IMPORTANT: Coaches are needed. If you are interested, please contact Pablo Ocasio at [email protected].**
MARA offers two seasons of baseball at the recreational level. We do offer more competitive academy-based Club baseball here. The Spring season begins March and runs through the end of June. The Fall season generally begins late August and runs through the end of October. Open workouts and practices will precede these time frames.
Opening Day is tentatively set for September 13th.
Little League 14U & 16U Divisions (Ages 13-16):
Players aged 13-16 get the complete baseball experience with runners leading, pitchers picking off runners, and a regulation field with 90 feet between bases and a distance of 60 feet 6 inches from the pitching rubber to home plate. Players will participate within the Union County Babe Ruth League and compete against other recreational leagues within the area. There are NO tryouts and all players are placed on a team, however, first come/first served if roster spaced become limited.
Teams will compete in a regular season within their division playing 12-14 games. At the end of the season, an End-of-Season Tournament will be held. All-Star teams will be selected from each division (by age) to represent each league at the North Carolina Little League State Tournament. Teams that qualify can also expect to attend the Babe Ruth SE Regionals and Babe Ruth World Series.
We offer three divisions within this league:
- 14U Juniors (Ages 13-14) - Little League
- 16U Seniors (Ages 15-16) - Little League
- 18U (Ages 17-18) - Babe Ruth League
*18U registration is open; please register to receive news and updates regarding evaluations and roster size.
Age Cutoffs:
Please see the Little League 2025 Age Chart
Schedules:
- Schedules are determined by our Little League District and MARA has the ability to make requests to changes of the schedule. We do NOT determine the league schedule.
- Teams practice about twice a week until games begin. This schedule is determined by the Head Coach and field availability.
- Games are typically twice a week; one weeknight and one Saturday morning/afternoon. Practices typically stop once the game schedule is set due to field availability and Coaches availability.
*Middle school and high school baseball players are encouraged play in the Spring season because regular season Little League/Babe Ruth games generally do not start until early May and run through the end of June.
Evaluations (14U & 16U):
- Fall 2025 Evaluations for REC Baseball are tentatively set for Saturday, August 23rd from 12 to 2pm.
- Evaluations will be held on Field 2 (see map below)
- Practices will begin shortly after evaluations
- Regular season start dates TBD
Equipment needed:
- Bat:
- Juniors (14U): USA DROP 5 bats or BBCOR
- Seniors (16U) and Adult (18U): MUST USE BBCOR
- Metal cleats or rubber molded (turf shoes are required on some opponent fields)
- Pants (color determined by coach)
- Socks (color determined by coach)
- Batting Helmet (any NOCSAE certified batting helmet)
*All dates are tentative and dependent on district schedule release and revision
CLUB BASEBALL INFORMATION
- At 14U, MARA has transitioned Challenge Baseball to a Club model!
Come see the exciting changes and opportunities at our Club page here.