LITTLE LEAGUE: Shellhammer retiring as District 24 administrator

Jul. 12—PALO ALTO — Walk into Kevin Shellhammer's basement and you'll be impressed with the memorabilia he has on display.

There's an entire room devoted to his favorite football team, the Philadelphia Eagles.

On the shelf above the bar are the three golf balls he used to hit hole-in-ones, along with the scorecards.

Hanging on the wall are autographed photos of his late brother's band, Fat Robbie and the Rocket '88s.

His prized possessions, however, are the Little League World Series and National Congress credentials hanging off an old tap behind the bar.

District 24 Little League's chief administrator for the past decade, Shellhammer is retiring from his post effective Oct. 1. His final duty as the man in charge of the District 24 Little League all-star tournaments comes tonight, when Halifax faces Blue Mountain for the Major Division championship at 5:30 p.m. at the Cressona Little League Complex.

Affectionately called "Shelly" by everyone who knows him, the 65-year-old Shellhammer has been involved with Little League baseball as a coach, umpire or administrator since 1979, a span of 43 years.

"It's all about the people and friends I've made over the years," Shellhammer said. "It's what Little League is all about, making friends and creating memories."

A Middleport native, Shellhammer played Little League as a youth in New Philadelphia but couldn't play high school sports due to a bleeding disorder.

He graduated from Saint Clair High School in 1974 and immediately entered the workforce, working a year at the Kepner-Scott Shoe Company in Orwigsburg, 19 years at Exide Battery in Hamburg and 25 years for the United States Postal Service.

His involvement in Little League Baseball came unexpectedly.

"It was a weekday, and I was off from work that day," Shellhammer recalled about that 1979 day. "We were in (a bar) having a couple of beers. I was walking home, because I lived in Cumbola at the time. Mr. (James) Clark followed me out, drove out, stopped his car and said, 'What are you doing tonight?' I said, 'Nothing.'

"They were practicing that night at Blythe Township High School. He said, 'I need a coach. My coach didn't come back this year. Would you like to help me with the Little League?' I said, 'Sure.' And the rest is history."

Shellhammer served as a coach and information officer in the New Philadelphia Little League program for 26 years under the legendary Clark, whom the New Philadelphia field is named after. Shellhammer became an assistant District 24 administrator under the late Jim Rebuck in 1981 and an umpire in 1990.

As an umpire he worked countless District 24 and sectional games and umpired games in the Pennsylvania State Little League Tournament when it was held in 1999 in Minersville. He served as the District 24 Umpire-in-Chief from 2005-11.

As he took a walk down Memory Lane and discussed his days coaching and umpiring, several stories came to the forefront.

He remembers being behind the plate for one of Railway Park's biggest local games during its 1997 run to Williamsport, a 4-1 victory over Pine Grove in the winners' bracket final. He recalled doing sectional games where each district sent two umpires and the game official would flip a coin to see which bases the umpires had.

He also has fond memories of his days coaching in New Philadelphia, showing off photos he still has of trophies and balls presented to him by his former players.

"I get reminded every time I see one of (former) players that my legacy up at the (New Philly) Little League is throwing rocks at the kids," Shellhammer joked. "I used to sit in front of the dugout and if they would swing at one over their head or jump out (of the box), I had a little pebble that I would throw at their feet. I never hit them. But if you ask anyone who played under me, they would tell you that 'Shelly threw rocks at us.'"

There were also funny memories, some of which would never happen in today's world.

"I had the all-star team in 1981. I was the manager," Shellhammer said. "I had a Datsun pickup truck. We always used to meet at Holy Family Church in New Philly to go to the all-star games. We left at 2 p.m. to go to Shamokin and we carried 15 players on the roster. None of the parents could drive. I had 14 kids in the back of the truck and one kid in the front with me.

"I got lost in Shamokin. I came out to a police station. I stopped at the police station and he gave me a police escort up to the baseball field in Shamokin."

Shellhammer took over for Charlie Roberts as District 24's chief administrator in 2012. The position — which is unpaid — is a year-round job and goes much, much deeper than just coordinating the all-star tournaments in June and July.

Over the course of the fall and winter, there are meetings to run, regional, state and national conferences and seminars to attend. There's also the mountain of paperwork — charters, safety programs, residency papers, affidavits — that must be filed with Little League International in Williamsport and the Eastern Region office in Bristol, Connecticut.

In the Little League chain of command, the district administrator is the link between Williamsport and the local leagues. There are constant phone calls, texts and emails involving the local leagues.

"It's not an all-star time job. It doesn't go in June, July and August and it's all over with. There's meeting to attend, DA seminars, Congress. Every two years they have East Region roundtables," Shellhammer said. "They are always communicating new things to you. Every month we get a DA bulletin and they give you tips on how to do meetings and what to go over at that meeting. When they change something, you have to communicate it back to the local leagues.

"It's a lot to keep up with. It's a 12-month-a-year job. I'm doing stuff a couple weeks a month every month."

Shellhammer credited Rebuck and Roberts with teaching him how to be a successful administrator. The longevity of Rebuck, Roberts and Shellhammer — their tenures combine to stretch more than 60 years — is a reason that District 24 remains as organized and strong as it is.

Little League Baseball has dramatically changed since Shellhammer has gotten involved. There's been the addition of the 10-run rule, mandatory play rule, pitch counts, the switch from double-elimination to pool play in all-stars, the addition of 8-10 and 9-11 all-star tournaments, among other changes — all under a shortened schedule that used to run until early August but now sees local leagues conclude in early June.

Numbers across the board have declined sharply and some programs that were once among the district's biggest have been forced to merge with nearby programs just to stay afloat. The District 24 Tournament, for example, had 22 Major Division all-star teams in it at one point. This year, there were only 13.

"I feel bad for the kids," Shellhammer said. "Little League became, in my opinion, too competitive. In these times, they're getting away from kids learning the game of baseball, kids having fun, kids enjoying summer. But you don't have the kids coming out anymore. Kids play travel ball.

"When we were kids, every day of summer vacation we'd be out at the field having a pickup game, or down at the playground playing stick ball. We'd always have a ball in our hands doing something. Today, you don't even see a kid with a baseball glove on his bike, or riding a bike anymore. The interest isn't there."

Shellhammer and his wife, Carol, celebrate their 15th wedding anniversary this month. They are fixtures at District 24 Little League all-star games, sitting in lawn chairs somewhere near home plate nearly every night from mid-June through mid-July.

Shellhammer said he has no immediate plans to stay involved after he retires, but does have a grandson that is going to be 6 years old and playing minor league next season.

"Little League baseball will be in his blood forever," Carol said.

Contact the writer: Lboyer@republicanherald.com; 570-628-6026; @pubsportsboss on Twitter