Guide to the Little League World Series

Little League World Series: South Williamsport PA

Every August the Little League world turns to the central Pennsylvania town of Williamsport. Parents and 12-year-olds from around the world engulf on this mountainous town with the hopes and dreams of becoming a Little League champion.

The Little League Finals are played at Howard J. Lamade Stadium in South Williamsport (across the Susquehanna River from Williamsport). Little League baseball first held their first world series here in 1947 and seems to become a bigger spectator sport every single year.

South Williamsport really does a great job of portraying a “Hometown USA” atmosphere. In a sporting world filled with million dollar contracts, the Little League World Series is as genuine of a competition as it gets. It’s this competition placed on a global scale that makes it special and worth a late August road trip.

• Howard Lamade Stadium was built in 1959.
• The capacity of the stadium is around 40,000 (most of which sit in the grass outfield).
• Teams come from all over the world to compete.
• First tournament night games occurred in 1992.
• Volunteer Stadium (capacity 5,000) was built in 2001 to host the early round games.
• In order to reduce the number of home runs the fences were pushed back in 2006.
• Currently the US has 31 Championship and International squads have 31.
• Taiwan has the second number of championships with 17.
• Peter J. McGovern Little League Museum rounds out the complex.

User Tips: Admission is free for players and parents. Grandstands seats go by way of lottery in the late spring however the Terrace seats are free and are on a first come basis. Located on US 15 traffic can be a mess on this two lane road. Locals will sell you parking spots in their driveways for $5. Many of the restaurants and hotels are located across the bridge in downtown Williamsport (5 min drive). The field level is substantially lower than street level giving the stadium lots of grass seating in the outfield. Be on the lookout for the Crosshair Guides all time favorite gas station, Sheetz.

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