PONY Baseball and Softball is a non-profit organization

Non-profit organization

Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...

 with headquarters in Washington, Pennsylvania

Washington, Pennsylvania

Washington is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Pennsylvania, United States, within the Pittsburgh Metro Area in the southwestern part of the state...

. Started in 1951, it is dedicated to helping young people grow into healthier and happier adults, primarily through the organization of baseball

Baseball

Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

 and softball

Softball

Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...

 leagues. Membership is open to children from age 5 to 18 and the leagues are organized with two-year age brackets.

History

PONY became an international organization in the late 1950s. Currently PONY has a presence in 21 countries.

Pony has occupied a new headquarters facility since 2005.

Origin of name

Children at the Washington, Pennsylvania YMCA

YMCA

The Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...

named the organization PONY, which stood for "Protect Our Neighborhood Youth." This later became "Protect Our Nation's Youth."

Age divisions

See footnote

• Shetland League (ages 4-6)
• Pinto League (7-8)
• Mustang League (9–10)
• Bronco-11 League (11)
• Bronco League (11-12)
• Pony-13 League (13)
• Pony League (13-14)
• Colt League (15-16)
• Palomino League (17-19)

Champions League

In 2009, the PONY Baseball and Softball International board of directors formed a new division—the Champions League—for children with special needs.

United States

See footnote

• East Zone: Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, eastern Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, and District of Columbia
• North Zone: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, western Tennessee, and Wisconsin
• South Zone: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas
• West Zone: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming

International

• Asia-Pacific Zone: Australia, China, Guam, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Pakistan, Philippines, east Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, and Vietnam
• Caribbean Zone: Anguilla, Antigua, Bahamas, Dominican Republic, Nevis, Panama, Puerto Rico, Saba, St. Croix, St. Eustatius, St. Martin, and St. Thomas
• European Zone: Austria, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Great Britain, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, west Russia, Saudi Arabia, Slovakia, Spain, and Sweden
• Mexican Zone: the states of Aguascalientes, Baja California, Baja California Sur, Campeche, Chiapas, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Colima, Durango, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, México, Michoacán, Morelos, Nayarit, Nuevo León, Oaxaca, Puebla, Querétaro, Quintana Roo, San Luis Potosí, Sinaloa, Sonora, Tabasco, Tamaulipas, Tlaxcala, Veracruz, Yucatán, and Zacatecas

World Series

See footnote

• Mustang League World Series (9–10)
• Bronco-11 League World Series (11)
• Bronco League World Series (11-12)
• Pony-13 League World Series (13)
• Pony League World Series (13-14)
• Colt League World Series (15-16)
• Palomino League World Series (17-19)

External links

• PONY Baseball/Softball, Inc. official website
• National Youth Baseball Championships (10-under and 12-under divisions). PONY Baseball/Softball, Inc.