Classification | Collegiate |
---|---|
Sport | Baseball |
Founded | 1923 |
President | R.W. "Porky" Bowman, Jr. |
Commissioner | R.W. "Porky" Bowman, Jr. |
Motto | "Gateway to the majors" |
No. of teams | 12 |
Country | ![]() |
Most recent champion(s) | Harrisonburg Turks (2023) |
Official website | Valley Baseball League |
The Valley Baseball League is an NCAA and MLB-sanctioned collegiate summer baseball league in the Shenandoah Valley region of Virginia. [1]
The league was started in 1923 and sanctioned by the NCAA in 1961. It has been a wooden bat league since 1993. It is one of the twelve leagues in the National Alliance of College Summer Baseball. The VBL is funded in part by a grant from Major League Baseball. The Valley League has produced well over 1,000 professional baseball players, including a record 79 former players drafted in the 2008 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft.
In 2007, the Valley Baseball League expanded to include one new team with the addition of the Fauquier Gators. Another team was planned to be added in Lexington, Virginia but difficulties with the lighting system delayed the team's addition to the league. The VBL announced in July 2008 that the Rockbridge Rapids would start play in the 2009 season, but the team folded a couple years later. In 2011 the Strasburg Express entered the league and in 2015 the Charlottesville Tom Sox entered the league. [2]
The league canceled the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. [3] [4]
The Culpeper Cavaliers joined as the league's 12th team in 2023. [5]
Team | City | Stadium | Capacity |
---|---|---|---|
Charlottesville Tom Sox | Charlottesville | CHO Airport Field | 1,200 |
Covington Lumberjacks | Covington | Casey Field | 2,000 |
Culpeper Cavaliers | Culpeper | Culpeper County High School | |
Front Royal Cardinals | Front Royal | Bing Crosby Stadium | 1,500 |
Harrisonburg Turks | Harrisonburg | Eagle Field at Veterans Memorial Park | 1,200 |
New Market Rebels | New Market | Rebel Park | 550 |
Purcellville Cannons | Purcellville | Fireman's Field | 2,000 |
Staunton Braves | Staunton | John Moxie Stadium | |
Strasburg Express | Strasburg | First Bank Park | |
Winchester Royals | Winchester | Bridgeforth Field | 1,200 |
Woodstock River Bandits | Woodstock | Central High School Field | 796 |
Waynesboro Generals | Waynesboro | Kate Collins Field at Union Home Mortgage Park | 350 |
Team | City | Years Active |
---|---|---|
Aldie Senators | Aldie | 2013-2015 |
Charles Town Cannons | Charles Town, WV | 2013-2015 |
Charlottesville Hornets | Charlottesville | 1967-1974 |
Elkton Blue Sox | Elkton | 1954-1957 |
Fauquier Gators | Warrenton | 2007-2009 |
Haymarket Battle Cats | Haymarket | 2005 |
Haymarket Senators | Haymarket | 2006-2012 |
Loudoun Rangers | Middleburg | 2004 |
Luray Colonials | Luray | 1963-1969 |
Luray Wranglers | Luray | 2001-2012 |
Madison Blue Jays | Madison | 1969-1988 |
Rockbridge Rapids | Lexington | 2009-2013 |
Shenandoah Indians | Shenandoah | 1958-1975 |
The regular season consists of 44 games played beginning the first week of June and continuing until late July. Through the 2019 season, teams played all inter-division opponents 3 times and intra-division opponents 5 or 6 times. Beginning in 2021, teams no longer travel to every other ballpark in a single season: rather, all inter-division meetings were scheduled as a single, 7-inning weekend doubleheader. This format was continued in 2022 but with the home teams reversed.
In 2023, the league eliminated divisions and moved to a scheduling model where each team played each other four times for an expanded 44-game schedule, an addition of two games from the previous 42.
In 2024, the league again adopted a new scheduling model where teams play games within their respective divisions for the entirety of the season. The league also reverted to a 40-game season with a change of playoff formatting.
Playoffs begin immediately following the regular season and continue into early August. In all series, the higher seeded team hosts games 1 and 3. No off-days are taken except for rain-outs and while waiting on other series' to finish.
Year | VBL Champion | Runner-up | Series |
---|---|---|---|
2024 | Charlottesville Tom Sox | Purcellville Cannons | 2-1 |
2023 | Harrisonburg Turks | Charlottesville Tom Sox | 2-0 |
2022 | Charlottesville Tom Sox | Woodstock River Bandits | 2-0 |
2021 | Strasburg Express | Waynesboro Generals | 2-0 |
2020 | None [lower-alpha 1] | None | N/A |
2019 | Charlottesville Tom Sox | Strasburg Express | 2-0 |
2018 | New Market Rebels | Charlottesville Tom Sox | 2-0 |
2017 | Charlottesville Tom Sox | Strasburg Express | 2-1 |
2016 | Strasburg Express | Waynesboro Generals | 2-0 |
2015 | Strasburg Express | Staunton Braves | 2-1 |
2014 | Waynesboro Generals | Charles Town Cannons | 2-1 |
2013 | Waynesboro Generals | Strasburg Express | 2-1 |
2012 | Harrisonburg Turks | Winchester Royals | 3-1 |
2011 | Covington Lumberjacks | Rockbridge Rapids | 2-1 |
2010 | Luray Wranglers | Front Royal Cardinals | 2-0 |
2009 | Haymarket Senators | Covington Lumberjacks | 3-1 |
2008 | Luray Wranglers | Covington Lumberjacks | 3-0 |
2007 | Waynesboro Generals | Luray Wranglers | 4-1 |
2006 | Luray Wranglers | Staunton Braves | 3-2 |
2005 | Covington Lumberjacks | New Market Rebels | 2-1 |
2004 | Winchester Royals | Staunton Braves | 2-0 |
2003 | Winchester Royals | New Market Rebels | 3-2 |
2002 | New Market Rebels | Covington Lumberjacks | 3-1 |
2001 | Winchester Royals | Covington Lumberjacks | 3-2 |
2000 | Harrisonburg Turks | Staunton Braves | 3-0 |
1999 | Staunton Braves | Winchester Royals | 3-0 |
1998 | Waynesboro Generals | Staunton Braves | 3-0 |
1997 | Winchester Royals | Front Royal Cardinals | Forfeit |
1996 | Staunton Braves | Harrisonburg Turks | 3-1 |
1995 | Staunton Braves | Waynesboro Generals | 3-0 |
1994 | New Market Rebels | Harrisonburg Turks | 3-2 |
1993 | Winchester Royals | Staunton Braves | 3-2 |
1992 | Winchester Royals | Harrisonburg Turks | 3-1 |
1991 | Harrisonburg Turks | Front Royal Cardinals | 3-1 |
1990 | Winchester Royals | Staunton Braves | 3-2 |
1989 | New Market Rebels | Harrisonburg Turks | 3-1 |
1988 | Waynesboro Generals | Madison Blue Jays | 3-2 |
1987 | Winchester Royals | Waynesboro Generals | 3-0 |
1986 | Front Royal Cardinals | Harrisonburg Turks | 3-1 |
1985 | Staunton Braves | New Market Rebels | 3-0 |
1984 | Waynesboro Generals | Harrisonburg Turks | 3-0 |
1983 | Winchester Royals | Staunton Braves | 4-3 |
1982 | Winchester Royals | New Market Rebels | 3-0 |
1981 | Winchester Royals | New Market Rebels | 4-0 |
1980 | Winchester Royals | New Market Rebels | 3-1 |
1979 | Winchester Royals | Madison Blue Jays | 4-3 |
1978 | Madison Blue Jays | Harrisonburg Turks | 4-1 |
1977 | Harrisonburg Turks | Waynesboro Generals | 4-0 |
1976 | Staunton Braves | Harrisonburg Turks | 4-0 |
1975 | Madison Blue Jays | Harrisonburg Turks | 4-2 |
1974 | Shenandoah Indians | Waynesboro Generals | 4-2 |
1973 | Shenandoah Indians | Madison Blue Jays | 4-2 |
1972 | Shenandoah Indians | Charlottesville Hornets | 4-2 |
1971 | Harrisonburg Turks | Shenandoah Indians | 4-0 |
1970 | Harrisonburg Turks | New Market Rebels | 4-1 |
1969 | Harrisonburg Turks | Staunton Braves | 4-0 |
1968 | Luray Colonials | Harrisonburg Turks | 4-0 |
1967 | Luray Colonials | Harrisonburg Turks | 2-0 |
1966 | Luray Colonials | Shenandoah Indians | 4-1 |
1965 | Luray Colonials | New Market Rebels | 4-2 |
1964 | Harrisonburg Turks | Shenandoah Indians | 4-0 |
1963 | Shenandoah Indians | New Market Rebels | 4-1 |
1962 | Harrisonburg Turks | Shenandoah Indians | 4-2 |
1961 | Shenandoah Indians | Harrisonburg Turks | 4-0 |
1960 | Shenandoah Indians | Staunton Braves | 4-3 |
1959 | Harrisonburg Turks | New Market Rebels | 4-2 |
1958 | Harrisonburg Turks | New Market Rebels | 4-3 |
1957 | Staunton Braves | Harrisonburg Turks | 4-3 |
1956 | Staunton Braves | Shenandoah Indians | 4-2 |
1955 | Harrisonburg Turks | Shenandoah Indians | 4-3 |
1954 | Staunton Braves | Elkton Blue Sox | 4-1 |
Not all teams have been with VBL since 1954. Throughout its history, teams have been removed and added.
The summer of 2008 was highlighted by a promotion called Around the Valley in 60 Days. This promotion was started by Crystal Clear Delivery and S. Carter Studios and encouraged patrons to visit all 11 parks in the 60-day season. The program was deemed a huge success as some fifty fans completed the program and attended all 11 ballparks.
Grottoes is an incorporated town in Rockingham County in the state in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The population was 2,899 at the 2020 census. The town lies right on the border with Augusta County, and several commercial, residential, and recreational lots have portions within Augusta county.
The Shenandoah Valley is a geographic valley and cultural region of western Virginia and the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia in the United States. The Valley is bounded to the east by the Blue Ridge Mountains, to the west by the eastern front of the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians, to the north by the Potomac River, to the south by the James River, and to the Southwest by the New River Valley. The cultural region covers a larger area that includes all of the Valley plus the Virginia Highlands to the west and the Roanoke Valley to the south. It is physiographically located within the Ridge and Valley Province and is a portion of the Great Appalachian Valley.
Shenandoah Valley Regional Airport is in the census-designated place of Weyers Cave, Virginia, United States, 5 miles (8.0 km) west of the Town of Grottoes and 12 miles (19 km) northeast of the City of Staunton. It is used for general aviation and is served by one airline, subsidized by the Essential Air Service program.
Area codes 540 and 826 are telephone area codes in the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) for the U.S. State of Virginia. Areas included are the outer portions of Northern Virginia/D.C Area along with areas in or around the Shenandoah Valley, Blue Ridge Mountains, New River Valley, and the Roanoke metropolitan area. The Virginia State Corporation Commission authorized the addition of 826 to the numbering plan area for implementation in May 2022.
The Woodstock River Bandits are a collegiate summer baseball team in Woodstock, Virginia. They play in the Northern division of the Valley Baseball League.
The Waynesboro Generals are a collegiate summer baseball team in Waynesboro, Virginia. They play in the southern division of the Valley Baseball League. The Generals have won six Valley League playoff championships: in 1984, 1988, 1998, 2007, 2013, and 2014, making them one of the most winning organizations of the league during that time. The Generals were founded in 1923 and have been playing continuously since then with the exception of a ten-year period between 1955 and 1964.
The Rockingham County Baseball League is a summer baseball league in Rockingham County, Virginia and neighboring areas. It was founded in 1924 and is one of the oldest continuous baseball leagues in the country. The league has included teams from across Rockingham County and up and down the Shenandoah Valley. As of 2024, the RCBL has 8 teams and has a 24-game regular season schedule where every team plays each other 3 to 4 times. The quarterfinal round of the playoffs is best out of three games, the semifinal round is best out of five games, and the championship round is best out of seven games.
The 3A Valley District is a district in Region 3C of the Virginia High School League. As the district's name implies, all the schools are located in the central part of the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, along Interstate 81. Most of the member schools are part of the Harrisonburg areas.
WHSV-TV is a television station in Harrisonburg, Virginia, United States, affiliated with ABC. It is owned by Gray Television alongside two low-power stations: Class A dual Fox/CBS affiliate WSVF-CD and dual NBC/CW+ affiliate WSVW-LD. The three stations share studios on North Main Street in downtown Harrisonburg, and operate a newsroom in Fishersville, serving Staunton, Waynesboro, and Augusta County. WHSV-TV's transmitter is located at Elliott Knob west of Staunton.
WVPT is a PBS member television station in Staunton, Virginia, United States, serving the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia and West Virginia. It is a full-time satellite of Richmond-licensed WCVE-TV which is owned by the VPM Media Corporation. WVPT's offices are located in Harrisonburg near the campus of James Madison University, while its transmitters are located atop Elliott Knob west of Staunton, on Carters Mountain south of Charlottesville, and on Massanutten Mountain near New Market. Master control and most internal operations are based at WCVE-TV's studios at 23 Sesame Street in Bon Air, a suburb of Richmond.
TV3 Winchester was a subchannel service of Harrisonburg, Virginia-based television station WHSV-TV, programmed as a standalone, primarily-cable station serving as the ABC and secondary This TV affiliate for nearby Winchester, Virginia from 2007 to 2013. Owned by Gray Television, it maintained studios on Millwood Avenue and US 50 in Winchester, separate from its parent's studios in Harrisonburg.
WCYK-FM is a commercial FM radio station licensed to Staunton, Virginia, and serving Charlottesville, Harrisonburg, and Lexington, Virginia. It is owned and operated by Monticello Media and it broadcasts a country music format. The studios and offices are on Hillsdale Drive in Charlottesville.
The Virginia Mountain League was a minor league baseball organization active in central western Virginia in 1914. The Class D level league folded during its only season of play.
The 1st Connecticut Cavalry Regiment was a cavalry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
WSVW-LD is a low-power television station in Harrisonburg, Virginia, United States, affiliated with NBC and The CW Plus. It is owned by Gray Television alongside ABC affiliate WHSV-TV and Class A dual Fox/CBS affiliate WSVF-CD. The three stations share studios on North Main Street in downtown Harrisonburg, and operate a newsroom in Fishersville, serving Staunton, Waynesboro, and Augusta County. WSVW-LD's transmitter is located atop Massanutten Mountain. There is no separate website for WSVW-LD; instead, it is integrated with that of sister station WHSV-TV.
The Covington Papermakers were a minor league baseball team based in Covington, Virginia. In 1914, the Papermakers played as charter members of the short–lived Class D level Virginia Mountain League, winning the league championship in a shortened season. The Papermakers were succeeded in Covington minor league baseball by the 1966 Covington Red Sox.
The Clifton Forge Railroaders were a minor league baseball team based in Clifton Forge, Virginia. In 1914, the Clifton Forge Railroaders played as charter members of the short–lived Class D level Virginia Mountain League, winning a "Championship Series" after the league had folded.
The Charlottesville Tuckahoes were a minor league baseball team based in Charlottesville, Virginia. In 1914, the Tuckahoes played as charter members of the short–lived Class D level Virginia Mountain League, winning the second–half title in the league.
The Staunton Presidents were a minor league baseball team based in Staunton, Virginia. Staunton teams played partial seasons in the 1894 Virginia League and 1914 Virginia Mountain League before the Presidents played as members the Virginia League from 1939 to 1942. The Presidents hosted home minor league games at Municipal Stadium. Staunton's use of the "Presidents" nickname corresponded to the city being the birthplace of President Woodrow Wilson.