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The Gulf Cost Little League wraps up another successful season of baseball on Saturday.

The closing day ceremonies begin at 10:15 a.m. at the fields in East Naples. Every player in all divisions will receive a participation trophy.

The kids will get to dunk their “favorite coach” in the dunk tank, explore the challenging obstacle course, enjoy the bounce house and face painting. There will be hot dogs, chips and drinks for everyone.

The season culminates a refinement of skills and for many younger players, learning the basics.

The Tigers Little League team, Minor B Division, made up of Marco Island players, consisted of boys, ages 7 to 10, led by coach Curt Witthoff, with the help of coaches Dr. Bob Poling, Brian Quinn, and Niels Stone.

The coaching staff helped the kids bring about a tremendous transition in their game. This transition became apparent about mid-season when the Tigers started hitting the pitched baseball and really forced the opposing teams to field the ball.

Tom Kirstein, whose son Jonathan played baseball for the first time, was very complimentary about the tremendous learning curve experienced by the kids during the season.

“Curt and the other coaches showed tremendous patience and really taught the kids the game,” Kirstein said.

Witthoff enjoyed the experience of coaching and helping the kids improve their skills.

“For many of the kids it was their first time playing baseball and to have the kids keep an eye on the ball and hit only the good pitches added a lot of excitement to the game for the kids, parents, and coaches,” he said.

Fielding the ball was also a big learning curve for this predominantly new group of ball players. Each player was given a different position for each game, allowing them to learn how the team interacts overall and learn the mechanics of the game.

By the end of the season, the kids understood when to cover a base and where to throw the ball.

Minor A coach Jeff Smith will conduct clinics for all players, ages 9 and 10 on Sundays from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Little League diamonds in East Naples. Tell your coach or call 919-2227 to sign up.

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Natalie Kirstein, a mom of one of the players, submitted this information, with additional information coming from the league’s Web site.