Todd Frazier (center) celebrates LLWS win in 1998

Every August since 1947, the best baseball playing 12- and 13-years olds in the world gather in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania to see who emerges the Little League World Series champions.

The  youngsters are first playing for the LLWS title. However, like any kid who picks up a ball and bat, they are also striving to play on a Major League diamond one day. There are currently seven players on big league rosters who also played in the Little League World Series.

Ranger Jurickson Profar and Oriole Jonathan Schoop played together on the 2004 LLWS winning squad from the small Dutch Caribbean island of Curacao. Reds third baseman Todd Frazier won the 1998 LLWS with the team from Toms River, New Jersey. Americans Colby Rasmus and Lance Lynn, Canadian Michael Saunders and Venezuelan Yusmeiro Petit also participated in the Little League World Series.

Here is a list of the all the prominent  Major League players who had previously suited up in the Little League World Series:

Wilson Alverez, Jason Bay, Derek Bell, Sean Burroughs, Charlie Hayes, Ken Hubbs, Carney Lansford, Jason Marquis, Lloyd McClendon, Lastings Milledge, Boog Powell, Gary Sheffield, Jason Varitek (one of two players to participate in the Little League, College and Major League World Series), Dan Wilson and Rick Wise.

Stars of other sports have also played in the Little League World Series.

NFL quarterbacks Brian Sipe and Matt Cassel both went to the LLWS, as did NASCAR driver Austin Dillon.  NHL great Chris Drury first made a name for himself as the star of the LLWS from Trumbell Ct., which won it all in 1989.  898 point scorer Ray Farraro was a LLWS participant, as were Pierre Turgeon and Stepahne Matteau, who played together on the 1982 LLWS squad from Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec.

Chris Drury

Since 1977, Collegiate Baseball Magazine has been crowning a national champion in high school baseball. The only school to win the title twice is Bishop Amat in La Puente CA, who won back to back in 2001 and 2002. Check out the full list of high school baseball national champions below.

1977: Redwood HS, Larkspur, CA (33-4)
1978: Southeast HS, Wichita, KS (23-0)
1979: White Oak HS, NC (22-0)
1980: Bullard HS, Fresno, CA (28-2)
1981: Bowie HS, MD (22-0)
1982: Madison Central, Richmond, KY (40-0)
1983: Northwest HS, Omaha, NE (21-1)
1984: Tate HS, Pensacola, FL (38-1)
1985: Miami Lakes HS, Hialeah, FL (32-1),Oak Forest HS, IL (36-1)
1986: Esperanza HS, Anaheim, CA (25-3-1)
1987: LaPorte HS, IN (34-2) , Cooper HS, Abilene, TX (33-3)
1988: Memorial HS, West New York, NJ (28-1)
1989: Sarasota HS, FL (32-1)
1990: Carlsbad HS, NM (32-1)
1991: Northeast HS, Pasadena, MD (24-0)
1992: Cherry Hill West HS, NJ (27-3)
1993: Arundel HS, MD (21-1)
1994: Start HS, Toledo, OH (31-0)
1995: Germantown HS, TN (38-0)
1996: Westminster Christian, Miami, FL (36-0-1)
1997: George Washington, New York, NY (44-2)
1998: Edwardsville HS, IL (40-4)
1999: Lassiter HS, Marietta, GA (35-2)
2000: Gloucester Catholic, Gloucester City, NJ (33-1)
2001: Bishop Amat, La Puente, CA (27-2)
2002: Bishop Amat, La Puente, CA (28-2)
2003: Chatsworth HS, CA (33-1)
2004: La Cueva HS, Albuquerque, NM (28-0)
2005: Russell County, Seale, AL (38-1)
2006: The Woodlands, TX (36-1)
2007: Seton Hall Prep, West Orange, NJ (32-1)
2008: Don Bosco Prep, Ramsey, NJ (30-0)
2009: Menchville, Newport News, VA (26-2)
2010: Sumrall HS, MS (35-1)
2011: Broken Arrow HS, OK (36-2)
2012: Bishop Gorman, Las Vegas, NV (39-3)
2013: Pensacola Catholic, Pensacola, FL (30-0)
Recently more organizations have gotten into the high school baseball ratings game. Here are the various 2013 National Champions by ranking authority:

USAToday Sports Super 25: Pensacola Catholic, Pensacola, FL. (30-0)
MaxPreps Xcellent 50: Pensacola Catholic, Pensacola, FL. (30-0)
Freeman Computer Rankings: Harvard-Westlake, Studio City, CA (28-4)

Pastime Baseball hosts youth baseball tournaments in twenty-two states across the nation. The organization was conceived in 2006 as Hoosier Sports Academy and that year held tournaments in Indiana and Oklahoma for eight five teams from twelve states.

Sensing they were on to something big and national, they changed their name to Pastime Baseball in 2007. That year there events included 375 teams from twenty-four states and Canada. Scouts and college coaches also started to attend the tournaments, making them an even more attractive destination for traveling youth teams. The involvement of coaches and scouts at Pastime events continues to be one of its big draw to this day.

By 2010 there were fifteen hundred teams participating in Pastime Baseball Tournaments and teams were coming from as far as Texas. Pastime Baseball’s Tournaments have just been growing since then and out now they are nation’s leading self-sanctioned amateur baseball tournament host.

Pastime baseball tournaments are held during June and July. They tend to be played between Thursday and Sunday or Friday and Sunday, and offers guarantees of either three, four or five games weather permitting. Age groups include 9U, 10U, 11U, 12U, 13U, 14U, 15U, 16U, 17U, 18U, Pastime baseball offers national championship tournaments in the 14U to 18U divisions and World Series tournaments in the 15U to 18U divisions. They also offer wood bat national champions in the 14U and 15U division.

The price to enter tournaments is between $350 and $1250 a team. Shorter tournaments and younger teams are cheaper, and national championship tournaments cost more than regular invitationals. Teams that register before January 1 for the summer tournaments get a $25 discount

Pastime baseball tournaments are typically held at college facilities. Butler University, Notre Dame, Michigan State, University of Michigan, Oklahoma State and West Texas A&M. Some tournament games may also be played at local high school facilities. In addition to providing the venues, Pastime Baseball also provides the baseballs for the tournaments.

There is a generally a ten dollar gate fee for adults to attend the tournament, which is good for the whole weekend. Kids and senior can attend for free. Mizuno gloves and Rip-It BBCOR approved bats are among the sponsors of Pastime Tournaments.

Teams can register for tournaments on the Pastime Tournaments website. Most tournaments are open and can accommodate up to 48 teams. Traveling teams are required to stay at the Pastime tournament room block at the official host hotel. Failure to follow this rule can result in disqualification from the tournament.

In the past Pastime Baseball has offered camps in conjunction with some of their tournaments. This was in part to increase the players exposure to college coaches and scouts, but teams weren’t required to participate in the camps which came at an additional cost.

Pastime Tournaments contact number is 317-201-2358.

Jenks Baseball is a youth baseball organization operating out of Jenks, Oklahoma and Tulsa, Oklahoma.

The league offers fall, summer and spring baseball leagues. In the spring league there are t-ball division for four to five year olds and then six year olds, which cost $110 per person. Coach pitch is for 7U and 8U and runs $130. Player pitch ($170) is for 9-14 year olds.

Uniforms cost extra and are at the discretion of the team’s coach. The cut off date for each age group in April 30. Players can play up an age group (or two ages groups with special permission) but can never play down an age group. The minimum players required for a team is ten, and any roster with more than thirteen players needs special league approval.

There are two levels of teams for each age group, competitive and instructional. Players have the option of trying out for the competitive team. If they are not selected they will be placed on an instructional team. Players also have the option of forming instructional teams with their friends. If these teams have less than ten players the league will fill out their rosters.

The spring season runs between late March and early June. Games are played Monday through Friday at either Six PM or 7:45 PM. There are also games all day Saturday. Sunday is only for rain out makeups.

For the 11 and up players Jenks Youth Baseball games are six innings and no inning can began after the game has hit its hour and a half time limit. (The younger kids play five innings.) There is a seven run limit in each inning. The run limit can be exceeded on a home run with players on base. Pitchers are only allowed to pitch eighteen outs per week. The extra outs in double or triple plays don’t count against this total. Starting pitchers can return to the game once after being replaced, however relief pitchers cannot return after being removed. Balks are enforced in age groups 11 and up. Stealing and leading off are allowed in this age groups as weel and the dropped third strike rule is in effect.

There are no DH’s in Jenks Youth Baseball. Coaches can subsite defensive players freely within the inning.

Bats for the kid’s pitch leagues can made of wood, metal or composite but can not exceed 36 inches or 2 ¾ inch diameter. Base runners are obligated to avoid contact with fielders if possible, and can not attempt to jump over them to avoid a tag. Players who violate this rule will be called out and possibly ejected. Fielders and base runners are forbidden from digging into the dirt with their cleats and will be ejected without warning if they do so.

In addition to hosting youth baseball leagues at two locations, Jenks Youth Baseball offers baseball camps and private instruction. Mike Ponio, a former college pitcher at the University of Oklahoma, runs these camps and also works with the Jenks Baseball teams on their pitching mechanics and fundamentals.

Norcal Baseball is a youth baseball organization based in the San Francisco bay area. It was established in 1992 as a single AAU team. But oh what a team it was, featuring Major Leaguers Jimmy Rollins and Pat Burrell. With future stars like that it should be no surprise that the squad won the 1992 15U national championship.

And from this early success was launched a comprehensive youth baseball league with a mission of producing players who will be able to play college and pro ball. As of 2013, 35 Norcal baseball alum of have suited up in the Major Leagues and over 350 have played college baseball with 200 of those collegians competing on the Division one level.

Norcal baseball has 10U, 11U, 12U, 13U, 14U, 15U, 16U, 17U and 18U teams. To join one of these teams, a player will have to try out. The tryout is in August for fall ball and is divided into one tryout for nine to fifteen year olds and another for sixteen to eighteen year olds.

Norcal baseball isn’t just looking for the best players. They are are looking for the best players who are willing to commit what it takes to compete on a national level. Norcal Baseball is arguably the number one youth baseball organization in America. A player who makes a Norcal team will not only receive top notch coaching but they will bey exposed to college coaches and pro scouts, greatly improving their chances to either be drafted or enter college on a baseball scholarship.

Norcal Baseball sends their teams to national tournaments, such as the USA Baseball Championships in Arizona, the Continental Amateur Baseball Association Championship in Indiana, TBS in Georgia and USSSA tournaments in Northern California, Southern California, Las Vegas.

Norcal also hosts an annual summer tournament, the Norcal World Series.

It cost between twenty and thirty five dollars to attend a NorCal Baseball tryout. Once you make the team there is about a two-hundred fifty dollar fee and then travel and tournament fees on top of that. Norcal asks that you contact them directly for the exact up to date fee structure. A non-profit organization, Norcal tries to keep its fees as reasonable as possible.

NorCal baseball also offers two training programs. The first, a velocity training program is a fourteen week (38 session) total arm conditioning and strengthening program. Players who have taken it have reported improvements from 3.7 to 9.4 MPH on their fastball. The cost of the program is $895.

NorCal also sometimes runs an eight week catching an agility program. Although this program is not currently available.

List of NorCal alum who have played Major League baseball:

Brandon Buckley, Scott Harrison, Jamal Harrison, Brent Howard, Todd Johannes, Mike Rose, Cy Simonton, Pat Burrell, Justin Gemoll, Bobby Hill, Jason Hill, Tony Johnson, Ashanti Davison, Jimmy Rollins, Jason Dennis, Jamie Eppeneder, Ronny French, Brian Manfred, Xavier Nady, Matt Riley, Mike Tonis, Brandon Gemoll, Ronny Johnson, Mike Rouse, J.J. Sherrill, Steve Skinner, Chad Fillinger, Dontrelle Willis, Reed Johnson, Josh Kreuzer, Dave McKae, Nash Robertson, Jonathan Tucker, Jonny Ash, Julian Benavidez, Chris Campos, Chris Carter, Armand Gaerlan, Matt Goodson, J.P. Howell, Casey McGehee, Nate Sutton, Jordan Brown, Chris Gruler, John Jaso, Drew Olson, Dustin Realini, Troy Tulowitzki, Karl Bolt, Josh Butler, Lauren Gagnier, Steve Lerud, Brandon Morrow, Steve Singleton, Nick Moresi, Brad Bergesen, Matthew Mitchell.

Hitters baseball is a youth baseball organization based in Racine, Wisconsin. It has been run by R.J. Fergus for the last 18 years. Hitters Baseball operate out of the Hitters Center and Hitters Baseball Academy in Racine, but they also hold tournaments in other locations in Wisconsin and Northern Illinois.

Hitters Baseball has youth teams from the 12 and under to 18 and under division. They operate on three competitive levels. First is their BLUE level, which is their most senior level. These are traveling teams which play on elite summer and fall schedules. The next level is GREY, their junior level, and WHITE, their sophomore level. GREY and WHITE only play fall schedules. Players tryout for these teams in August, for the upcoming fall season and then the following summer season. Tryouts take place at their Racine facility and also Carthage College in Kenosha. The Hitters Baseball Academy is a member of both Premier Baseball and Mid-America Baseball.

The Hitters Baseball Academy, a 20,000 indoor facility with 11 batting cages and four pitchers mounds, offers camp sessions all year round. Camps include velocity program, hitting camp, fall speed and conditioning, infield/throwing camp, high school throwing and fielding camp and high school hitting camp. Campers can also purchase an hour of individual lessons from R.J. Fergus and the other instructors for $70. (Or $35 for the half hour.) Their camps tend to be reasonably priced. Some are as inexpensive as $60 for an entire camp and the longer camps typically come to less than $20 an hour. You can also rent out the cages at Hitters baseball Academy for $35 an hour between 3 PM and 9 PM on summer weekdays and for most of the day on summer weekends.

One of the features of The Hitter’s academy website is that it keeps statistics on all of its current players. Each name on the statistical table is hyperlinked to player page which includes information such as age, height, weight, position and team. There is also a game-by-game log of all of the player’s statistics that season. Yes, these youth players get the Big League treatment when it comes to their statistics.

Since 2000, 29 Hitters Baseball alumni have signed professional baseball contracts. Well over a hundred have gone on to play college baseball.

The Hitters baseball organization prides itself on the ability to get campers and players exposure to college coaches and pro scouts, who attend their games and camps.

There are many positive testimonials for both Hitters Baseball and the Hitters Baseball Academy posted on their respective webpages. If you are interested in learning more about high level youth baseball in Wisconsin and Northern Illinois you should definitely check Hitters Baseball out.

Since 2008 Cooperstown Baseball Classic has been hosting wood bat youth baseball tournaments in historic Cooperstown, New York as well as locations in Ohio and Missouri. They also operate under the name Backyard Baseball.

The goal of the Cooperstown Baseball Classics is to provide affordable, low price, family-oriented weekend youth baseball tournaments. And what better place to do that than Cooperstown’s Clark Sports Center, which is just down the road from the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Cooperstown Baseball Classic offers tournament play in the 9U, 10U, 11U, 12U, 13U, 14U, 15U, 16U and 19U age group. The cut off date for group is May 1. 14U and up teams use Major League Baseball field dimensions and play seven innings games. The younger groups play six innings and use pitching distance of 47 to 50 feet and base paths of 60 to 70 feet, depending on the age. 11U and up can take leads and at those levels balks are called

There is no in designated hitter in Cooperstown Baseball Classics, but teams can add up to two extra batters to the lineup as long as they declare the extra hitters before the game starts. These extra hitters have to hit 10th and 11th and you can remove them from the game without penalty at any point. (But you can’t put them back in.) The extra hitters can enter the game defensively. Starters can reenter the game defensively once, but once a substitute is removed he is no longer eligible to play. Roster are limited to 15 players. Only wood bats are allowed, with no composite or bamboo bats permitted.

Courtesy runners are allowed for the catcher or pitcher of record. Base runners must try to avoid contact while sliding and there is no head first sliding into home plate. There are no pitch count restrictions in Cooperstown Baseball tournaments. Ejected players are ineligible for the next two games, and ejected coaches are forced to leave the premises.

It cost $625 to register a team in the Cooperstown Baseball classic. The tournaments tend to be in the summer months and run either the weekend or Friday to Sunday. The price includes three guaranteed games, weather permitting. The winning team in each age group receives a trophy and the runner up a medal.

There are also typically three skills competition at on site: around the horn; inside the park speed competition and a home run derby. A limited number of each team players can compete in each skill competition.

Their Missouri tournaments take place in Altenburg under the Backyard Baseball banner. They run $325 per team for the 14U and 15U and four hundred fifty dollars a team for 19U.

The Ohio tournaments are in Willoughby Hills and they cost $295 for 8U coach pitch and $395 for the rest. Both the Ohio and Missouri tournaments also have skills competitions. Game results for all tournaments are displayed on Twitter. For information on how to register go to the cbsclassic website.

The Longmont Baseball League is youth baseball association based in Longmont, Colorado. Longmont Baseball features a summer recreational program for 5u, 6u, 7u, 8u, 9u, 10u, 11u, 12u, 13u, 14u, 15u, 16u, 17u, and 18u. The cut off date for an age group is April 30. Rosters cannot have more than 13 players. The season runs from late May to mid July and each team plays twelve games. Games are on weekend evenings and some Saturdays. Rain outs are not rescheduled.

Five and six year olds do T-Ball and the cost for those age groups is ninety dollars per player. Seven and eight year olds use a pitch machine, and it is also ninety bucks a person. Nine to twelve year olds run $120 a season and thirteen and up cost $130. And the end of the season there is an all-star game for the nine to fourteen year olds and there is an end the of the season tournament for nine to eighteen year olds.

Longmont baseball also has a competitive league which is divided into AA and AAA. AAA is the highest level and AAA teams plays from January to July. These teams usually also participate in fall baseball and will often practice in the winter. AAA teams play in tournaments just about every weekend as many of these teams are attempting to win a state title.

AA teams compete from the beginning of March to July. They tend to practice two to three times a week and play tournaments every other week.

The league can be very expensive, even with many of the team’s using sponsorships and fundraising to defray some of the costs. AAA teams should be around $750 per season per player and AA about five hundred dollars. And this doesn’t include uniforms and registration fees for the tournament. Parents of AAA and AA players are also warned that their child won’t be able to take summer vacations, due to the demands of the schedule.

Tryouts for competitive teams are held in August for the upcoming season.

Competitive leagues are divided 9U, 10U, 11U, 12U, 13U and 14U. Nine to twelve year olds play six innings, and thirteen and fourteen year olds play seven. Longmont Baseball League competitive teams can bat traditional nine player lineups, ten player lineups with an extra hitter, or continuous line up when all present uniformed players hit. Once the team declares what type of lineup they are using they need to stick with it throughout the game. If a team uses the continuous lineup the extra players may move freely into and between any defensive position besides pitcher.

In Longmont Baseball League competitive play pitchers don’t need to pitch all four pitches of intentional walks, instead the pitcher can just signal a free pass.

Base runners are obligated to either slide or try to avoid contact on a close play. If he violates this regulations he will be ejected. During six inning games, the mercy rule is called when a team is up by fifteen after three innings and eight after four. In seven inning games, the mercy rule triggers when a team is up by fifteen after three, twelve after four and ten after five.

Established in 2008, New York Elite Baseball is a youth baseball league that plays in the Hudson Valley of New York State and Connecticut. It plays in over fifty locations — usually high school and Little League Fields — in that region.

New York Elite Baseball has three different seasons throughout the year. In 2014, the spring season lasts from March 30 to June 1. The summer season is from June 10 to August 10. The fall season runs September 8 to October 27. It costs $275 to join a team in any of those seasons. Over a hundred teams participated in the Fall of 2013 season and over three hundred fifty for all of 2013.

New York Elite baseball has leagues in the 9U, 10U, 11U, 12U, 13U, 14U, 15U, 16U, 17/18U age groups. Some of these age groups also feature elite leagues. The cut off date for age eligibility is April 30.

New York Elite Baseball will host eleven weekend tournaments in 2014, including competitions on Memorial Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day and a pair of wood bat competitions. These tournaments are held at state of the art facilities which have restrooms,concession stands, ample parking and field crews which keep the grounds in top-tip shape. New York Elite Baseball tournaments have featured teams from eight states and Canada. Costs for tournaments tend to around six hundred dollars per team.

During tournaments, rosters can be no larger than twenty players, and  only three adults are allowed in the dugout. Rosters are locked after the first game played and players can only be listed on one tournament team. There will be two umpires provided. During tournament teams are given twelve balls to last the weekend. If these run out they will have to provide their own.

During league play 13u to 18u will play on a Major League sized field. Each team will be provided two baseballs before the game begins. Metal spikes are allowed. All bats must meet BBCOR -3 standards.

League games are seven innings, and there is no time limit. Doubleheaders are also seven innings each and a game doesn’t count unless the losing team plays at least five innings. The mercy rule kicks in if a team is ahead by more than ten run after completing five innings.

A team is required to be able to field nine players, and will be given up to twenty minutes after game time to round up nine players. If they fail to do so the game is a forfeit. If a team loses a player to injury they are allowed to play with eight, however an out will be recorded in the missing ninth player’s spot in the lineup. If a player ejection results in the team having eight players the game is a forfeit. Starters may re-enter the game once, provided they keep the same spot in the lineup the whole time.

New York Elite Baseball allows designated hitters and extra hitters. The extra hitter has to be declared before the start of the game and must be kept in the lineup until the end of the game. Teams also have the option of batting their entire roster, but if they do they have to stick with it until the game’s completion. There are no courtesy runners in New York Elite Baseball.

The home team is responsible for providing two umpires for each game, and the two teams will split the umpire’s fees.

During league play, rosters are locked ten days into the season.

The recruiting process for college baseball can be intense and cut-throat. This is because Division 1 college baseball programs have only 11.7 scholarships to divide among their rosters of thirty to thirty-five student athletes. D2 programs have nine, NAIA teams have 12 and D3 programs don’t offer scholarships.

So there is really two things going on in the College Baseball recruiting process. First, you want to get asked to join the team. Second, you want to try to get the most scholarship money as possible from a fairly small pool.

The NCSA is an organization that helps high school baseball players with the college recruitment process. Any potential recruit should check out their website and use it as a resource. Here are some frequently asked questions about college baseball recruiting.

Should I play travel baseball?
College baseball programs want to see a potential recruit playing both high school baseball and travel baseball in the summer. Travel baseball is ultimately going to be more important in most program’s evaluations. That is because the competition level is going to be higher. It’s also because travel baseball takes place in the summer when the college baseball season is over, allowing the coaches to take in the games themselves. However don’t overlook high school baseball. College baseball programs will still pay attention to your scholastic performances and also use your high school baseball career to gauge your potential as a teammate.

Are academics important?
Yes. First good grades show that the recruit is responsible. Secondly, a college coach doesn’t want to have to deal with a player who might struggle with a university course load and may even become ruled academically ineligible. And, thirdly, remember that D1 schools have only 11.7 athletic scholarships to spread among thirty to thirty-five players. So baseball programs try to get their players money in other ways and having good grades and strong standardized tests in high school make it easier for them to find you alternative scholarship money.

What kind of baseball video should I make for coaches?
The most important thing a student athlete can do in a video he makes for recruitment purposes is to show off his skills. While some coaches will occasionally request game footage, what they really want to see is a player’s ability to repeat a skill — such as his swing or his pitching motion — over and over again. And that should be the centerpiece of any baseball video made for college coaches.

Should I go to college camps or showcases?
It is recommended that high school student athletes go to two to three college camps and one to two showcases a year. The student-athlete should pick what showcases to attend based on what college programs he wants to get the attention of, and should take advantage of showcases which will feature representatives from those college. Camps are a good way to impress college programs that already have you on their radar. The downside to this strategy is it can be quite expensive, with camps and showcases running between a couple hundred and a up to thousand dollars depending on their length and reputation.

One final point. Just because it is late in the recruiting game and you haven’t heard from any of the programs you are looking at don’t give up. Many top high school recruits will end up entering the Major League Baseball draft, thus opening up a spot and/or scholarship money at the college they would have attended if they didn’t go pro. This also creates a trickle down effect that could potentially open up late spots and/or money at baseball programs well down the collegiate food chain.