Player Age Tables and Field Sizes
National Babe Ruth, which includes the Cal Ripken Division, calculates player ages ("Age Groupings") using a May 1 date cutoff. The size of the field used for our games depends on the age of the player, so we explain that here as well.
AGES AND AGE GROUPINGS
It's important to understand that various youth baseball organizations group their ages differently. Little League uses September 1 for its Age Groupings; and National Babe Ruth/Cal Ripken uses May 1 for its Age Groupings. This difference in Age Groupings means that players born between May 1 and September 1 will be considered different ages for Cal Ripken versus Little League.
By offering programs for players from age 8 through age 18, Stamford Babe Ruth can seamlessly accommodate players as they transition between the age groups. This allows the players to avoid disruptive changes to the programs they have become accustomed to, and allows us to place players on the teams/age groups and field sizes that best fit their development.
No player under the age of 20 is barred from, or forced to leave, Stamford Babe Ruth because of their age.
The next chart below shows the 2023 Babe Ruth Age Groupings for all ages that our programs cover:
| If your child was born on Any date between : | Your child is this age for the 2023 Babe Ruth Spring/Summer seasons |
|---|---|
| May 1, 2014 to April 30, 2015 | 8 |
| May 1, 2013 to April 30, 2014 | 9 |
| May 1, 2012 to April 30, 2013 | 10 |
| May 1, 2011 to April 30, 2012 | 11 |
| May 1, 2010 to April 30, 2011 | 12 |
| May 1, 2009 to April 30, 2010 | 13 |
| May 1, 2008 to April 30, 2009 | 14 |
| May 1, 2007 to April 30, 2008 | 15 |
| May 1, 2006 to April 30, 2007 | 16 |
| May 1, 2005 to April 30, 2006 | 17 |
| January 1, 2004 to April 30, 2005 | 18/19 |
| Any date prior to January 1, 2004 | TOO OLD FOR BABE RUTH |
FIELD SIZES
Unlike Little League , which requires all players under 13 to play on a 46/60 infield (i.e., 46 feet from pitchers mount to plate, and 60 feet between bases), Babe Ruth's Cal Ripken division allows players to graduate to a 50/70 infield as they mature physically and develop their skills at different rates from each other. The 50/70 option benefits two groups of players:
- 11 and 12 year old players who physically mature earlier than their peers , can graduate to a larger field than the small 46/60 field that Little League requires them to stay on;
- 12 and 13 year old players who physically mature later than their peers, can transition gradually to the regulation 60/90 field by playing on the 50/70 infield for a period of time (instead of the all-at-once shift from 46/60 to 60/90 that a traditional move from Little League would normally require)
For our programs, Ripken players between 8 and 11 years old will generally use the same 46/60 diamond they are accustomed to in Little League. Players between the ages of 11 and 13 may play some or all of their games on a 50/70 infield depending on the League's determination of each team's relative development and skill set. Players over 13 play all games on a 60/90 infield.
