Philadelphia's Suburban One League adopts 3-game series for baseball regular season play

The schedule requires teams to develop pitching depth in order to match-up with the same opponent over three consecutive days

The North Penn Knights are part of Philadelphia's Suburban One League, part of PIAA District One, which has adopted three-game series as part of its 2025 regular season schedule. / North Penn Baseball

The Suburban One League in PIAA District One has taken a unique approach to its baseball schedule. The league features 24 schools in the Philadelphia suburbs of Bucks and Montgomery Counties divided into four divisions of six.

The 2025 season finds each team playing 15 conference games (The PIAA’s regular-season limit is 20 games) with divisional rivals meeting each other in a three-game series scheduled on three consecutive days, barring weather complications, etc.

Kevin Manero is the head coach at North Penn, a school located near Lansdale, Pa. an area with a rich baseball tradition. Manero notes the format requires coaches to re-think how they handle their pitching staffs.

“In these three-game series, which is rare for high school baseball, the importance of pitching with command and control is magnified,” he said. “Pitch counts and efficiency in the strike zone enable a team to get through the week using as few arms as possible. The more pitches a staff throws, the more arms they need, and that is certainly the biggest challenge for a team in these series.

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“If starters can go deep into a game, I think a staff needs a solid five or six arms to compete each day. Three starters and at least two or three guys to come in and finish things off, especially early in the season.”

The PIAA's rules on the use of pitchers are also a factor. During the regular season, pitchers may throw no more than 100 pitches per day and 200 pitches in a week (they may exceed those limits to complete an at bat).  No pitcher can work more than two consecutive days and depending on the number of pitches they throw they must rest up to three days before being eligible to pitch again.

“I think the schedule adds a lot of rigor,” Manero said, “and it really makes a team's record have to be reflective of depth on the roster, especially on the mound. And for guys going on to the next level, this really prepares them for a collegiate conference schedule. 

“In our {division} specifically, people are going to beat each other up. It’s a tough division. So, it will be tough to post those gaudy records that usually land a team in the top of district rankings, but I think any team who goes through this schedule is going to be prepped and certainly will develop more arms for a postseason run.” 

Danny Long is the baseball coach at Pennridge High School in Perkasie, another community with a rich baseball tradition.

“The three-game series is awesome in my opinion,” he said. “I have never seen schedules formatted like this at the high school level so it is pretty cool for Suburban One to adopt it.”

Long note the schedule requires he and his fellow coaches to be creative when setting up their pitching rotations.

 “It will be interesting to see how coaches maneuver pitching staffs throughout the season,” he said. “With weather always playing a factor in the Northeast, a deep pitching staff with play a huge role in success this season. Three starting pitchers per week along with multiple reliable bullpen arms will be needed on a weekly basis.”