be providing jerseys and hats.
We are looking for sponsors for all our other teams. This is an exciting opportunity for any business wishing to support local sports. Please contact us for further details.
17. I still have questions, who should I contact?