A game for friends: Challenger Baseball Leagues gather players with disabilities in St. louis and Southeast Missouri

Baseball with no rules? It might seem bizarre, but for the members of Challenger Baseball League teams, it works.

At this league's games, there are no runs, no outs and no one keeps score.

Challenger Baseball is designed for young people who have physical and mental challenges, but older players are welcome.

"We start at age 5, and there is no limit," says Derrick Pullen, who started the Southeast Missouri Challenger Baseball league. "We have one who is 18, one who is 25, and I know the St. Louis league has several adults. They are split into different age ranges there and we're hoping we'll get there soon."

For the most part, at this time, the people who participate in Southeast Missouri Challenger Baseball are in their early teens.

Pullen became interested in starting a chapter in Southeast Missouri after he met Buck Smith, who runs the Challenger Baseball League in St. Louis. The two met when Pullen took a trip to Ranken Jordan Pediatric Bridge Hospital in St. Louis, where Pullen's son was receiving treatment for a brain tumor.

Challenger games are held regularly at Ranken Jordan during its baseball season. After seeing how the games work, and watching his son participate, Pullen knew he wanted to make the games available to people in Southeast Missouri.

"I knew there was nothing like that in this area," he says.

Pullen set the wheels in motion to change that, so he continued to talk to Smith and make plans.

"I put together a board and got with an attorney and an accountant and we created a nonprofit corporation called Southeast Challenger Baseball Inc.," he says. "One year ago in September, we had our first game in Southeast Missouri. We started with 27 kids and two different teams. Now we are up to 38 players."

Challenger Baseball in Sikeston, Missouri. (submitted photo)

Games are held on Saturday mornings for six weeks during the spring and fall.

"We started our second fall season on Sept. 12," Pullen says.

The St. Louis chapter, under which the Southeast league operates, is much larger, but it was created 22 years ago, explains Smith. The St. Louis chapter started out small, too.

"We started with two teams and 14 players, and now we have 54 teams and more than 800 players," he says.

Challenger Baseball chapters also operate in Perryville and St. Genevieve, Missouri. The St. Genevieve County chapter plays in the spring, while Perryville games are held in the fall.

Submitted photo Challenger baseball in Sikeston, Missouri.

"We have lots of cross-pollination from Perryville," says Sarah Schott, who runs the league games in St. Genevieve.

The league there has about 60 participants, and they are split into four adult and two kids' teams, she says.

Smith says most chapters play either in the spring or fall, and the Southeast Missouri chapter is one of the few that have been successful in holding games during both seasons.

Erin Hahs and her husband, Keith, run the Challenger league in Perryville. They took over this year when the previous volunteer was no longer able to do it.

"We didn't want to see it go away," Erin Hahs says. "It's rewarding."

Challenger Baseball in Sikeston, Missouri. (submitted photo)

The City of Perryville has shown its support to the team by providing baseball fields for the games, and usually they play at the same field each week. Going to the same field each week is important, she says.

"It's really important for our folks, because they aren't just coming from Perryville," she says. "Also, some of our players have trouble with change."

This year, Perryville has 33 players participating in the games, which also started Sept. 12.

The privately-funded leagues are run by volunteers alone. No one within the organization draws a salary, Smith included.

Unlike many other baseball leagues, at Challenger baseball games, each player gets a turn at bat.

Headline Bold:Challenger baseball in Sikeston, Missouri.

The point of the games, as odd as it may seem at first blush, is not baseball. These leagues have a much deeper goal: to help form friendships between young people with disabilities and their able-bodied peers.

Each Challenger team member is paired with a "buddy," who is an able-bodied young person, and they stick together during each game.

Buddies usually are recruited through guidance counselors at schools, or at churches.

"The goal is to make friends," Smith says. "Baseball is secondary. We want buddies to walk away with the realization that they can have friends who are different. These boys and girls don't have to know anything about baseball; they just have to know how to make friends. That's why we will never be competitive."

For more information about Challenger Baseball of Southeast Missouri, or to sign up as a team member or buddy, contact Derrick Pullen at (573) 683-1242 or visit www.semochallenger.org.

Submitted photo Challenger baseball in Sikeston, Missouri.