2981 N Gaffey St, San Pedro, CA 90731

Please leave your dogs and other pets at home.
They are not permitted to be at the fields, which are located on US NAVY property.
Alcohol and smoking are not allowed at the fields or in the parking lots.

On behalf of the SPGSA Board, I would like to welcome all of our new players, returning players, parents, and fans to the 2025 Spring Season. We have 15 full teams this year and are ready to get the season started. The games will be starting the week of February 24th and Opening Day will be on March 1 at 10am.

All of our teams have begun practicing during the last week of January, and we also held a “Field Day” on Saturday, January 25.  What began as an effort to simply have a few coaches work with a few girls outside of their regularly scheduled practice morphed into a full-on event where we had about a dozen of our dedicated coaches taking time out of their busy schedules to work hitting, infield, outfield and baserunning sessions over a two-hour period with over 60 girls! It was so inspiring to see this level of dedication and commitment from our coaches, our players and you parents.

Based upon all of the positive feedback we received from “Field Day”, I am happy to announce that SPGSA will now offer “SPring Training” sessions free-of-charge to all of our registered SPGSA participants.  SPring Training will occur every Saturday during February (February 1, 8, 15 and 22), and we will conclude with a pizza party on February 22 for all girls who have participated in at least one session.  I cannot tell you how proud I am to see all the coaches and girls working outside of regularly scheduled practices to improve their skills and simply hang out with each other more.  This not only makes our girls stronger players, it also makes our league stronger as our players, coaches and parents can begin building bonds which will hopefully last for years to come.  Keep coming!

Based upon all of the interest in Field Day and SPring Training, there is clearly an unprecedented level of enthusiasm streaming throughout the league.  This enthusiasm is also evident based upon the several questions we have received over the past few weeks which I would like to try to answer now.

• What is going on with the new fields? The former volleyball area adjacent to the snack bar has had a lot of work happening to it. During the summer and fall of 2024, we had the area excavated and trees cleared out by a community member, Fred Sardisco, who has donated his tractors and time. At this time, the fields have been cleaned and decomposed granite was brought in to level the area. Trenches have been dug for the electrical and irrigation (sprinklers). Once the electrical and irrigation work are completed, the dirt will be leveled out. We will then be able to work on the infield dirt, sod, and back stops. While this project is exciting for future SPGSA players, it is taking time because the labor is being donated by one individual working 5 days a week on it. If you would like to assist, please contact Matt Marchese via email (matt.n.marchese@gmail.com) to coordinate availability.  Otherwise, if you drive by the Pistol Range from 10:00am - 2:00pm, Monday-Friday, just stop on in and see if there is anything you can do to help. Like any construction project, I hope we can all appreciate the baby steps it takes to complete. 

• Are we getting lights? While at the field you may also have noticed the new lights in the batting cages and lights along the warm up pitching area. This was completed with the new wiring being done to the new fields. 

• Where do our registration fees go? Just to open the gates at 2981 N. Gaffey, it costs roughly $2000 per month. This includes, but is not limited to: trash pickup, cutting grass, pumping bathrooms, cleaning bathrooms, maintaining the snack bar, as well as pest control. 

At the start of every season, we purchase new softballs for each division and equipment as needed.  In addition, throughout the season, we pay $70 per game for umpires, and we pay for all the chalk that is used to make our batters boxes and foul lines.

Furthermore, we have to budget for unexpected spending.  For instance, we had to recently purchase new pitching rubbers and a new first base station. For safety reasons, we had to trim trees along Field 1 after a large limb came crashing down near the snack bar.  Thankfully, the girls were practicing on the field and nobody was injured.  Lastly, we had to make a significant repair to our bathrooms after a valve malfunctioned.

In these tight times, we recognize that every dollar counts.  We make every effort to stretch every dollar, every penny even, as far as it can go.

• Is SPGSA having another event with the Dodgers? Yes!!! We have purchased over 300 tickets for the Sunday, April 13 Dodger game at 4:10pm against the Cubs.  This will likely be a nationally-televised primetime game.  If that wasn’t enough, SPGSA will be participating in the Youth Softball Parade prior to the game.  As part of this parade, little league boys, girls and coaches are allowed to parade around the field at Dodger Stadium in their SPGSA jerseys. Parade participants get to see first-hand what it’s like to look up and see 70,000 seats looking back at you.  It is awe-inspiring, exhilarating and thrilling all at once.  If you have never participated previously, it is simply something you have to do.  Tickets can be reserved via a google form.  This google form can be accessed through the QR code on the flyer which has been shared with all of our coaches and which is posted at the snack bar.  After all tickets are reserved, those who have completed their form will be contacted to pay $65 per ticket.  Seats are located in the Pavilion area and will be assigned so that all of our teams sit together. See your managers for more info.  To date, about half of our allotment has been reserved; so, don’t delay, get your tickets today!

• If we don’t have time to coach or participate on the Board, how can parents help? We have an excellent group of ladies scheduling some fundraising events for the spring. Our first one is a Hit-a-Thon, which will take place on Opening Day. Each player will get 10 pitches or 10 swings (from a tee in 6u; pitching machine or coach toss in 8U-14U). We are asking each player to get pledges, either for each hit or a flat donation amount. The team that raises the most in pledges will receive a pizza party.

In closing, I am looking forward to this upcoming Spring season possibly more than I ever have.  After the field closed in 2020 with the onset of the COVID pandemic, we as a league faced an extremely uncertain future.  Sadly, we have seen our 12U enrollment drop significantly, and we were unable to field a team this Spring season.  However, it is our utmost hope that this will be the last time we will be unable to field a team in one of our divisions.  As a Board, we are committed to soliciting feedback from you parents, resolving problem areas wherever we can and simply improving this league.  We have 4 6U teams, 5 8U teams, 5 10U teams and 1 14U team which all include returning players as well as new players, and the excitement over these SPring Training sessions is so palpable.  The future is bright here at SPGSA!  We are asking all parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles and friends to continue supporting our girls of San Pedro. Never forget these six words: “We do it for the girls.”

Last, but certainly not least, please remember that we do not allow smoking, alcohol, or dogs at the SPGSA fields and parking lots.

Go Pedro

Sincerely,

Teri Sardisco

2025 SPRING SOFTBALL SAVE THE DATES:

• Saturday, January 11th: Evaluations and Uniform Sizing (times to be posted)
• Sunday, January 19th 9a-12p: Coaching Clinic at Redondo Sunset (SPGSA pays fee)
• Week of February 24th : Games begin
• Saturday, March 1st: Opening Day
• March 1st: Travel ball players must stop playing to be eligible for all stars (travel ball players are not eligible to play Spring Select 1/1-4/6 to be eligible for all stars)
• April 16th-22nd: Spring Break (no practices, no games)
• Saturday, May 3rd: Closing Day

Please refer to the USA Softball Age Eligibility Chart to determine which age your player is eligible to participate. Players of younger age classification may be allowed to play in older age classifications (based on safety), players may not play (down) in the younger age classification. The chart represents the 2024 Fall and 2025 Spring playing seasons (9/1/24-8/31/25).

What is Fall Ball?

Our Fall Ball Season runs September through November and is intended as an instructional season to give returning players a chance to further hone their skills and understanding of the sport, while also providing new players the opportunity to learn the basic fundamentals of the sport of softball. With a more relaxed and less competitive atmosphere, the emphasis is on “teaching” to help develop and prepare for the upcoming Spring Season and beyond.

League and inter-league games are held on the weekends from September through November. Although the games are competitive in nature, they are stand-alone games with no standings being recorded throughout the season. Traditionally, there is a season-ending tournament held for those teams who are interested and who participated as part of the Fall Ball Season.

Fall Ball is open to all girls in the 8U - 14U divisions. 6U division will also be available this Fall. Players that participate in Fall Ball should play at the age level that they will be playing in for the 2024 Spring Season. Please see the age chart posted on the registration page.

Any person who is helping in the dugout or on the field MUST have completed a background check form AND SafeSport training in order to participate in USA Softball and SPGSA.

If you are volunteering as a Manager, Assistant Coach, Team Mom, Field Helper, or Board member you will need to complete SafeSport Certification and a background check each year. USA Softball year runs September 1st-August 31st.