In a baseball game, when the ball rolls past an infielder or soars over the head of an outfielder, fans usually aren’t happy with their team. In Pelham, the fans still cheer.

The Pelham Challenger Little League has provided disabled children the chance to participate in organized baseball for the past three years, and is now preparing for a fourth season.

“I think one of the biggest benefits is that the kids get to interact with each other, and they have buddies,” said Beth Young, the league’s vice president. “The kids with the disabilities can’t play on other teams, so it’s nice they can just play baseball.”

The buddies participating in the league are local volunteers, mostly high school-aged, and they help the children on the diamond.

Last year the league consisted of 29 players on four teams, and the league isn’t only open to Pelham residents. Youth from surrounding towns and even towns in Massachusetts are able to sign up to play in the games, which don’t have the same structure as other competitions.

“There are no outs, there are no home runs or anything of that sort. It’s like watching tee ball, but some of the time some of them are running away from us,” Young joked.

Each game consists of about three or four innings, with every player on the team getting a chance to bat in each inning. Young said stepping into the box is the highlight for most children, but playing defense that isn’t always preferred.

“When they first started there were only two teams. They were getting bored and wandering around. Now they’re able to have four innings instead of two,” said Young. “They get excited when it’s time to bat, although they’re not as excited about going into the field. A lot of the times they don’t even know the ball went by them, but they just have a good time.”

Young said it has been rewarding to see that often times children who play in the league also become a buddy, helping in different ways like pushing wheelchairs around the bases.

Hearing nothing but positive feedback from the crowd is one thing that separates the Challenger League from other venues of competition.

“It’s nice that you don’t have parents screaming at the kids,” said Young. “Everybody cheers everybody on, no matter who is playing against who.”