LOGAN – Bart Smith is a local baseball enthusiast who is laser-focused on enhancing the experience of playing the game for local youth ages 7-12.
To that end, he, Brandon Buck and others have created Bridger-Area Little League (BALL). BALL covers Cache, Box Elder, Rich and Franklin counties.
“My concern is that with the current structure of youth baseball in Logan and the surrounding area you have advanced baseball (the Rocky Mountain School of Baseball league) and then there are rec programs. There is a pretty large gap between the level of those two,” he said.
He said it is difficult for children in the rec program to learn enough to qualify to make a RMSB roster.
Smith said during a meeting two months ago with leaders of most of the valley’s rec baseball programs, Logan City invited BALL to take over Logan’s Little League baseball to the extent they could this year.
Consistent with the national Little League rules, teams in the Bridgerland program will be divided into “minor” and “major” levels. Smith said there will be pitching in the majors but not in the minors.
Smith said the plan is for each team to play 12 games this summer and each team, at least early in the season, must hold two practices a week.
Opening Day is May 2 and the season continues into July.
Parents interested in registering their children can go to the Bridger-Area Little League BALL online; Smith’s email is listed there and he will respond to all questions.