No policies or guidance regarding COVID-19 are in place at this time. Previous coronavirus communications and policies are posted below. Gurnee Youth Baseball is committed to providing a safe environment for our baseball community, and will issue guidance or policies should changes become necessary.
2021 Coronavirus Communications
Tuesday, Mar 9, 2021 | 2:00 pm
Positive Outlook for 2021 Spring Season
As the snow begins to melt and signs of Spring begin to show, the Gurnee Youth Baseball (GYB) Board of Directors would like to take a moment to thank the families that have already registered for our Spring season and update those families still considering registering.
Last year, we made the difficult decision to cancel our Spring season, and issued full refunds for all registered players. We used those Spring months to learn from local and state health officials, and mindfully plan for a Summer/Fall season that would feature several safety modifications, including:
A complete list of COVID-related policies and communications can be found on our website.
For our Spring '21 Season, we are keeping these same guidelines in place, to begin the season, and are committed to making any in-season adjustments necessary to keep our GYB community safe. We will continue to meet or exceed the level of safety measures advised by local health officials. The GYB Board also has full confidence that we will be able to provide players and families with a very high-quality baseball season that is fun and engaging, while maintaining these very high safety standards.
Registration for our Spring Season is OPEN for all ages levels 6-18! We look forward to seeing our GYB players and families on Opening Day!
Gurnee Youth Baseball Board of Directors
Sunday, Jan 17, 2021 | 1:00 pm
Happy New Year! Gurnee Youth Baseball (GYB) is excited for the return of spring baseball, and wants to share a few updates for the upcoming Spring 2021 Baseball Season.
Registration and Evaluations
Gurnee Youth Baseball Spring Registration has been open for the past several weeks, and this year will remain open until our player evaluations are completed; projected to be April 11th. To avoid unnecessary indoor player contact, we have elected to move player evaluations from January to mid-April, and will hold the evaluations outdoors, at the GYB fields. We are tentatively planning for evaluations to take place on 4/10 and 4/11, weather permitting. Evaluations are held for Mustang, Bronco and Pony leagues only.
Team Selection
We will assemble competitively-balanced teams the week after evaluations, using traditional methods for each league. The player drafts for Mustang, Bronco, Pony, and Colt will be held virtually, the week following evaluations.
COVID-19
As those that played in our adjusted Summer/Fall season last year experienced first-hand, GYB has and will continue to make the safety and well-being of its players, coaches, and families our top priority. While we do not know what the state’s Youth Baseball Safety Guidelines will look like, come the start of the season, we are wholly committed to continuing our practice of over-delivering against the suggested guidelines, whatever they may be. For those that did not play with us last fall, some of the safety guidelines that GYB installed last fall included the following.
Season Outlook
We are planning the Spring season with the assumption that many or all of the currently recommended safety measures will still be in place at the start of the season. However, we are committed to providing the most engaging, fun baseball experience that we can provide, while still adhering to our safety standards. We anticipate being able to provide a full slate of practices and games, comparable to years past.
Thank you for your continued support of GYB. Further updates on the outlook of our upcoming season will be communicated via email and posted on GYB’s website. We all look forward to another year of kids returning to the great game of baseball!
Gurnee Youth Baseball Board of Directors
2020 Coronavirus Communications
Saturday, Jun 27, 2020 | 9:00 am
Gurnee Youth Baseball is excited to announce registration is open for the 2020 Summer/Fall baseball season!
Gurnee Youth Baseball is committed to providing a safe environment for our baseball community. GYB’s Phase 4 Participation Guidelines for resuming baseball are available below and all GYB teams will proceed under these guidelines.
Friday, May 29, 2020 | 9:00 am
Gurnee Youth Baseball announces plan to resume under Phase 3 of Restore Illinois Plan
Today, Illinois enters Phase 3 of the mandated five-phased plan to reopen the state. In Phase 3, youth sports activities are limited to drills, practices, and lessons that do not involve contact between individuals and allow for 6-ft of social distancing to be maintained. No competitive games allowed.
We are excited for this phase as a step towards baseball resuming at Gurnee Youth Baseball (“GYB”), and we take the responsibility of providing a safe environment for our baseball community extremely seriously. The Board of Directors is working diligently on implementing protocols and standards the leagues require to resume activity during this phase. GYB plans to resume practices for All-Stars and Travelers within the state regulations by mid-June. Until such time, teams remain suspended and are not authorized to gather or meet in any capacity. All American Legion fields will also remain CLOSED as we prepare the fields and establish stations for practices meeting social distancing restrictions.
At this time, we also expect an in-house baseball program to open for registration in July and activities to begin in August. Details will be announced as soon as the program is finalized.
We hope you are staying healthy and safe, and thank you for your cooperation.
Gurnee Youth Baseball Board of Directors
Restore Illinois Plan Phase 3: Recovery — Youth Sports Guidelines
https://dceocovid19resources.com/assets/Restore-Illinois/businessguidelines3/youthsports.pdf
In-House Teams — Shetland, Pinto, Mustang, Bronco, Pony, Colt
GYB issued refunds for the spring in-house registration and volunteer buyouts in early May. The league will manage repurposing in-house uniforms for future seasons and GYB will also absorb all processing fees; no processing fee will be deducted from the refund. In-house Summer/Fall baseball season has been announced! Registration will close July 10th and practices will tentatively start July 25th.
All-Stars Tournament Teams
GYB is committed to providing the Gurnee All-Star teams their tournament experience and plans to resume practices for All-Stars within the state regulations by mid-June. All-Stars uniforms were ordered in late February, and custom embroidery and silkscreen production were underway when the initial stay-at-home order was mandated. All-Stars uniforms should be delivered to GYB in a week or two after the All-Stars season resumes. GYB’s All-Star Program Directors continue to work with the directors of other leagues and tournaments to ensure a plan forward.
Gurnee Travelers
GYB plans to resume practices for Travelers within the state regulations by mid-June. All efforts will be made to provide the same amount of play as planned before the league suspension, but this will be addressed on a case-by-case basis and may result in a later season end date. Almost all of the travel league’s expenses for the season have been paid, and most travel tournaments and leagues only offer a credit for later in the year or next year. As we get closer to the stay-at-home order expiring, the travel team’s head coaches and GYB’s Travel Program Director will explore options for rescheduling or substituting missed tournaments and games, maximizing any credits.
Friday, May 1, 2020 | 9:00 am
Gurnee Youth Baseball cancels in-house spring season; tournament and travel leagues remain suspended.
Under the current conditions with the state’s stay-at-home order extended through May, and uncertainty surrounding the timing and level of resuming group activity, it is with a heavy heart the Board of Directors cancels the 2020 in-house spring season. This decision affects only the in-house program. All-Stars and Gurnee Travelers leagues are only suspended at this time.
The Board of Directors remains committed to Gurnee Youth Baseball’s (GYB) mission to provide a developmental, fun, appropriately competitive and safe environment for the enjoyment of the game of baseball. And while we will not be able to play this spring, we are exploring a new in-house summer season, or in place of the standard fall season, a longer summer-fall season. Details will be shared in mid to late June.
Please note, all fields remain CLOSED until further notice. The American Legion Fields are not open to the public and require approval for use of any kind.
Thank you for your understanding and continued support. We hope you are staying healthy and safe, and look forward to new opportunities for baseball resuming soon at GYB!
Gurnee Youth Baseball Board of Directors
Monday, April 6, 2020 | 3:30 pm
Gurnee Youth Baseball extends suspension of all activities through the end of April.
In accordance with the state’s extended stay-at-home order and national social distancing guidelines, all Gurnee Youth Baseball (GYB) activities will remain suspended through the end of April.
GYB’s Board of Directors continues to plan for the spring season and is working on all the behind-the-scenes tasks so the league will be able to resume as soon as conditions permit. We will also continue to monitor updates to the guidance and orders from government organizations, and their impact on the timing to resume the spring season. Under the current conditions, we do not expect to announce further league updates before May 1st. However, as conditions change, we will certainly provide any updates as soon as possible.
Please note, all fields will also remain CLOSED through April 30th. We understand as the weather warms, you may be anxious to get out on the field, but please refrain from visiting the fields. The American Legion Fields are privately owned, and are not open for use in accordance with the efforts and mandates to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.
We thank you for your understanding and cooperation, and hope you are staying healthy and safe.
Gurnee Youth Baseball Board of Directors
“It ain’t over till it’s over” –Yogi Berra
Friday, Mar 13, 2020 | 4:55 pm
In recognition of local school closures and student activity cancellations, and in support of the efforts to address the spread of coronavirus COVID-19, Gurnee Youth Baseball announces suspended league activities and a delayed spring season.
Effective immediately, all Gurnee Youth Baseball (GYB) activities are currently suspended until at least April 10th. This includes any and all gatherings, meetings, practices and games (home or away) for all GYB leagues—in-house, All-Stars and Gurnee Travelers. To be abundantly clear, teams are not authorized to meet or gather in any capacity or at any location until further notice.
Additionally, the American Legion Fields will remain closed until further notice. Please do not attempt to use the fields or batting cages until league operations resume and the fields are announced as open for use.
Gurnee Youth Baseball’s Board of Directors is closely monitoring the fast-changing protocols and efforts to manage the pandemic. While we hope to resume and begin the spring in-house season with only a short delay and maintain the typical season schedule, this season’s schedule is subject to change based on the actual start date. Updates will be communicated via email and posted on GYB’s website. At this time, we do not anticipate any further updates or announcements before April 6th.
The safety of our baseball players and families is of the utmost importance to the Board of Directors, and we thank you for your understanding and cooperation.
Gurnee Youth Baseball Board of Directors