Baseball season in Valley Grande is coming back soon and registration for little league is opening this weekend.

The 2018 Valley Grande Little League baseball and softball signups will be at Valley Grande City Hall on Feb. 23 from 5-8 p.m. and Feb.24 from 9 a.m. until noon. After stepping away from the league last year, Valley Grande Sports and Recreation sports coordinator Bubba Holley has returned to help organize the league. This will be Holley’s third year running the league, and this year the league is bringing a couple of new additions.

The Valley Grande league has always had T-ball and baseball, but this season the league is adding player pitch baseball and softball. According to Holley, ages 5-7 will still be coach pitch. But ages 8-10 will be player pitch with a coach as backup in both the baseball and softball leagues.

In order to participate in the league, players only need to bring a copy of their birth certificate and proof of health insurance to sign-ups. The registration cost, which used to be $50, is now only $25 dollars per participant. The price reduction is in large part due to this being the first year that the league was able to get sponsors. Currently, Holley has 17 sponsors committed to the league and there may be more joining the league as well.

“This will be the first year that we’ve had sponsors,” Holley said. “We went out and got sponsors from Valley Grande and Selma to help with the cost of the kids playing. Normally, it was $50 to play, so we decided we were going to try and get sponsors this year to try and cut the cost. Some of the families have multiple kids that were playing, and I know that can get costly.”

Holley said the final registration deadline will be Friday, March 2. Even though sign-ups will be open until then, Holley is encouraging players to come to Valley Grande City Hall during registration hours on Feb. 23 and 24 because Taylor Sports will be on-site to size players for their appropriate uniform sizes.

After the registration period ends, the teams will be assigned and practice will get underway. Holley is projecting for the season to start in late March or early April. He will contact the coaches with details as the time nears. Valley Grande is excited to have baseball back, and Holley has already been getting calls about the new additions to the league.

“Everybody’s excited,” he said. “I don’t know if they’re more excited than I am, because I’ve played ball all my life and this is what I love. I love being around kids and helping kids. It’s just what I think I’m meant to do.”