International All-Star Teams
The Little League International All-Star tournament includes teams from around the world. It is a highly competitive tournament that provides an extraordinary experience for each of its participants. It is considered an honor to represent your league as an All-Star. International All-Stars is the tournament that leads to the Little League World Series televised each August on ESPN and ABC.
The first step is the District 4 Tournament. Teams that advance out of the District tournament will play in Sectionals. Sectional winners advance to Divisional play. Division winners will represent Northern California in the Regionals and from there each Region Champion advances to the Little League World Series.
Teams eliminated early from District play, will continue to play in local tournaments. These tournaments are competitive and include teams from various districts.
Future Stars Teams
In addition to the District All-Star teams, Walnut Creek Little League hopes to create additional teams for each age group (12, 11, 10, 9 and 8) that will play exclusively in local tournaments. The formation of these teams are dependent on coach and player availability.
International All-Star Teams
There will be one district team for each of the age groups listed below. Each team will comprise of 12-14 players.
Future Stars Teams (Baseball)
Walnut Creek Little League hopes to field tournament teams for the following age groups. Each team will carry a minimum of 12 players with the possibility of more players depending on the number of registrants.
Eligibility
To be eligible for International All-Star Teams or Future Stars Teams, a player must have participated in at least 60% of the regular season scheduled games for which the player was eligible to play. Prior to the cutoff date, a parent or guardian must submit an International All-Star Team or Future Stars Team commitment form via WCLL’s website authorizing their child to participate.
All players must live within the established boundaries of Walnut Creek Little League, or the league must have on record, approved waivers from Little League International Headquarters in Williamsport, PA. Birth certificates and 3 forms proving residency will be required.
Selection Process
Selection to either an International All-Star or Future Stars team is accomplished via rankings of the All-Star player pool (players specifically registered to play All Stars). Managers from Majors, AAA and AA observe players from their divisions throughout the regular season, as is reasonably possible. These observations occur from actual games played and games otherwise viewed by this group. The managers from each division will be asked to rank the TOP 15 players from the player pool by age group. From these rankings, the TOP 8 players will be automatically placed on the International All-Star team(s). The remaining players will be selected to the International All-Star teams from the eligible player pool based on a recommendation by the All-Star manager with approval by the selection committee for each age group. Manager rankings and other recommendations will be considered in selecting the final District All-Star roster.
No member of the selection committee can have a child of their own in that particular age group (unless they have opted out of having their child in the pool of candidates). The President will be on each committee unless the above player conflict occurs, in which case, the Director of Coaching would fill the selection committee position and so on. The function of the committee is to ensure that the final team selection is fair and that the most competitive teams are built for the post season. The role of the committee is to make sure all positions and skill-sets are considered and the final team is approved by more than a single person taking into consideration all aspects of player contribution and team building.
Once International All-Star team rosters are filled, the remaining player pool will be used to make up the Future Stars Teams. The next ten (10) highest ranked players from each age group not selected to an International All-Star team will be placed on a Future Stars Team. Additional players are then selected from the remaining eligible player pool by the tournament team's manager selected for each age group.
Note: In the event there are not enough players for a specific age group to fill a Future Stars team roster, that age group may not be represented.
Rankings / Confidentiality
The Player Agent will tally the All-Star rankings supplied by the managers. The final player selection will be presented to the League’s Board of Directors for approval. The Board of Directors will ensure that there are no conflicts of interest during the process. No other person(s) shall be involved or know the order or tally of rankings each player received. This information will remain confidential.
Walnut Creek Little League have ZERO tolerance for this type of activity. Any manager, coach, player, parent or guardian interfering with the All-Star process in any way, including campaigning for a specific player(s) will be disqualified from tournament play.
International All-Star Teams
These teams require the manager to have been a regular season team manager or a coach from the Juniors, Intermediate, Majors, AAA, AA or A-ball divisions during the regular season.
Future Star Teams
Manager candidates must have been regular season team managers and/or coaches from the Juniors, Intermediate, Majors, AAA, AA or A-ball divisions within the last three years. Other qualified candidates may be considered at the discretion of the WCLL Board.
Selection Process
All Stars and Summer Select manager applications must be completed online. Manager applications will be evaluated by the League President. The President will present the candidate selections to the Executive Board for final approval. The manager application can be accessed from the top of the page by clicking manager registration or by clicking HERE
Coach Selection Process
International All-Star and Future Star Managers may request his/her coach(s) from any of the regular season managers or coaches approved by the board for All-Stars. Final coach selections must be appointed by the League President and finalized with approval by the Executive Board. Selection as a coach does not guarantee a spot on a specific team for a coach's child.
International All-Star Teams
International All-Star Team players are expected to attend 90% of practices and 100% of games. Weekday practices and games will be in the evening and will generally start around 5:00 PM. Weekends are normally tournament game days with game times anywhere from early morning to late afternoon. Often, there will be two games scheduled on Saturdays. The level of competition to be faced by our International All-Star teams will require that players be committed to practicing and playing at the highest level. The team's manager will make the final decision on the team's practice schedule but players should expect to practice any day on which there is no game scheduled.
Future Star Teams
Future Stars teams will have more flexibility in scheduling. Future Stars teams will compete in slightly less competitive brackets and may offer expanded rosters to allow for families to take vacation time in the early summer. Families who are planning vacations in June and July should consider applying for a Tournament Team rather than the International All-Star team.
What is expected?
Players are expected to attend all practices for which they are available. The expectation is that all players will attend 80% of practices and 90% of games.
What is the time frame?
The Little League All Star and Future Star tournaments occur in June, with the possibility, depending on player and coach motivation and availability, to play into July. The team roster may change through the summer based on player availability.
What are the criteria to play?
Players must have a good attitude, be excited to play more baseball or softball, and have the skill level expected for these opportunities, as well as being available for 80% of practices and 90% of games. WCLL understands that some players may have vacations during this time frame – going on vacation does not necessarily mean a player cannot participate in summer baseball or softball. These situations will be handled on a case by case basis. In addition to the application, it is recommended that baseball players age 8-12 attend the summer skills evaluation May 14 and/or May 21.
Coaches are expected to provide positive reinforcement, help to develop player skills, conduct practices and overall help lead the players through the summer baseball season.