“Our biggest demographic are challenged socioeconomically, ... and so we have lower costs,” Wheeler said. “We make it so that more kids can play, and that’s really what drives us is [that] we want kids to play baseball.”
Northwest 45 was chartered in 1969 and in 1991 became the first Texas team to win the Little League World Series. The organization has 34 teams made up of more than 330 children ages 4-16, and games are played at Bayer Park in Spring.
While the league’s fall season is underway, registration for the spring season will open Oct. 15. Throughout each season, each team plays 12 games over the course of about eight weeks.
The organization is run solely by volunteers who make up the league’s board of directors, committee members and coaches. Vice President Jeremy O’Guin, who has been coaching for five years at Northwest 45, said players do not have to have perfect skills to enjoy playing.
“You do not have to be the best ballplayer. ... In baseball, to win games, you have to play smart,” O’Guin said.
To aid families who may be struggling financially, Northwest 45 is purchasing additional equipment for players to use until they decide they want to become a long-term player. The organization also offers registration discounts for those who sign up early or have registered in the previous season.
In the future, O’Guin said he hopes to add a challenger division, which would be a team for children with disabilities coached by volunteers who are specifically trained to meet the players’ needs.
Additionally, Wheeler said Northwest 45 is renovating Bayer Park’s fields with plans of adding new scoreboards, new batting cages and better internet service.
Wheeler noted the organization is also looking for new sponsors and volunteers to help the nonprofit continue to grow as the league aims to double its number of teams in the coming seasons.
“Baseball teaches a lot of life skills,” he said. “It teaches winning, losing [and] teamwork.”
Northwest 45 Little League
Mailing address: PO Box 2053, Spring
Bayer Park, 24811 W. Hardy Road, Spring
832-381-8967
www.nw45ll.com
