2023 LLIWS Preview: Bollinger Canyon, California

For the second consecutive year, I am thrilled to be calling Little League's Intermediate 50/70 Baseball World Series July 30-August 6! This is not the 12-year-olds you see on TV in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, every year, but kids one year older, playing on a slightly bigger field (50-foot pitching distance, 70-foot basepaths) in Livermore, California. It's a different vibe than Williamsport, but extremely cool nonetheless, and it was really special for me to call the 2022 tournament, including the championship game on ESPN2.

So leading up to the 2023 Intermediate 50/70 World Series, which will air entirely on ESPN+, I want to introduce each of the competing teams with whatever information I've been able to glean on their path to Livermore (and to your ESPN+ screen!).

Bollinger Canyon, California

League:
Bollinger Canyon Little League
Location:
San Ramon, California
Championships:
California District 57
Record: 4-1
Date Qualified: June 23
Noteworthy:
1st appearance as merged league
Coaches:
Jason Crawford, Tony Vignolo, Dave Adame

The host district gets an automatic spot in most teenage Little League tournaments, and at the 50/70 level, that host has a history of making an impact! The champions of California's District 57 have won two of the last three U.S. titles, and Danville / Tassajara Valley / San Ramon Valley won last year's world championship.

This year saw Bollinger Canyon (bohl-in-jer), competing in only its second all-star season after a merger between 2014 District 57 champion Canyon Creek and nearby San Ramon, eliminate defending world champion Danville (without any co-op players this year), which had won the district in this age group as 12-year-olds in 2022, after three nail-biting head-to-head contests.

Allowing only one run in three of their five games, rest assured the hosts (like last year's champions) can pitch! And they should feel right at home; after all, they've already celebrated one championship at Max Baer Park this year.

Road to Livermore
California District 57
June 17	Granada	W	12-3
June 18	Pleasanton	W	11-1
June 20	Danville (winners' bracket final)	W	3-1
June 22	Danville (final Game 1)	L	5-6
June 23	Danville (final Game 2)	W	3-1
Intermediate Baseball World Series
July 30	Keystone, Tampa FL		12 noon PT
TBD	TBD		TBD