Philippine Baseball News

Senior League Baseball

ILLAM WINS SENIOR LEAGUE SOFTBALL

Rizal Wins Big League Softball

2009 Little League Philippine Series Summary

Little League Baseball

Junior League Softball

Little League Softball

Little League Philippine Series on April 13

La Salle Zobel Wins 2009 Colt Champion of Champions

STRAA Baseball/Softball Winners

Muntinlupa Wins at NCR Baseball and Softball

NCR Baseball and Softball

Baseball Philippines Rainout

PSC hits out at Bacolod Softball Execs

South Super Cubs Game Schedule

MLL Opening a Complete Success

Junior League Softball Succombs to Naples Florida

Philippine Big League Softball Team

Philippine Junior League Softball Team Photo

Senior League Action

Latest on Philippine Little League World Series Games

Latest World Series Game Results

Little League Disaster Averted

Rebels Win 3rd Place in 2006 Bronco Regionals

Philippines Girls Softball Wins Regionals

It's Not Just A Game !

MLL's Kids Tournament of Champions

Good Bye ILLAM! Lets Welcome MUNTINLUPA LITTLE LEAGUE

2009-05-10T06:26:00.003+08:00

The championship predictably went to ILLAM in a 15-5 win over Tanauan. This is the same team that reached the championship of Junior League Baseball in Taylor, Michigan in 2007. Probably the strongest of all the ILLAM teams.

The drama happened five days earlier in the game that decided who ILLAM's opponent would be. Muntinlupa took a 6-3 lead into the 6th inning. Then everything went wrong for Muntinlupa. An error here and there allowed Tanauan to tie the game at 6-6. After a scoreless 7th inning Tanauan walked off with a 7-6 win in the bottom of the 8th inning.

The loss to Tanauan occurred only one day after a loss to ILLAM by a score of 9-4. Though it was a loss. It raised hopes for Muntinlupa that they would have a fighting chance in the championship. But the loss to Tanauan dashed all those hopes.

2009-05-03T07:29:00.003+08:00

Now this was a surprise. Bacolod West comes into the tournament with an experienced World Series team. They have the best pitcher in the division with Annalie Benjamin. This group of girls has won every year since they were 11 years old. The loss of two players, particularly Veronica Belleza, did not sufficiently reduce their strength. Bacolod West was the team to beat.

The only credible opposition came from the ILLAM team. But early in the tournament Bacolod West indicated how things were going to go by beating ILLAM 16-1. The elimination round ended predictably:

	W	L
Bacolod West	6	0
ILLAM	5	1
Cavite	4	2
Pasig	3	3
Valenzuela	2	4
Antipolo	1	5
Makati	0	6

Expectations were high for another easy win by Bacolod West. But ILLAM had other ideas. They came into the game with a determination to win. An excellent pitching performance was turned in by their No.1- Jill Tanaka, who did not pitch in their elimination round encounter.

Final score ILLAM 7 Bacolod West 2

ILLAM will now go to the Senior League Softball Regional in Guam

2009-05-01T09:27:00.004+08:00

Surprise ? Well not really. Vindication ? Not sure.

It certainly was a novel event to see Rizal win Big League Softball.

Background: Rizal was disqualified in Senior League softball for fielding ineligible players in 2007. There were players from Mindanao and Visayas who played for Rizal then. Rizal tried to qualify them by showing a court ordered guardianship. The guardian was a resident within the Rizal charter. Not so fast said Little League Philippines. There were questions whether this was a bona fide guardianship. The court order stated that the players moved from their homes to Rizal because they were skilled softball players. They moved to further develop their careers as softball players and to qualify them for the competitions they were to join.

Rule changes for 2009 now allowed Rizal to field players from other regions. The Big League tournament was declared District Administered. This Little League rule allows District Administrators more leeway around the very strict charter rules which are applied to the younger age brackets. The second rule change allowed players younger than 18 to declare their dormitory addresses to comply with the residence requirement. Many players from outlying regions failed to qualify to play in the Little League Philippine Series because their parents lived far away from the schools they were attending. A majority of players in Big League softball competition are college players.

The new rule change opened opportunities for many players to participate. One example is Veronica Belleza who represented Bacolod at the Little and Junior League World Series in 2004, 2005 and 2006. In 2008 she enrolled for High School in Rizal but was unable to play in Senior League because of Little League residence rules.

Going in to the tournament Rizal became an instant favorite to win. Despite the rule changes another pre-tournament favorite Manila was unable to field a team. Players from UST were not permitted to join Manila. However Manila was allowed to combine with ILLAM. This combination gave ILLAM the pitching and catching that they lacked. ILLAM/Manila became a solid contender. Santa Cruz, Laguna was a dark horse as they were able to add their former talented players now in college to their very strong high school team. Prior to the Philippine Series Santa Cruz and Rizal played a preview in the Southern Tagalog Region Athletic meet. Rizal won this competition. Another dark horse was Caloocan who interestingly was allowed to combine with UST.

Elimination Round Standings:

An interesting triple tie was averted when Santa Cruz lost to Caloocan on the last day 5-2. This set up an interesting championship game between Rizal and ILLAM.

Excellent pitching and great fielding by Rizal finally won the day by a 3-2 score. For Rizal, Veronica Belleza pitched the game of her life . She now gets another opportunity to pitch in international competition.

2009-05-01T08:17:00.010+08:00

Big Surprise in Big League Baseball !

ILLAM with their enormous talent was expected to win. Tanauan however was expected to challenge. Two years ago, with more or less the same players involved, Tanauan won the Senior League championship. Therefore this was a rematch. A chance for ILLAM to vindicate their 2007 loss.

Tanauan got some reinforcements this year though. With Big League being a District Administered tournament Tanauan was allowed to combine with Muntinlupa, who contributed two players to the cause. Makati also had a strong team with players from Marikina added on.

The elimination round went true to form with ILLAM and Tanauan/Muntinlupa topping the standings. ILLAM won their elimination round game over Tanauan/Muntinlupa 6-5.



	W	L
ILLAM	5	0
Tanauan/Muntinlupa	4	1
Makati/Marikina	3	2
Northern Samar	2	3
Taguig	1	4
Camarines Norte	0	5

In the championship, another exciting game. Tanauan/Muntinlupa were able to scrape through with a 3-2 win. For the Tanauan players another opportunity to go to the Regionals. For the two Muntinlupa players they now officially become the first from that ILLAM spin-off to make it to a regional.

2009-04-12T01:01:00.003+08:00

Thirty seven teams are entered this year.

They are divided into eight groups. Two teams from each group advance to the single elimination phase. With sixteen teams going into a single elimination format the result of this tournament will be completely unpredictable. Due to pitching restrictions teams will have to dig deep into their pitching staff to survive.

The initial favorite would have to be Marikina based on the result of the NCR tournament. Agoncillo will be another favorite having won the Southern Tagalog tournament. ILLAM will also be fielding a quality team led by players from La Salle Green Hills complemented by several Japanese players. Tanauan, Muntinlupa, Zamboanga, Nueva Ecija, Mountain Province, Cavite and Bulacan will all have a chance to upset the top contenders.

2009-04-12T00:47:00.004+08:00

Participating:

1. Bacolod East
2. ILLAM
3. Muntinlupa
4. Manila
5. Valenzuela
6. Makati
7. Antipolo

The clear favorite in this division is ILLAM. Two years ago they performed well in the Little League Softball World Series in Portland, Oregon finishing fifth place. The team from 2007 is practically intact. Ines Diaz and Czar Buenviaje will lead in pitching. Toni Ondrik and Mei Uy will lead the hitting.

Bacolod East needs to be watched having performed well in this division last year. Muntinlupa has improved but still needs work to be truly competitive. Antipolo will be showcasing its star pitcher, Angie Palacol.

We see ILLAM getting one berth in the final. The second slot will a toss up between Bacolod East, Muntinlupa and Antipolo. ILLAM will win the trip to the regionals in Guam.

2009-04-06T21:15:00.006+08:00

During the pre tournament drawing the teams were distributed into two groups:

Group A
1. Mountain Province
2. ILLAM
3. Nueva Ecija East
4. Valenzuela

Group B
1. Manila
2. Muntinlupa
3. Cavita
4. Caloocan
5. Bacolod West

The draw went badly for the teams in Group B - Muntinlupa, Cavite and Bacolod West are expected to show up with strong teams. The three will be fighting hard for the two Semi-Final slots.

ILLAM however is expected to easily make it through Group A. We will have to watch out though. Mountain Province rarely fields a team so they are hard to measure. They do have a good program in Sagada and there is always a chance that a good team will show up. Valenzuela is rebuilding a quality program. While this year may not be the year, we all look forward to a strong presence by them. Nueva Ecija East also has a good program and they may spring a surprise.

Group B will be a very interesting and exciting competition. Bacolod West has to figure as the favorite due to past records. Cavite has consistently fielded strong teams. Muntinlupa has its strengths but will need to put its best performance in to make it through this group. Manila can be a dark horse because they are the hosts.

Very likely the Semi-Final cast will be composed of the following: Bacolod West, Cavite, ILLAM and Nueva Ecija East.

The championship game will be a win by Bacolod West over Cavite.

2009-04-05T06:55:00.003+08:00

The 2009 Little League Philippine Series will be held from April 13 to 19 in Manila. This annual event brings in baseball and softball players from all over the country for the right to participate in Little League Regional competitions. A total of 95 teams are entered in the event.

In a series of articles we will review the contenders in each age division for this exciting event.

2009-03-26T23:35:00.004+08:00

In a trilling game De La Salle Zobel won the 2009 TOT Baseball (Colt Division) Championship over Marikina.

Franco Hashimoto scored the winning run in the 10th inning on a bases loaded walk to Carlos Munoz.

Earlier a three run rally by Zobel in the 7th inning prevented Marikina from winning the championship in regulation innings.

Edward Flores provided the leadership for the team by holding Marikina scoreless over the last three innings. He also contributed a couple of extra base hits one of them highlighting the 7th inning rally.

2009-03-20T23:29:00.002+08:00

The STRAA Baseball and Softball competitions came to an end with predictable champions in the High School division.

Tanauan repeated its championship in High School baseball. They will figure to be one of the hot contenders against Muntinlupa/NCR and Nueva Ecija/Central Luzon in the Palarong Pambansa.

High School softball again went as expected to Rizal Province. Santa Cruz/Laguna, Cavite and Antipolo gave a good fight however. Will this now set the stage for a continuation of the Bacolod versus Rizal battles which yielded three stirring games at the Palaro last year. Veronica Belleza for Rizal and Annalie Benjamin of Bacolod will have another opportunity to renew their rivalry as two of the best young pitchers in the Philippines.

An unexpected result was the win by Agoncillo, Batangas in Elementary baseball. Tanauan had won the last two editions of the STRAA meet. This is a first for Agoncillo which has an excellent program with many up and coming young players.

2009-03-19T20:25:00.002+08:00

Muntinlupa again led the way in this year's NCR Baseball and Softball competition. The elementary softball team made up of players from Woodrose won over a tough Quezon City team.

In High School baseball it was another classic La Salle versus Ateneo battle. The Muntinlupa team composed mainly of De La Salle Zobel and reinforced by Southridge won the rights to go to the Palarong Pambansa by winning in a hottly contested match against Quezon City which was represented by Ateneo.

In High School softball a Miriam led Quezon City team the championship against Pasig.

Elementary baseball was won by a very strong Marikina team.

The winning teams now go on to the Palarong Pambansa in April

2009-02-12T22:33:00.012+08:00

The annual National Capital Region (NCR) baseball and softball tournaments commence tomorrow, February 13, 2009.

Top contenders in High School baseball are Muntinlupa, Quezon City, Marikina and Mandaluyong. Muntinlupa, the defending champion will field a team composed of players from De La Salle Zobel and Southridge. Quezon City will be a tough rival for the top spot. They be represented by players from Ateneo.

Muntinlupa and defending champion Quezon City will likewise compete for the top spot in High School softball.

Winners will represent NCR in the Palarong Pambansa to be held in Tacloban April 26 to May 3.

Muntinlupa will also be defending its crowns in the two elementary divisions.

2008-08-03T19:49:00.003+08:00

Baseball Philippines championship game today was called off due to unplayable conditions at the Rizal Memorial stadium. This will mean another week wait before we find out the champion for Season 3.

Baseball is a game of statistics. But Baseball Philippines officials overlooked one important statistic. The statistic for weather.

Rain is normal for the months of July and August. Roughly 40 percent of the annual rainfall occur during these two months. Rain during the four months between June to September account for 70 percent of total annual rainfall.

Baseball league and playoff games should be avoided during these months. Ideally the games should end by the month of May.

2008-07-17T22:05:00.002+08:00

PSC hits out at Bacolod Softball Execs

By June Navarro
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 03:59:00 07/15/2008

MANILA, Philippines—At some point, the problems hounding the Little League teams trying to qualify for the World Series have to stop.

Philippine Sports Commission chair William Ramirez stressed this Monday as he warned Bacolod softball officials that organizational woes would turn off sponsors in the future.

The three Bacolod teams which won their respective division titles in the recent Asia-Pacific girls softball championships in Guang-zhou, China, were nearly deported after failing to come up with the $3,000 (P135,000) registration fee for each team.

“There must be something wrong with the way the officials handled the situation,” said Ramirez, who went to Guangzhou to settle the registration fees of the teams. “They should organize everything properly because if these problems continue, sponsors will shy away.”

Ramirez said the PSC had alloted P250,000 to each team for airfare but no allowances were given as no one requested such.

At least 15 people were later found to have joined the 60-man Bacolod delegation as tourists after posing as officials and coaches.

“What kind of experience are the children going to get from that journey? I hope it will not happen again in the future,” said Ramirez.

2006-09-20T16:29:00.000+08:00

Sept--23---Sat---11:00 am----Cubs vs. Marikina
Sept--30---Sat------------------No game
Oct----1---Sun---10:00 am----Cubs vs. Marikina
Oct----7---Sat------------------No game
Oct---14---Sat---12:30 pm----Cubs vs. Batangas
Oct---21---Sat--- 1:00 pm----Cubs vs. Batangas
Nov----4---Sat---10:00 am----Cubs vs. Braves
Nov---18---Sat---10:30 am----Cubs vs. Braves
Nov---25---Sat---10:30 am----Cubs vs. Batangas
Dec---- 2---Sat---10:30 am----#2 vs #3 (Semi Finals)
...............................12:30 pm----#1 vs #4 (Semi Finals)
Dec---16---Sat--- 1:00 pm----CHAMPONSHIP

2006-09-20T15:55:00.000+08:00

Last Sept 2, 2006, Muntinlupa Little League held its opening ceremonies at the Alabang Country Club. In attendance were are all registered MLL teams as well as teams from our friendly little league neighbors such as Bantangas, Marikina, Taguig, Imus to name a few.

Also in attendance were local officials supportive of their local teams as well as Philippine Little League officials who made the observation that the MLL has so far proved to be the most organized and promising charter in the Philippines.

Congratulations to everyone for a job well done. To the volunteers and organizers for your time and effort, and most of all to the parents and the community for their overwhelming support.

2006-08-21T08:19:00.000+08:00

Junior League (13-14 years old) Softball- Kirkland, Washington

Naples, Florida won over Bacolod 8-0. Naples showed their supriority
over the field. For some of the Naples girls this was redemption. In
2003 Naples played in the Little League Softball (12 and under) World
Series. Naples took a 10-7 lead into the last inning. Their opponent
Midway, Texas scored 9 runs while Naples failed to score in the last
inning.

Consolation however for Bacolod is that their two pitchers- Benjamin
and Belleza will still play in this division next year. So Bacolod
will be a strong contender next year. But they must first win the
Little League Philippine Series... where a Muntinlupa team will be
waiting for them !

2006-08-18T00:20:00.000+08:00

Philippine Big League Softball in Kalamazoo Michigan

2006-08-18T00:02:00.000+08:00

Philippine Junior League Softball Team

2006-08-17T23:45:00.000+08:00

Steal to home by Canada as Bernardo scrambles for the ball. Canada won 5 to 2 over the Philippines

2006-08-17T11:46:00.000+08:00

Its been a tough two days for the Philippines....

Little League Softball- Portland, Oregon

Curacao 5 Philippines 4

Our girls played tough. Twice Curacao took a two run lead... twice the Philippines fought back to tie the game. Curacao scored the winning run in the 4th inning. Alabang girls Maia Trinidad and Toni Ondrik had a hit and RBI each. Mady Lhuillier scored a run. Later today New Jersey and Michigan play the World Sereis Championship game. In yesterday's Semi-Finals Michigan beat Texas 2-0 and New Jersey won over Tennessee 5-1.

Senior League Baseball- Bangor, Maine

Virginia 12 Philippines 1

Luke Bernardo and Paolo Jalandoni contributed two out of three hits for the Philippines. Bernardo also had an RBI.

Canada 5 Philippines 2

Matt Reyes got a nit and RBI. Gian Jimenez delivered one hit. Paolo Jalandoni scored a run. This ends the Philippine campaign in Bangor.

Big League Softball- Kalamazoo, Michigan

California 3 Philippines 2
Philippines 6 West Virginia 2
Michigan Dist2- 3 Philippines 2

The tournament format calls for each team to play 8 games in 5 days. Philippines has played 5 games in the first 3 days. All three Philippines losses were by one run.
Junior League Softball- Kirkland, Washington

No game yesterday. The Philippines plays Florida later today in a battle of undefeated teams. The other teams in the group already have two losses each so both Philippines and Florida are almost qualified for the Semi-Finals.

2006-08-15T23:09:00.000+08:00

ILLAM Major Girls

Little League Softball- Portland, Oregon

Tennessee 6 Philippines 5 extra innings

Our girls played well again but fell short against Tennessee.
Michigan, the top contender and Tennessee will represent Pool B in the
Semi-Finals. Semi-Finalists from Pool A are New Jersey and Texas.
Philippines will play Curacao in a battle of Pool 4th place teams.
Jill Tanaka pitched well. Alabang's Maia Trinidad had 2 RBI's.

Senior League Baseball- Bangor, Maine

Philippines 3 Maine 2

Paolo Mallari pitched well holding the home team Maine to 2 runs. RBI
by Alabang's Jian Jimenez. Alabang's Paolo Jalandoni had 2 hits.
Tonight they play against Virginia. Much better game compared to
yesterday's. Still in the running for a Semi-Finals slot.

Big League Softball- Kalamazoo, Michigan

Philippines 3 Puerto Rico 0
Michigan 2 Philippines 1

Double header for the Philippines today. Tough loss to Michigan.
Alabang's Tiffany Mathay and Wenchi Bacarisas playing for the
Philippines made up mostly of players from the UAAP.

Junior League Softball- Kirkland, Washington

Philippines 1 Ohio 0

Philippines represented by Bacolod now 2 wins no losses. Philippines
looking good to get into the Semi-Finals. The Philippines won the
championship in this tournament in 2003.

2006-08-08T13:22:00.000+08:00

The Junior Bacolod softball team is going to the World Series after all. After some quick action by Little League Philippines their slot in the annual championship event was restored. Newspaper reports this morning indicated that the team had been dropped by Little League authorities in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. This action was taken as a result of the failure by the Bacolod Senior softball team (14 to 16 years old) to travel to their World Series event in Delaware. Last June the Senior Bacolod team won the right to play in the World Series by defeating Indonesia and Guam in the Asia Pacific Regional.

Little League Philippines however must not rest. There is a need to investigate thoroughly what happened to the Senior Bacolod team. Being winners of the Asia Pacific Regional their cost of travel to the World Series would have been covered by Little League International. The Philippines is sending five teams to various Little League World Series events in the United States this year. Several of the teams faced difficulties in obtaining United States visas. Partly this was because of the controversy last year where a Bacolod coach remained in the United States illegally.

Little League provides the best training and international exposure for youth baseball and softball players from the Philippines. Many players who participated in past Little League international competitions have gone on to represent the Philippines including members of the baseball and softball teams that won gold medals in the 2005 Southeast Asian Games.

Little League Philippines should conduct a thorough investigation of this controversy as well as those that have occurred in the past. There should also be more strict screening of teams that are to represent Philippine Little League in order to avoid future problems. We need to show Little League International that the Philippines has a good and reliable Little League program.

2006-07-31T13:27:00.000+08:00

The Rebels team that represented the Philippines in the Asia Pacific Bronco Regional Tournament took 3rd place in this very competive event. As expected, Chinese Taipei and Taipe City took 1st and 2nd place, respectively. While our boys played their very best during the games, we simply had no chance against both Taipei teams who reportedly practices 3 hours a day 6 days a week and are housed in one school. According to Cris Day, one of the organizers of the event in Taipei, the Rebels was the best team ever that was sent by the Philippines to compete in the event.

The Rebels team is composed of former ILLAM Majors players who were initially drafted into the Little League Nationals but decided to join the Pony League tournament instead because of issues in the tournament team organization (See related story that will be posted in this site soon).

On the other hand, the ILLAM team, managed by ILLAM favorite veteran manager Vencer Viray, that competed in the Little League regional tournament in Hongkong last week reportedly finished last place following the little league point system.

2006-07-31T12:46:00.000+08:00

The Philippines' girls softball team won the regional tournament held at the Rosario baseball stadium last month. The Philippine team dominated Guam all through out the game which ended by mercy rule in favor of the Philippines. Head coah Uly Mejia and Team Manager Hiro Bamba are now busy preparing the girls for the world series in Portland Oregon next month. Our congratulations to Pepe Munoz and Hiro Bamba who together were responsible for selecting and organizing the team for the 2005-2006 ILLAM regular season; to the coaching team: Uly Mejia, Alex Causapin and Joey Carillo for their dediction and commitment to the team and the training program they implemented which obviously was effective; to Hiro Bamba for his guidance and direction as manager of the team.

2006-06-18T09:05:00.000+08:00

By Sharon Roberto-Reyes

BASEBALL. Before my son got involved in the sport, I thought it was the most boring game ever conjured up by man. When my now 16 year-old son, Matt, started 6 years ago, HE thought it was boring too. He wanted to quit right after his first game. Of course I would not allow him to quit for all the valid reasons any parent could think of.

I’m glad I stood my ground. Not only has Matt grown to love the game, he’s learning the game of life through this sport. He’s made good friends and has learned valuable lessons, been given unique travel opportunities, while having fun along the way.

Matt was a reluctant 10-year-old rookie back in the year 2000. Most of his team mates had played baseball since they were 5 or 6 years old. It was difficult for Matt to catch up and through the next three years, he would play baseball because I wanted him to. Until in 2003, even though Matt was not one of the best players, he was invited to join a team going to Fukuoka Japan for a home-stay baseball program initiated by the Alabang baseball and Softball Club (ABSC). Here, each boy would stay home with a Japanese family and be immersed in their culture while playing baseball on scheduled days. I learned that this sport wasn’t just a game. Cultural and language barriers could be bridged because of baseball, and my son gained a generous and loving foster family and friends in far-away Japan. And to think, the only thing they had in common was baseball. Matt would never look at this game the same again.

Since then, the ABSC has organized and participated in several international and local tournaments with more fun and training in mind, rather than competition. Coaching seminars were organized as well as outreach activities. The once informal baseball clinics were formalized, giving numerous children an open door to the world of baseball. In 2004, four Alabang teams participated in the Hawaii Baseball and Softball World Series in Honolulu. In years past, the minimum age for joining international tournaments would be eleven years old. ABSC sent children as young as seven to the 2005 Hawaii World Series along with three other older boys baseball teams and two girls’ softball teams. For the past three summers, the “Summer Classic” tournaments would gather teams from as far away as Pampanga, Nueva Ecija and Bukidnon right here at the Alabang Country Club. Christmas time would get baseball families together to share glad tidings with the Muntinlupa public school community through baseball games, gift-giving and baseball equipment donations. In most of these, my family would always try to be invlolved, and year after year, Matt would improve his game more and more.

All these endeavors would test the will power and team spirit of the baseball community in Alabang. It takes tireless efforts and drained pockets to send a team abroad or organize a tournament. Here, the Junior Baseball and Softball Foundation of the Philippines (JBSFP) spearheads the fundraising and organizing for these events. Because of all the good these endeavors had done for my son, I saw myself getting involved in and helping out in any way I could. And in the little that I give, I have been blessed to witness first hand, the generosity and warm-heartedness of so many people. These people, so engrossed in trying to make the community an ideal place for raising children and playing baseball, have become my irreplaceable friends. There are fathers, who aside form watering the gigantic field all by their lonesome, go out of their way to coach, and even counsel, children who are not their own (including my son). My fellow mothers attend to uniforms, schedules, children’s knee injuries and… heartaches. I am touched by big-hearted parents who assist less privileged kids get that chance in a lifetime to play in a foreign land. Coaches try to go beyond physical training, to give our kids the much needed positive motivation to go through the rigors of this difficult sport. Our “yayas” and drivers who, aside from being official and unofficial equipment and field managers, have become the number one fan club and cheerleaders of the children. And our kids who simply want to play while making friends along the way...go on and make their parents happy…just by being happy. All this make my drained pocket and many a sleepless night so worthwhile.

This year, the Muntinlupa Little League (MLL) has been formed. This means that Alabang and its neighboring areas can have a chance in fielding teams to compete among each other and other Little League communities. Some of the children in these teams may be chosen to participate in the Philippine Little League Series to compete against teams in their age bracket from many different cities across the nation in the hope of representing the Philippines in the Little League Asia-Pacific regional tournament. This regional tournament is held every July in a different city in Asia wherein teams from cities like Guam, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Singapore and the Philippines compete for the chance to represent the Asia-Pacific region in the Little League World Series held in the United States every August. The last time the Philippines won in the Asia-Pacific regional tournament was in 2003 when the International Little League Association of Manila (ILLAM) senior division (15-16 year old boys) beat all odds to go all the way to the USA to complete against the best teams from all over the world.

Just this summer, a flagship MLL major division (11-12 year old boys) team participated in the Philippine Series hosted by Cabanatuan City. For a beginner, the MLL gave an inspiring showing by beating many teams in their division. This underdog team gave its all to reach the semi-finals and got the chance to compete against home-town Nueva Ecija, to whom they unfortunately lost to. Nevertheless, this was just the beginning.

My son, Matt, is now too old for the Little League Muntinlupa Charter. But he continues to play and is being nurtured by his original Little League Charter, ILLAM. He’s still having fun, making friends, traveling, and focusing on college, all because of baseball. What started out as a game for passing the time away, has opened up a world of opportunities for my son and countless other children.Surely, this “boring” sport called baseball isn’t JUST a game. Because of this “game”, and the caring people behind it, my son has turned from a shy, unsure little boy, to a more confident and friendly young man with a bat in his hand, good friends by his side, a goal on his mind, and a smile on his face. I’m sure he’s not the only one.

(Should you want to join your community to make Muntinlupa a fun place be and have your kids play baseball too, come to the Muntinlupa Little League registration day on June 24, 2006 at the Alabang Country Club. You may call Pureplay Sports Management Inc. at ( ) for more information. Come on outside and let’

2006-06-15T07:53:00.000+08:00

The Muntinlupa Little League (MLL) has just finalized its tournament schedule for the 2006-2007 season which will be called KIDs TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS. According to Chris Manzano, registration will be on June 24, 2006 at the Alabang Country Club from 8 am to 4 pm. The season will start August and end in December with most of the games being played at the Alabang Country Club and the Cuenca park. Registration fee is P2800 which covers team equipment, uniforms, field fees and tournament souvenirs.

Click on the image below for more details

Santa Cruz

Bacolod East

2006-06-13T20:59:00.000+08:00

At long last! Muntinlupa has its own Little League charter!

So, for the up coming baseball season, baseball players residing within the chartered areas of Muntinlupa will have to sign up with with the Muntinlupa Little League (MLL), except for those where the granfather rule will apply.

Registration for the MLL regular season will be held on June 17 and 18 and/or June 23 and 24, at the Alabang Country Club. An official announcement will be sent out soon to confirm the said dates and other details including registration fees and team sponsorships. Based on the initial costings done by MLL management, the fees promise to be quite reasonable! Infact sponsors are already lining to support their favorite teams for the season.

MLL management estimates that at least four to five teams can be organized for each of the following age bracket:

TBall 5-6
Coach Pitch 7-8
Minors 9-10
Major Girls 12 under
Major Boys 11-12
Junior Boys 13-14
Senior Girls 13-18
Senior Boys 15-18

The highly successful summer clinic which attracted 90 new participants is expected to boost further the ranks of the homegrown Muntinlupa sluggers as most of them have signified interest in signing for the season. Children from Woodrose, Southridge, La Salle Zobel and San Beda have also been invited to join the MLL.

For the Philippine Little League District Championships (Nationals), The MLL also promises to field teams in as many divisions as possible, from Majors boys/girls up.

Congratulations to the organizers and management of MLL.for taking that step towards establishing our very own Little League charter. The Alabang/Muntinlupa community can't wait to participate and support this new season of baseball for the benefit of our community's youth.