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More than 500 players on 41 teams participate in the Elmora Youth League, but that hasn't stopped the organization from working around the needs of Sabbath observers who grace the baseball and softball diamonds of Elizabeth and Hillside.

Ever since Hillside resident Paul Gruber approached the league in 1996 about forming a team that never played on Friday night or Saturday so his son Joey and several other children wouldn't be left out, more Orthodox Jewish children have joined the league each year due to its accommodating schedule and Gruber's recruitment efforts.

This summer, five teams had an Orthodox presence of at least 70 percent, Gruber said. Sabbath-observant players thrived across the Elmora league's seven divisions, including 10-year-old pitcher Akiva Shulman's no-hitter in the District 7 Little League Tournament and the MVP award of his twin brother, Shemaryahu, in the Mayors Cup tournament among Elizabeth's three little league organizations, as well as the meeting of two primarily Orthodox teams in the championship game of the Rookie Division (ages 7-9).

Gruber coaches the Cubs, a team that finished first place in the West Division of the Majors age group (12-13), and Mark Weis coached the Rays, who came in second place in the Minors age group (8-11). Joey is now 20 and well past little league along with his 18-year-old brother Kyle, but Gruber's 12-year-old son Josh was a league All-Star this year and also led his team to a title in the Mayors Cup.

"I really think it's important for Orthodox Jewish kids to have experience dealing with and playing with kids of other nationalities," Gruber, who is also a math teacher and part-time real estate agent, said.

Gruber recalled an instance when a black player on one of his former teams, which had seven Orthodox members, offered his teammates pork rinds to snack on. After the Jewish players responded, "you know we don't eat that," the black player turned the bag upside down so the copyright symbol resembled the Orthodox Union's "OU" kosher symbol.

Ralph Abbate, who served as league president for seven years and is currently the league information officer, said that little league parents and coaches often bring up scheduling conflicts ranging from late work shifts to bowling leagues, and ultimately there is no reason not to plan around the preferences of Sabbath observant families as well.

"This is just another request," Abbate said. "If they can't play on Friday night or Saturday, it's no big deal, just play on Sunday or Monday. That's my policy -- I take care of all my managers. They step up and give their time to make the league a success, so if we could schedule the games for them in a way that makes their jobs easier, we do it."

About 10 percent of the league's players are Sabbath observers, Abbate said. When Joey Gruber didn't want to stop playing baseball after he grew too old for little league, Paul decided to form a high school baseball team at Elizabeth's Jewish Educational Center six years ago. It was the first baseball team from an Orthodox yeshiva in the area, and initially struggled while facing public schools and Catholic schools.

But three years later, the Board of Jewish Education (BJE) formed a New York-area yeshiva baseball league that now has 10 teams. Gruber, who still coaches the JEC team, said that he initially had his players walk through the school building in their uniforms to spark interest in baseball among younger children.

"I knew I was marketing the game," Gruber said. "Nobody expected Jewish kids to do well, but I knew these kids were good athletes."

In turn, a stronger Elmora league led to a stronger high school team. "This league is like a training ground for their JEC baseball team," Abbate said.

Marvin Rosenzweig of Hillside, who coached with Gruber for four years in the Elmora league and got to see his sons Sammy and Michael in action, said that the league provides Orthodox Jews with a valuable opportunity to be more involved in the community they live in.

"This way people get to find out who you are instead of making judgments from a distance," Rosenzweig said.

Achieving success on the field against strong competition is also a great confidence booster for Jewish children, Rosenzweig said.

"Our kids can learn that they are able to compete on the same level as any other kids," he said. "[In the Elmora league] you were able to be proud, to compete, and still be true to where you came from."