Dos Pueblos Little League is gearing up for the first pitch of another season in the Challenger Division.
The Challenger Division is a Little League baseball league for players ages 4-14 years old with intellectual and physical disabilities that hosts six game days per spring at Girsh Park.
DPLL is the only local league that has a challengers division, and anyone living in any district can participate. When batting, players can either hit the ball off the tee, be pitched to by a Buddy or be pitched to by another Challenger player.
There are no strikeouts in the league, and an at-bat continues until the player puts the ball in play.
Players from other DPLL divisions and volunteers from the community serve as Buddies for the Challenger players, guiding them through the games and enabling parents to watch and cheer from the stands.
Buddies have also come from the Goleta Valley Girls Softball Association and Alpha Resources in recent years.
The Challenger division games are played on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. on Elings Field #4, which is the Juniors field at Girsh Park. There are 10 total games in a season.
Registration for Challengers is open until March 5, with Opening Day on March 7.