Parent's Guide to Baseball Australia Little League Ages 9-16 2026

Yes, but only with a waiver. A 12-year-old wishing to play in the Minor division completes the Reg V(a) form, which requires sign-off from a parent, the local league president and the State District Administrator.

More generally, players cannot play in the Little League-Major or Minor divisions unless they are age eligible by League Age. If a player outside the age range is considered worthy of dispensation, an application supported by the State District Administrator can be submitted, and only Williamsport (Little League International) can approve it. For the Teenage divisions (Intermediate, Junior and Senior League) run as separate age divisions, no dispensations to play outside the age ranges can be applied for.

Source: Baseball Australia, Little League in Australia: Australian Governance (August 2024 edition).

A maximum of 15 players can be used in any regular season team, in both the Little League and Teenage divisions. Clubs with more than one team in an age division must spread the talent of the player pool evenly across their teams (except in the Senior League-only format, where players are allocated by suitability).

Little League-Major, Intermediate League (SL70) and Junior League (SL80) regular seasons must have no less than 12 games. If a season is shorter, no games in that grade count towards a player's game count. If games are lost to bad weather, a heat policy or a similar unavoidable event, the State District Administrator can seek written approval from the National District Administrator to validate the competition, provided at least 10 games were played.

Source: Baseball Australia, Little League in Australia: Australian Governance (August 2024 edition).

From the Baseball Australia Little League Tournaments Manual 2026:

• Helmets: all player helmets must meet NOCSAE requirements. The batter, all base runners and base coaches must wear a protective helmet. Each league must provide six helmets in the offensive team's dugout or bench (seven for Intermediate, Junior and Senior League), each bearing the NOCSAE stamp and an exterior warning label.
• Catchers: a mask with a NOCSAE-approved catcher's helmet (a skull cap type is not acceptable) and a "dangling" type throat guard, worn during practice, infield/outfield, pitcher warm-up and games. Catchers also wear an approved chest protector with neck collar (long or short model) and shin guards.
• Base coaches: base coaches under 18 must wear a double-eared helmet.
• Shared gear: shared equipment is allowed, though players are encouraged to use their own helmets.

Under Rule 1.10 as published by Baseball Australia:

• All divisions: bats must meet the USABat standard, and bat diameter is capped at 2 5/8 inches. Non-wood and laminated bats in Majors and below, Intermediate (50-70), Junior League and Challenger must carry the USA Baseball logo. BPF-1.15 bats are banned.
• Minor and Major divisions: maximum length 33 inches. Taped or sleeved wood bats can be taped or sleeved up to 16 inches from the small end.
• Intermediate (50-70) and Junior League: maximum length 34 inches, and BBCOR bats are also allowed.
• Senior League: maximum length 36 inches, and a bat cannot weigh less than its length in inches minus 3 ounces. Any bat not made from a single piece of wood must meet BBCOR.

Source: Baseball Australia, Little League Bat Rules page. The logo, diameter and BPF-1.15 changes date from the 2019/20 season.

A player can join any club at the start of their baseball journey, regardless of where the club is relative to where they live. If a player later moves to a club in a different league boundary area from their residential qualification (an "out of area" move), they must apply for and be granted a clearance from their original club. The clearance form must say why the player requested it, and it is only complete once approved by the Charter Committee in Williamsport (Little League International).

Such a player is then "redshirted" and cannot play in any Tournament (All-Star) team for that season. Baseball Australia notes this is a Little League International requirement and cannot be waived, but it does not affect eligibility for tournaments outside the four international tournament pathways.

Source: Baseball Australia, Little League in Australia: Australian Governance (August 2024 edition).

Eligibility for a Little League pathway (All-Star) tournament team is based on League Age, not the division played in the regular season. For Little League (Major), Intermediate League and Junior League, a player must have played no less than 8 regular season games before the tournament. Senior League and the Little League Invitational/Girls division have no games-played requirement.

Other points from the 2026 manual:

• Teams cannot be selected or named before 1 February of the tournament year.
• A player can be named on, and practise with, only one tournament team at a time.
• The team roster must be entered in the Little League Data Centre before the first game.
• Squads are a minimum of 12 players, with a maximum of 14 (Little League, Intermediate, Junior and Invitational/Girls) or 16 (Senior League).

Source: Baseball Australia Little League Tournaments Manual 2026.

In Little League, Intermediate and Junior League tournament games, all teams must use continuous batting, so every player present at the start of the game appears in the batting order and bats in their spot. In Australia, every player in the line-up must also complete 3 consecutive defensive outs in every game, including games shortened by the run rule, bad weather or light.

Source: Baseball Australia Little League Tournaments Manual 2026 (Tournament Rule 9, with the Australian variation).

In Baseball Australia Little League tournaments (Little League, Intermediate and Junior League), a pitcher is removed from the mound at the daily limit for their League Age, though they can stay in the game at another position:

• League Age 13-14: 95 pitches per day
• League Age 11-12: 85 pitches per day
• League Age 9-10: 75 pitches per day

Senior League (League Age 13-16) is also 95 pitches per day.

Rest days then depend on the pitch count. For League Age 14 and under: 1-20 pitches means no rest, 21-35 means 1 calendar day, 36-50 means 2, 51-65 means 3, and 66 or more means 4. A player can never pitch on three consecutive days.

Source: Baseball Australia Little League Tournaments Manual 2026. These are tournament rules, and the manual says they replace the regular season pitching regulations in those tournaments.