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PONY Baseball and Softball

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This article is about the youth organization. For the defunct Pennsylvania–Ontario–New York League in Minor League Baseball, see New York–Penn League.

PONY Baseball and Softball is a non-profit organization with headquarters in Washington, Pennsylvania. Started in 1951,[2] PONY organizes youth baseball and softball leagues and tournaments, as over 500,000 players annually play PONY in over 4,000 leagues throughout the United States and over 40 countries world-wide. The televised Pony League World Series held annually in August at Washington's Lew Hays Pony Field attracts teenage teams from around the world.[3] Membership is open to children and young adults from age 4 to 23 and the leagues are organized in two-year age brackets with "and-under" programs.[2] Hundreds of PONY players have gone on to Major League Baseball careers, including Hall of Fame inductees Tony Gwynn and Cal Ripken Jr.[4]

PONY Baseball and Softball
Company typeNon-profit
IndustryYouth sports
Founded1951; 73 years ago (1951)
HeadquartersWashington, Pennsylvania
Area served
United States, Mexico, Caribbean, Europe, Asia-Pacific
Key people
Abraham Key, president[1]
ProductsBaseball and softball—leagues and tournaments
Websitepony.org

Origin of name

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Children at the Washington, Pennsylvania, YMCA named the organization PONY, which stood for "Protect Our Neighborhood Youth." This later became "Protect Our Nation's Youth."[2]

Levels of play

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A 14-year-old Pony League pitcher

Distances shown are for baseball with players pitching; distances for other offerings (such as baseball with machine pitching, fast pitch softball, and slow pitch softball) may vary.

League Ages Distances Ref.
Bases Pitching
Foal  4 and 3 50 feet (15.24 m) 38 feet (11.58 m) [5]
Shetland  6 and under 50 feet (15.24 m) 38 feet (11.58 m) [6]
Pinto  8 and under 60 feet (18.29 m) 40 feet (12.19 m) [7]
Mustang 10 and under 46 feet (14.02 m) [8]
Bronco 12 and under 70 feet (21.34 m) 50 feet (15.24 m) [9]
Pony 14 and under 80 feet (24.38 m) 54 feet (16.46 m) [10]
Colt 16 and under 90 feet (27.43 m) 60 feet 6 inches (18.44 m) [11]
Palomino 19 and under [12]
Thorobred 23 and under [13]

Pony League World Series

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Pony League World Series
 
SportBaseball
Founded1952; 72 years ago (1952)
Most recent
champion(s)		  New Taipei City, Taiwan
(2022)
Most titles  Taipei, Taiwan (5)[a]
TV partner(s)MLB.com
Sponsor(s)Dick's Sporting Goods
Official websiteplws.org

The Pony League World Series is the flagship tournament of PONY Baseball and Softball. After the creation of the organization in 1951, there were already 505 teams across 106 leagues the following year. This prompted PONY to create the Pony League World Series in Washington County, Pennsylvania, which has hosted a majority of the tournaments since the inaugural edition in 1952.

From 1964 through 1983, the tournament did not have a set location and sometimes took place in other states: California (1964–1965, 1978), Iowa (1979–1980), Illinois (1967, 1974–1975), Nebraska (1966), Texas (1977), and Washington (1983).[14] In 1981, World Series Tournaments, Incorporated (WSTI) was put in charge of running the tournament, and every tournament since 1984 has been played in Washington County, although no team from Pennsylvania has won the tournament since 1955.

The first team from outside the United States to play in the tournament was Monterrey, Mexico, in 1959[14]—Monterrey had won the Little League World Series in 1957 and 1958. In 1968, international slots were added to the tournament, with teams from Canada and Venezuela participating.[15] The first participant from Puerto Rico was a team from Cataño in 1971.[14] The first non-US champion was a team from Monterrey in 1972. A team from Japan was the first non-Americas participant, in 1986. The first non-Americas champion was a team from Seoul, South Korea, in 1988.

The format of the tournament has differed; for most years it has been double-elimination, while at least the first tournament was single-elimination, and the finals were a best of three at least twice during the 1970s. Most editions of the tournament have been contested with a field of eight teams, but field size has been as small as four and as large as 10:[16]

Year(s) Teams
1952–1960 8
1961–1967 4
1968–1974 8
1975–1978 6
1979–1980 8
1981–1982 5
1983–2008 8
2009–2019 10
2020 —
2021 8
2022-2023 10

The tournament is currently sponsored by Dick's Sporting Goods and the games are streamed on MLB.com,[17] the official site of Major League Baseball. The recent finals can also be found on YouTube.[18]

After the 2020 edition was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2021 edition was staged with only US-based teams (including a team from Puerto Rico).

Champions

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Year Winner Score Runner–Up Ref.
1952   San Antonio, Texas 2–1   Brockton, Massachusetts [19]
1953   Fairmont, West Virginia 7–6   North Charleston, South Carolina [20]
1954   Monongahela, Pennsylvania 8–2   Chicago, Illinois [21]
1955   Washington, Pennsylvania 4–0   Youngstown, Ohio [22]
1956   Joliet, Illinois 9–1   Hamtramck, Michigan [23]
1957   Lufkin, Texas 5–2   Maywood, Illinois [24]
1958   Miami, Florida 3–2   Hamtramck, Michigan [25]
1959   Long Beach, California 8–0   Greene County, Pennsylvania [26]
1960   Oak Park - River Forest, Illinois 5–4   West Covina, California
1961   Hamtramck, Michigan 2–1   San Antonio, Texas
1962   Houston, Texas 4–1   Greensboro, North Carolina
1963   Evansville, Indiana 3–1   Canoga Park, California
1964   Campbell-Moreland, California 8–2   Gadsden, Alabama
1965   Long Beach, California 8–0   Joliet, Illinois
1966   Greensboro, North Carolina 6–0   Gadsden, Alabama
1967   Chula Vista, California 2–0   Tulsa, Oklahoma
1968   Greensboro, North Carolina 4–1   Covina, California
1969   Honolulu, Hawaii 8–5   Arcadia, California
1970   Buena Park, California 1–0   Cayce/West Columbia/Lexington, South Carolina
1971   Orange, California 6–5   Denver, Colorado [27]
1972   Monterrey, Mexico 2–0, 2–3, 3–1   Honolulu, Hawaii [28][29][30]
1973   Santa Clara, California 4–3   Fort Worth, Texas [31]
1974   West Covina, California 11–2   Charlotte, North Carolina [32]
1975   Covina, California 7–3, 4–3   Wilmette, Illinois [33][34]
1976   Tampa, Florida 14–0   Monongahela, Pennsylvania
1977   New Bedford, Massachusetts 5–4   Lake Worth, Florida
1978   Campbell-Moreland, California 2–0   Joliet, Illinois
1979   Campbell-Moreland, California 10–3   Houston, Texas
1980   Maui, Hawaii 3–2   Greensboro, North Carolina
1981   West Covina, California 16–10   Miami, Florida [35]
1982   West Covina, California 5–4   Washington, Pennsylvania
1983   Santa Susana, California 8–4   Houston, Texas
1984   Caguas, Puerto Rico 3–0   Miami, Florida
1985   Marietta, Georgia 7–0   Washington, Pennsylvania
1986   Valencia, Santa Clarita, California 3–2   Edogawa, Japan
1987   Caguas, Puerto Rico 9–4   Houston, Texas
1988   Seoul, South Korea 15–0   La Mesa, California
1989   Seoul, South Korea 10–0   Encino, California
1990   Seoul, South Korea 4–2   Lakewood, California
1991   San Juan, Puerto Rico 8–2   Fountain Valley, California
1992   Bourbonnais, Illinois 4–3   Pasadena, Texas
1993   Joliet, Illinois 4–2   Bayamon, Puerto Rico
1994   Taitung, Chinese Taipei 6–1   Chambersburg, Pennsylvania [36]
1995   Bayamon, Puerto Rico 11–2   Hagerstown, Maryland
1996   Tainan, Chinese Taipei 4–0   Evansville, Indiana
1997   Danville, California 7–0   Hamilton, Ohio
1998   Taitung, Chinese Taipei 4–0   Washington, Pennsylvania
1999   Covina, California 9–1   Taitung, Chinese Taipei
2000   Taipei, Chinese Taipei 8–3   West Covina, California
2001   Ponce, Puerto Rico 10–4   Richmond, Virginia [37]
2002   Norwalk, California 10–0   Levittown, Puerto Rico [38]
2003   Lakewood, California 4–3   Humacao, Puerto Rico [39]
2004   Marietta, Georgia 3–1   Mililani, Hawaii [40]
2005   Taichung, Chinese Taipei 2–1   San Diego, California [41]
2006   Caguas, Puerto Rico 4–2   Simi Valley, California [42]
2007   Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico 8–3   Long Beach, California [43]
2008   Long Beach, California 3–2   Taichung, Chinese Taipei [44]
2009   Taitung, Chinese Taipei 12–1   Riverside/Victoria, California [45]
2010   Midlothian, Virginia 3–1   West Tokyo, Japan [46]
2011   Laredo, Texas 10–9   Taipei County, Chinese Taipei [47]
2012   Long Beach, California 9–7   Taoyuan County, Chinese Taipei [48]
2013   Okinawa, Japan 5–4   Los Mochis, Mexico [49]
2014   Hilo, Hawaii 5–3   Taoyuan County, Chinese Taipei [50]
2015   Taoyuan County, Chinese Taipei 12–1   San Bernardino, California [51]
2016   Taipei County, Chinese Taipei 12–2   Maui, Hawaii [52]
2017   Covina, California 3–1   Seoul, South Korea [53]
2018   Taipei County, Chinese Taipei 3–1   Long Beach, California [54]
2019   Taipei City, Chinese Taipei 9–1   Bay County, Michigan [55]
2020 Not held [56]
2021   Brownsville, Texas 11–10   Youngstown, Ohio [57]
2022   New Taipei City, Chinese Taipei 4–1   Monterrey, Mexico [58]
2023   Edogawa, Japan 8–2   Washington, Pennsylvania [59]
Year Winner Score Runner–Up Ref.

Source:[14]
Note: In cases of conflicting records, contemporary news reports have been given priority.

Controversy

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In the 2023 Pony Asia-Pacific Zone Championships held in Fukushima, Japan, a controversial decision was made, where the Japanese officials unilaterally revoked Taiwan (Chinese Taipei)'s Pony League World Series qualification after losing to Taiwan in the championship game. The reason for disqualification was the alleged use of unapproved bats by the Taiwanese team. However, the PONY league pre-approved the bats prior to each game with stickers. There have also never been complaints from other teams prior to the championship game. In the end, despite Taiwan gathering supports from the majority of the teams, including Hong Kong (1 team) and Mainland China (3 teams) who protested against the decision to disqualify Taiwan, the complaint was overruled by Japan, Philippines and Australia, where the two decision-making officials were from Japan and Philippines.[60]

The incident attracted widespread media attention in Taiwan due to the perceived lack of transparency and fairness. The Taoyuan City Government and Taiwan's Sports Administration immediately filed an official complaint to the PONY Baseball and Softball organization headquarters, and are waiting for a reply.[61][62]

Championship totals

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The 2016 championship team from Chinese Taipei (Taiwan)

By U.S. state or non-U.S. country. Updated through the 2023 championship (71 playings, 142 total appearances).

State / Country Wins Losses Appearances Most recent championship
  California 22 15 37 2017
  Chinese Taipei[b] 11 5 16 2022
  Texas 5 6 11 2021
  Puerto Rico 7 3 10 2007
  Illinois 4 5 9 1993
  Hawaii 3 3 6 2014
  South Korea 3 1 4 1990
  Pennsylvania 2 7 9 1955
  Florida 2 3 5 1976
  North Carolina 2 3 5 1968
  Georgia 2 0 2 2004
  Michigan 1 3 4 1961
  Japan 2 2 4 2023
  Mexico 1 2 3 1972
  Indiana 1 1 2 1963
  Massachusetts 1 1 2 1977
  Virginia 1 1 2 2010
  West Virginia 1 0 1 1953
  Ohio 0 3 3 —
  Alabama 0 2 2 —
  South Carolina 0 2 2 —
  Colorado 0 1 1 —
  Maryland 0 1 1 —
  Oklahoma 0 1 1 —
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  •  
    PONY Headquarters with Flag Plaza in view in foreground
  •  
    PONY Headquarters dedication plaque, located on building entrance
  •  
    PONY Headquarters Main Hall / Museum

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Championship teams from Taipei, the capital of Taiwan, are listed in Pony League World Series records under variant names: Taipei (2000), Taipei County (2016, 2018), Taipei City (2019), and New Taipei City (2022). Taipei City is the official name of the capital city, which is commonly known as Taipei. New Taipei City and Taipei County both refer to the "special municipality" where the capital city is located.
  2. ^ Due to complicated relations with the People's Republic of China, the Republic of China—commonly known as Taiwan—is recognized by the name Chinese Taipei by a majority of international organizations, including PONY Baseball and Softball. News accounts may use Republic of China, Taiwan, or Chinese Taipei to refer to the same entity.

References

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  1. ^ "Abraham Key". pony.org. Retrieved August 14, 2018.
  2. ^ a b c "About PONY". pony.org. Retrieved August 14, 2018.
  3. ^ Crawley, Dave. "Teens Flock To Play Ball In Pony League World Series (August 5, 2016)". KDKA-TV. Retrieved 16 August 2017.
  4. ^ "History Of Pony Baseball". ovpb.net. Retrieved August 14, 2018.
  5. ^ "FOAL 4U™ LEAGUE". ponybbsb.freshdesk.com. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  6. ^ "SHETLAND 6U™ LEAGUE". ponybbsb.freshdesk.com. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  7. ^ "PINTO 8U™ LEAGUE". ponybbsb.freshdesk.com. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  8. ^ "MUSTANG 10U™ INFORMATION". ponybbsb.freshdesk.com. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  9. ^ "BRONCO 12U™ INFORMATION". ponybbsb.freshdesk.com. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  10. ^ "PONY 14U™ LEAGUE". ponybbsb.freshdesk.com. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  11. ^ "COLT 16U™ LEAGUE". ponybbsb.freshdesk.com. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  12. ^ "PALOMINO 19U™ LEAGUE". ponybbsb.freshdesk.com. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  13. ^ "THOROBRED 23U™ LEAGUE". ponybbsb.freshdesk.com. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  14. ^ a b c d "All-Time Scores". www.plws.org. Pony League World Series. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
  15. ^ "Pony League Field in Washington". The Daily Notes. Canonsburg, Pennsylvania. August 15, 1968. p. 8. Retrieved August 17, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "PLWS Records". www.plws.org. Pony World Series. Retrieved 2018-08-14.
  17. ^ "PONY World Series | 08/14/2018". MLB.com. Retrieved 2018-08-14.
  18. ^ "PONY Baseball and Softball". YouTube. Retrieved 2018-08-14.
  19. ^ "San Antonio Nips Brockton 2-1 for Pony League Title". The Boston Globe. AP. August 17, 1952. p. 47. Retrieved August 17, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
  20. ^ "Pony League Title Won By Fairmont". The Morning Herald. Hagerstown, Maryland. AP. August 22, 1953. p. 12. Retrieved August 17, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
  21. ^ "Monongahela Wins PONY Title, 8-2". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. August 21, 1954. p. 9. Retrieved August 17, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
  22. ^ "Washington Wins Pony League Title". The News-Herald. Franklin, Pennsylvania. UP. August 26, 1955. p. 8. Retrieved August 17, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
  23. ^ "PONY Title Goes to Joliet". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. August 29, 1956. p. 20. Retrieved August 17, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
  24. ^ "Texans Capture Pony Loop World Series". The Muncie Evening Press. Muncie, Indiana. AP. August 31, 1957. p. 8. Retrieved August 17, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
  25. ^ "Miami Wins Pony Crown". The Palm Beach Post. West Palm Beach, Florida. AP. August 28, 1958. p. 19. Retrieved August 17, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
  26. ^ "Pony Loop Title For Long Beach". Daily Press. Newport News, Virginia. AP. August 28, 1959. p. 20. Retrieved August 17, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
  27. ^ "Orange Tips Denver 6-5 For Crown". Jacksonville Journal-Courier. Jacksonville, Illinois. August 29, 1971. p. 23. Retrieved August 17, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
  28. ^ "Monterrey Hurler Cools Honolulu Bats". Tyrone Daily Herald. Tyrone, Pennsylvania. UPI. August 29, 1972. p. 5. Retrieved August 17, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
  29. ^ "Honolulu Evens Pony Series With 3-2 Win". Tyrone Daily Herald. Tyrone, Pennsylvania. UPI. August 30, 1972. p. 7. Retrieved August 17, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
  30. ^ "Monterrey Wins Pony World Series On 11th-Inning HR". Tyrone Daily Herald. Tyrone, Pennsylvania. UPI. August 31, 1972. p. 5. Retrieved August 17, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
  31. ^ "Santa Clara Takes Pony League Series". Indiana Gazette. Indiana, Pennsylvania. AP. August 27, 1973. p. 16. Retrieved August 17, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
  32. ^ Ward, Mike (August 29, 1974). "W. Covina Wins the Big One for Baseball Crown". Los Angeles Times. p. VII-1. Retrieved August 17, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
  33. ^ "Covina Grabs Pony League Series Lead". The Decatur Daily Review. Decatur, Illinois. AP. August 27, 1975. p. 15. Retrieved August 17, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
  34. ^ "Covina Wins Pony League Baseball Title". The Decatur Daily Review. Decatur, Illinois. AP. August 28, 1975. p. 14. Retrieved August 17, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
  35. ^ "West Covina Wins Pony Series". Santa Cruz Sentinel. August 30, 1981. p. 57. Retrieved August 17, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
  36. ^ "Chinese Taipei takes Pony League title". News Record. North Hills, Pennsylvania. August 21, 1994. p. 18. Retrieved August 17, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
  37. ^ "Viva Ponce!". WJPA. August 25, 2001. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
  38. ^ "It's All Over. It's All Norwalk!". WJPA. August 24, 2002. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
  39. ^ "Lakewood, CA 4, Humacao, PR 3". WJPA. August 16, 2003. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
  40. ^ "Saturday--Championship Day! | East Cobb, GA 3, Mililani, HI 1 FINAL!". WJPA. August 21, 2004. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
  41. ^ "Championship Saturday! | Chinese Taipei 2, San Diego, CA 1 FINAL!". WJPA. August 20, 2005. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
  42. ^ "Caguas wins it all, 4-2!". WJPA. August 19, 2006. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
  43. ^ "56th PONY League World Series Finals". WJPA. August 18, 2007. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
  44. ^ "Long Beach is Walk-Off Winner!". WJPA. August 16, 2008. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
  45. ^ "Chinese Taipei Wins PONY Title". WJPA. August 15, 2009. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
  46. ^ "Chesterfield County, VA--World Series Champs!". WJPA. August 15, 2010. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
  47. ^ "Laredo Wins PONY World Championship". WJPA. August 20, 2011. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
  48. ^ "Long Beach Wins PONY Championship, 9-7!". WJPA. August 18, 2012. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
  49. ^ "Okinawa 5, Los Mochis 4 | PONY League World Series Final". WJPA. August 14, 2013. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
  50. ^ Pacheco, Josh (August 14, 2014). "Hilo 13-14 PONY All-Stars Win World Series". bigislandnow.com. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
  51. ^ "San Bernardino falls to Chinese Taipei in Pony League World Series final". Inland Valley Daily Bulletin. Rancho Cucamonga, California. August 13, 2015. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
  52. ^ Osher, Wendy (August 10, 2016). "Maui Finishes Runner-Up in Pony League World Series". mauinow.com. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
  53. ^ "Covina rallies for Pony League title". Observer–Reporter. Washington, Pennsylvania. August 16, 2017. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
  54. ^ Campbell, Luke (August 15, 2018). "Chinese Taipei, Tien shut down Long Beach to win 9th PLWS title". Observer–Reporter. Washington, Pennsylvania. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
  55. ^ "2019 Pony League World Series". WJPA. August 15, 2019. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
  56. ^ Dugan, Chris (May 2, 2020). "Pony League World Series canceled for first time". Observer–Reporter. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
  57. ^ "Brownsville Wins Pony World Series Championship". KRGV-TV. August 19, 2021. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
  58. ^ "Bracket". plws.org. PONY Baseball and Softball. 2022. Retrieved August 16, 2022.
  59. ^ "Bracket". observer-reporter.com. Observer Reporter. 2023. Retrieved August 23, 2023.
  60. ^ Scanlan, Sean. "Taiwan team disqualified from Pony junior baseball championship after bat dispute". Taiwan News. Taiwan News. Retrieved 3 July 2023.
  61. ^ 謝, 靜雯. "小馬青少棒賽球棒違規遭取消資格 桃園市隊已提申訴". CNA. 中央通訊社. Retrieved 3 July 2023.
  62. ^ 蔡, 依珍. "棒子有怪聲遭取消小馬代表權 張善政：努力不容抹滅". 中時新聞網. China Times Group. Retrieved 3 July 2023.
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40°9′19.28″N 80°16′58.90″W / 40.1553556°N 80.2830278°W / 40.1553556; -80.2830278

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