07/28/2026
Forty players from across District 12 took the field at Duanesburg Little League this past weekend for the Best of the Best showcase, a chance to recognize a strong season and to play alongside kids they'd only ever faced from the other dugout. It's a tradition the district has run for decades, and here's how it works.
๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ก๐จ๐ฐ๐๐๐ฌ๐?
Best of the Best is a three-game exhibition series, an invitational, not a Little League tournament. It gives the district a second look at players who stood out during District 12 tournament play.
The showcase is a District 12 event, made up of District 12 Little League players, and being selected for it is an accomplishment in its own right.
๐๐จ๐ฐ ๐๐จ๐๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ข๐๐ญ๐ญ๐-๐๐ฎ๐จ๐ง๐จ๐ฆ๐ ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐๐ญ๐๐ซ ๐๐๐๐ฆ ๐๐ข๐ญ ๐ข๐ง?
Each year, a team of players is selected to travel to Williamsport, Pennsylvania, and that team is called the Maietta-Buonome All Star Team. The Best of the Best showcase is the primary place candidates for that trip are looked at. District Administrator Dave Jelenic attends the games and identifies players there. He also asks Assistant District Administrators for suggestions, which he may or may not use. The roster is his to build.
In Williamsport, that team plays exhibition games on Carl E. Stotz Field (https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=120970), the Birthplace of Little League and home of the earliest Little League World Series. To be clear: these players are not competing in the Little League World Series. They're there for the experience. The games run while the World Series is going on, but at a different location than the stadium you see on TV, and the two are entirely separate.
๐๐จ๐ฐ ๐๐ซ๐ ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐๐ฒ๐๐ซ๐ฌ ๐๐ก๐จ๐ฌ๐๐ง ๐๐จ๐ซ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ก๐จ๐ฐ๐๐๐ฌ๐?
It starts at the District 12 tournaments. Leagues may enter one of two specific District 12 tournaments, 10, 11, 12 year old International or AAA, and that's where the District Administrator and evaluators watch players compete against district-wide competition, under pressure, across multiple games on equal footing. Those evaluations determine who is invited to the showcase. Five leagues did not field a team in either tournament this year, so their players were never in a setting where they could be evaluated. That's no reflection on those athletes.
Each year, League Presidents are also asked to nominate a player they feel would be a good candidate. A nomination tells the District Administrator who to watch closely during tournament play. The nomination is not a selection, and it doesn't automatically reserve a place on the roster.
Showcase invitations come from the district, and the District Administrator notifies the player's League President once that determination is made.
๐๐จ๐ฐ ๐๐ซ๐ ๐๐ฏ๐๐ฅ๐ฎ๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ฌ ๐๐จ๐ง๐?
Talent is one factor among several. Sportsmanship, character, courage, kindness, and loyalty carry real weight. Some outstanding ball players are not selected, that isn't an oversight, it reflects a process that weighs more than a batting average.
For both the showcase and the Williamsport roster, no one outside the district is in a position to tell a family their child has been selected. If a child hears they were invited before the selection has officially been made, and they weren't ultimately selected, the disappointment lands on them, and that isn't fair to any player.
๐๐ก๐ฒ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ ๐๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ข๐๐ญ๐ญ๐-๐๐ฎ๐จ๐ง๐จ๐ฆ๐ ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐๐ญ๐๐ซ ๐๐๐๐ฆ?
On August 27, 1954, fourteen boys from Schenectady, New York beat Colton, California 7-5 in Williamsport and became Little League World Series champions. Their manager, Mike Maietta, led Schenectady all-star teams for four decades and took three of them to Williamsport. Lindy Buonome was the team's trainer and a long-time District Administrator. That history is why the team carries their names.
๐๐จ๐ฆ๐๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ฐ๐จ๐ซ๐ญ๐ก ๐ฎ๐ง๐๐๐ซ๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ง๐๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐จ๐ฉ๐ฉ๐จ๐ซ๐ญ๐ฎ๐ง๐ข๐ญ๐ฒ
We're not aware of another Little League district anywhere in the country that does this for its players. There's no requirement to run a showcase, no requirement to organize a trip to Williamsport, and no funding provided for either. It exists here because one person (Dave Jelenic) felt decades ago that as many kids as possible should experience Williamsport during the Little League World Series. He's still leading that effort today.
To every player who took the field in District 12 this year, across all 25 leagues and every division: we're proud of the ball you played. And to the coaches, umpires, volunteers, and parents who made it possible, thank you!
