For the vast majority of the 2,200 youths active in Junior Saltdogs baseball, no changes are in store for next season.

But one change, involving eight teams in the Saltdogs Division, has caused its share of confusion. So much so, in fact, that board members with the Junior Saltdogs found it necessary to quell rumors that had the entire league dissolving before all the bats and helmets were packed away.

“We want everyone out there to know that we’re only talking about the one division and not the entire league,” league president Dina Euler said Monday morning. “We’ve got more teams than we’ve ever had before, and we want to keep that momentum building.”

The confusion, no doubt, was fueled by the names involved.

The Saltdogs Division, a more-competitive alternative where teams played upward of 30 games a season, was formed in 2007 as a part of the Lincoln Little League.

It continued this year after the Lincoln Little League, originally Lincoln Little Chiefs baseball, was renamed the Junior Saltdogs League.

Its tournament was played Saturday.

Now comes word that the Saltdogs Division is shifting ranks for next season, moving from the Junior Saltdogs umbrella to Babe Ruth, which just a year ago announced it was calling it quits as a youth baseball option in Lincoln.

Now if you’ve followed all of that, you probably know how to score a groundball to shortstop in which the batter reaches safely but a baserunner is tagged out in a rundown between second and third.

(It’s a fielder’s choice.) And more importantly, even with another offseason shake-up in store, no options are being taken from those wanting to play youth baseball next season.

“I know there’s a niche for affordable, competitive baseball, so we’re thrilled to be able to keep that option out there,” said Jim Hansen, the former Pius X coach who founded the Saltdogs Division. “Everybody who has been on board has liked it.”

The problem with maintaining a Saltdogs Division within the Saltdogs League was the perception that those eight teams were gobbling up fields that already were in short supply.

The Junior Saltdogs have teams divided among six age divisions open to players from 5 to 17.

“With all the select teams, everyone knows we’re short fields in Lincoln,” Euler said. “This year, we lost one at Lewis. We’re looking at losing one or two at Pine Lake.

“And with the rainouts this year, it became a real issue for us.”

After preliminary discussions, the league notified parents in a letter that the Saltdogs Division was not likely to return next summer.

Hansen, in turn, sought out Babe Ruth Baseball, which still operated its league for high-school age teams.

“This will be like a junior high league,” he said.

The 120- to 140-player Saltdogs Division — expect the name to change — will maintain its schedule of games on nights and weekends.

Those who have played in the Saltdogs Division but want to remain in the Junior Saltdogs League can join other teams in the under-14 age division next year.

“We want everyone to know their options,” Euler said.

Reach Todd Henrichs at 473-7320 or thenrichs@journalstar.com.