“The last, late snow really put a damper on our plans,” Brianna Schilling, Wrangell Little League board president, said of lingering winter weather that forced postponement of the start of practice on March 30.

“The fields were still covered with six inches of snow.”

But she looks to temperatures in the 40s and a little sunshine to solve the problem, or at least enough to start practice on April 6. If the fields are too wet, she said, players would practice under the covered batting cage.

“We can’t push it back any further,” she said of the April 6 start date.

Opening day ceremonies are set for 10 a.m. May 2. Little League is open to kids 4 through 16 years old, divided by ages into T-ball, minor, major and senior league teams.

As of April 2, close to 70 players had registered, with officials expecting close to 100 by the start of the season.

Schilling, who has coached and worked with Little League for 10 years, said it’s the first time in her tenure that snow has gotten in the way.

This season is another first for her. “I’ve never coached one of my kids before,” she said of joining her son on the field. She is returning to coaching after taking a year off for the birth of her youngest daughter.

Mom mostly was a catcher during her own Little League career, sometimes playing second base. “I lived for summertime baseball.”

There’s a special treat for summertime baseball umpires this year, she said. Rick Alleman, who umped at the 2025 Senior League World Series, will come to Wrangell to lead a two-day umpire training class Monday and Tuesday, April 13-14.

In addition to learning from an expert, there will be free food at the training sessions.

Schilling hopes that “anybody who is on the fence, who doesn’t think they know the rules,” will decide to sign up for umpiring. “We really, really need umpires.”

The league also needs volunteers to work in the concession stand during games.

Scorekeepers and bookkeepers also are needed, though those volunteers are stationed “in the cozy, warm booth,” out of the rain. “I always try to sell that,” Schilling said.

The league has moved entirely online this year for volunteer signup and player registration. It wasn’t a Wrangell idea, it was the national organization that made the decision, she said. “We had to follow suit.”

The Wrangell Little League website is at https://bit.ly/3PMrFas.

Something else new this year is a $25 fee for late registration after April 12. “We’ve never done that before.”

The intent is to encourage parents to sign up their kids on time, which makes it easier for league officials to set up team rosters in advance of the season.

“We’re hoping that makes everybody register on time,” Schilling said.

Regardless of late sign-ups, “we never turn anyone away.”

Nor will the league turn away supporters. Anyone who donates $50 will have their name posted on the website and at the concession stand, Schilling said. Anyone contributing $250 will get a banner on the field, along with the website and concession stand postings.