For parents of children aged 5 to 8 in Baseball Canada's Rally Cap initiation program (based on the 2022 revision of the program manual). Covers session format, how the game works, equipment, skill levels and how players move up.
Rally Cap is Baseball Canada's official initiation program: a first, fun baseball experience for young children. Baseball Canada's Rally Cap mini-book (2022 revision) says its goals are to:
Ages: the Baseball Canada manual does not state an age range. Baseball BC's Rally Cap page says the program is designed for T-Ball and Blastball participants aged 5 to 8, along with their coaches and parents. An older Baseball Canada news article described it as for ages 4 to 7, so the age range varies by source.
Each Rally Cap session lasts 60 minutes and involves three teams. Each team has six athletes on the field, compared to nine in traditional baseball, which allows more teams and gives athletes more skill repetitions.
All athletes come to bat during their team's half inning, and the half inning ends when every athlete has had a turn.
Yes. In Rally Cap, teams score runs the same way as in traditional baseball (touching home plate), and they can also "score" runs while on defence:
Baseball Canada says programs can develop a different scoring system to reward other defensive plays, for example more points for fielding a ball followed by an accurate throw. It also encourages rotating defensive players after each at-bat so athletes learn the different positions.
According to the Rally Cap manual, the only equipment a Rally Cap athlete needs is a baseball glove and a batting helmet. The manual strongly recommends that coaches set up their equipment before the start of the session.
In the practice part of the session, the team that is not playing works in the outfield area on five "FUNdamentals":
Baseball Canada has developed Rally Cap practice plans for each skill level so coaches can focus on proper technique, and encourages stations with athletes rotating through them to keep everyone busy with plenty of repetitions.
The Rally Cap manual's skill chart has six levels, from first to last:
Each level has one skill in each of five areas: fundamental movement skills, throwing, receiving, hitting and baserunning (30 skills in all). A player is recognized as having passed a level when they succeed at the skills for that level.
Through "Rally Cap Days". Baseball Canada recommends that programs hold two Rally Cap Days during the season, where athletes get a chance to "level up" based on the skills they have practised and acquired.
The manual lists 30 skills, numbered 1 to 30 across five areas (movement, throwing, receiving, hitting, baserunning), spread over the six levels. Examples:
Baseball Canada's Rally Cap manual says most coaches at this level are parents or guardians, and many are coaching or playing baseball for the first time. The practice plans are designed to give them everything they need.
Parents can help in these ways, all from the manual:
The manual says each child's ability is individual and progression happens at their own rate through experience and effort.