Grounds Crew – Roles & Responsibilities

Responsibilities & Field Standards

The Orchard Park Little League (OPLL) Grounds Crew plays a critical role in delivering a safe, fair, and professional game environment for every player, coach, and umpire. Their work happens largely behind the scenes, but it is essential to the success of each game day.

Core Mission

The OPLL Grounds Crew is responsible for maintaining safe playing conditions, ensuring consistent field quality, preparing fields to meet Little League and tournament standards, and supporting umpires, coaches, and teams with timely field readiness.

Safety always comes first. If conditions are not safe, play will not proceed.

Pre-Game Responsibilities

Before the first pitch, the Grounds Crew is responsible for preparing the field to be game-ready, including:

• Dragging and leveling the infield surface

• Properly chalking batter’s boxes, foul lines, and baselines

• Raking and packing high-traffic areas such as home plate, the pitcher’s mound, and base paths

• Inspecting bases, pitching rubbers, and home plates for stability

• Removing debris, rocks, or hazards from the field

• Assessing weather impact and adjusting moisture or firmness as needed

• Taking care of the park - including landscaping and garbage removal.

A field is considered game-ready only when it is safe, clearly marked, and playable at regulation standards.

Between-Game & In-Game Duties

On days with multiple games, the Grounds Crew may re-chalk lines and batter’s boxes, repair holes or worn areas in the mound and batter’s boxes, re-drag or re-pack the infield surface, address puddling, mud, or unsafe spots, and respond to umpire or league requests related to field conditions.

During games, umpires have final authority on playability, and the Grounds Crew works directly with them when field adjustments are required.

Weather & Safety Decisions

The Grounds Crew closely monitors weather conditions. Decisions related to delays, suspensions, or cancellations are made with player safety as the top priority, in coordination with league leadership and umpires.

Rain, darkness, lightning, or unsafe footing may result in delays or postponements, even if conditions appear playable to spectators.

Hours

The Grounds Crew works essentially every day from late April until early August. On standard weekdays, the crew will work from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM. On a standard weekend day, the crew works 6:00 AM to 10:00 PM. During tournament weekends, there are additional hours throughout Saturday & Sunday.

Crew members can expect to work 12-24 hours during a standard week, and between 20-35+ hours on tournament weeks. Starting pay is $16/hour.

A Final Word

OPLL fields are a shared community asset. The Grounds Crew works long hours, often in challenging conditions, to provide the best possible playing surface for our athletes.

Our work allows games to be played safely, fairly, and on schedule. We thank them for their professionalism, dedication, and commitment to Orchard Park Little League.