Cal Ripken Collegiate Baseball League

Cal Ripken Collegiate Baseball League
Sport Baseball
Founded 2005
CEO Jason Woodward
No. of teams 10
Country USA
Most recent
champion(s)		 Bethesda Big Train
Official website CRCBL Official Web Site

The Cal Ripken Collegiate Baseball League (CRCBL) is a collegiate summer baseball league located in the Washington, D.C. and Baltimore, Maryland metropolitan areas. All players are from NCAA-sanctioned colleges and universities and have at least one year of NCAA eligibility remaining. The CRCBL is a member of the National Alliance of College Summer Baseball (NACSB).

History

The CRCBL was founded in 2005.[1] The league was named in honor of Cal Ripken, Sr. in recognition of his lifelong dedication "to helping young baseball players develop and reach their potential." Although the league is named in his honor, it is not associated with the Cal Ripken, Sr. foundation.[2] In 2009 the league removed the "Sr." in the name to accommodate both Cal Ripken, Sr. and Cal Ripken, Jr..

The league's founding teams were the Bethesda Big Train, College Park Bombers, Maryland Redbirds, Rockville Express, Silver Spring-Takoma Thunderbolts, and Youse's Maryland Orioles. The Herndon Braves joined in 2007 and the Alexandria Aces joined in 2008, expanding the league into Northern Virginia.[2] In 2009, the Southern Maryland Nationals, formerly the "Southern Maryland Cardinals", joined the league for the 2010 season when it was announced that the College Park Bombers would not be competing in 2010 due to financial struggles.[3][4] Another name change occurred as the Maryland Redbirds changed their name to the "Baltimore Redbirds." In 2011, the Vienna River Dogs became the ninth team in the league and the third in Northern Virginia. The league expanded into Washington, D.C. when the D.C. Grays joined for the 2012 season. In 2013 two new teams, the Baltimore Presstman Cardinals and the Gaithersburg Giants, joined the League. In 2014 the Cardinals were replaced by the Baltimore Dodgers and the Southern Maryland Nationals ceased operations.<http://calripkenleague.org> After the completion of the 2014 season, Youse's Maryland Orioles announced that they would no longer be competing in the League. In 2015 the League changed to a two division format with a playoff.

Mid-Atlantic Classic

On July 15, 2009, the CRCBL took on the Valley Baseball League, another collegiate wooden bat league based in Virginia, in the Mid-Atlantic Classic in Waldorf, Maryland. Each side gathered a roster of All-Stars for the match. In the game, the Ripken League defeated the Valley League 2-1 (see game summary). On July 11, 2011 the two leagues held the second Mid-Atlantic Classic (the scheduled 2010 re-match was rained out) at Eagle Field at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Harrisonburg, Virginia. The Ripken League won again, this time by a score of 6-3 (see game summary and box score).

Notable players

In 2007, CRCBL alumnus Joe Smith earned a spot on a major league roster, with the New York Mets.[5]

In May 2009, Brett Cecil, who pitched for the Thunderbolts in 2005, was called up by the Toronto Blue Jays, where he pitched for eight seasons. In 2013, he became the first Ripken League alum to play in an MLB All-Star game.[6] In November, 2016 he signed a 4-year, $30.5 million contract with the St. Louis Cardinals.[7]

The 2008 MLB Draft saw 40 former or current players chosen. Some players drafted included former Big Train player Carlos Gutierrez, at 27th overall by the Minnesota Twins. Three other players got drafted in the first three rounds: former Big Train player Evan Frederickson, at 35th overall by the Milwaukee Brewers, and two former players from the Youse's Orioles, Derrik Gibson in the 2nd round by the Boston Red Sox, and L. J. Hoes in the 3rd round by the Baltimore Orioles.

In the 2009 MLB draft, 37 former Ripken Leaguers were chosen, with the highest being Ben Tootle in the 3rd round, by the Minnesota Twins.

In the 2010 MLB Draft, 31 former Ripken Leaguers were chosen, with the highest being Jarrett Parker in the 2nd round, by the San Francisco Giants.[8]

In the 2011 MLB Draft, 33 former Ripken Leaguers were chosen, with the highest being Jed Bradley in the 1st round (15th overall), by the Milwaukee Brewers.[9]

In the 2012 MLB Draft, 31 former Ripken Leaguers were chosen, with the highest being Kyle Zimmer in the 1st round (5th overall), by the Kansas City Royals.[10]

In the 2013 MLB Draft, 22 former Ripken Leaguers were chosen, with the highest being Hunter Renfroe in the 1st round (13th overall), by the San Diego Padres.[11]

In the 2014 MLB Draft, 26 former Ripken Leaguers were chosen, with the highest being Mark Zagunis in the 3rd round, by the Chicago Cubs.[12]

Teams

Cal Ripken Collegiate Baseball League
Team City Stadium
Alexandria Aces[13] Alexandria, Virginia Frank Mann Field
Baltimore Dodgers Columbia, Maryland Joe Cannon Stadium
Baltimore Redbirds[14] Towson, Maryland Calvert Hall High School
Bethesda Big Train[15] Bethesda, Maryland Shirley Povich Field
DC Grays[16] Washington, DC Washington Nationals Youth Academy
Gaithersburg Giants[17] Gaithersburg, Maryland Criswell Automotive Field at Kelley Park
Herndon Braves[18] Herndon, Virginia Alan McCullock Field at Herndon High School
Loudoun Riverdogs Ashburn, Virginia Rock Ridge High School
Rockville Express Rockville, Maryland Knights Field at Montgomery College-Rockville
Silver Spring-Takoma Thunderbolts[19] Silver Spring, Maryland Montgomery Blair Baseball Stadium at Montgomery Blair High School

Past champions

Season League Champion Regular Season Champion
2005 Bethesda Big Train, Silver Spring-Takoma Thunderbolts (co-champions)] Bethesda Big Train
2006 Silver Spring-Takoma Thunderbolts Bethesda Big Train
2007 Rockville Express Rockville Express, Youse's Maryland Orioles (Tie)
2008 Youse's Maryland Orioles Youse's Maryland Orioles
2009 Bethesda Big Train Bethesda Big Train
2010 Bethesda Big Train Youse's Orioles
2011 Bethesda Big Train Bethesda Big Train
2012 Baltimore Redbirds Rockville Express
2013 Baltimore Redbirds Bethesda Big Train
2014 Baltimore Redbirds Bethesda Big Train
2015 Baltimore Redbirds NA
2016 Bethesda Big Train NA

Noted alumni

References

  1. ↑ "CRSCBL Mission Statement". Retrieved 2008-03-27.
  2. 1 2 "CRSCBL 2005 Annual Report" (PDF). Retrieved 2008-03-27.
  3. ↑ "College Park college baseball team ceases operations". Retrieved 2010-06-10.
  4. ↑ "Cal Ripken League welcomes new franchise for 2010". Retrieved 2010-06-10.
  5. ↑ "CRSCBL Alumni". Retrieved 2008-03-27.
  6. ↑ "Thunderbolts official web site". Retrieved 2017-01-03.
  7. ↑ "Baseball-Reference web site". Retrieved 2017-01-03.
  8. ↑ "2010 Draft Results". Retrieved 2010-06-10.
  9. ↑ "2011 Draft Results". Retrieved 2014-10-08.
  10. ↑ "2012 Draft Results". Retrieved 2014-10-08.
  11. ↑ "2013 Draft Results". Retrieved 2014-10-08.
  12. ↑ "2014 Draft Results". Retrieved 2014-10-08.
  13. ↑ "Alexandria Aces Official Web Site". Retrieved 2008-03-25.
  14. ↑ "Rockville Express Official Web Site". Retrieved 2008-03-25.
  15. ↑ "Bethesda Big Train Official Web Site". Retrieved 2008-03-25.
  16. ↑ "DC Grays Official Web Site". Retrieved 2012-07-06.
  17. ↑ "Gaithersburg Giants Official Web Site". Retrieved 2013-02-02.
  18. ↑ "Herndon Braves Official Web Site". Retrieved 2008-03-25.
  19. ↑ "Thunderbolts Official Web Site". Retrieved 2008-03-25.
  20. ↑ "2007 New York Penn League Allstar Roster". Retrieved 2008-03-26.
  21. ↑ "New York Mets Roster". Retrieved 2008-03-25.
  22. ↑ "MLB Stats for Joe Smith". Retrieved 2008-03-26.

Team Sites

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