| Cal Ripken, Sr. Collegiate Baseball League | |
| Pixels: | 200 |
| Sport: | Baseball |
| Founded: | 2005 |
| Teams: | 8 |
| Country: | USA |
| Champion: | Bethesda Big Train (10) |
| Website: | www.calripkenleague.org |
| Commissioner: | Jason Woodward |
| President: | Bradley Rifkin |
The Cal Ripken Sr. Collegiate Baseball League (CRSCBL) is a collegiate summer baseball league located in the Washington, D.C. and Baltimore, Maryland metropolitan areas. The CRSCBL is a member of the National Alliance of College Summer Baseball (NACSB).
Founded in 2005,[1] the league was named for Cal Ripken, Sr. (1935–1999), a longtime player and manager in the Baltimore Orioles system. It is not associated with the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation.[2]
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 in 2008, expanding the league into Northern Virginia.[2] Before the 2010 season, the College Park Bombers left the league and the Southern Maryland Nationals, formerly the Southern Maryland Cardinals, joined.[3] [4] 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, the Baltimore Pressman Cardinals and the Gaithersburg Giants joined the League. In 2014, the Southern Maryland Nationals shut down and the Cardinals were replaced by the Baltimore Dodgers. Youse's Maryland Orioles left after the season. In 2015, the League changed to a two-division format with a playoff. After the 2018 season, the Baltimore Redbirds, Rockville Express, Baltimore Dodgers, and Loudoun Riverdogs left the League. Cropdusters Baseball jointed the League in 2022 and the Southern Maryland Senators joined in 2023.
In 2011, Perfect Game USA ranked the Bethesda Big Train the best team in summer baseball.[5]
On July 15, 2009, teams of all-stars from the CRSCBL and the Valley Baseball League, a collegiate wooden-bat league based in Virginia, met to play a game dubbed the Mid-Atlantic Classic in Waldorf, Maryland. The Ripken League prevailed, 2–1.[6] A planned 2010 rematch was rained out. On July 11, 2011, the leagues held the second Mid-Atlantic Classic at Eagle Field at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Harrisonburg, Virginia. The Ripken League won again, 6–3.
In 2017, 2018, and 2019, the CRSCBL sent all-star teams to North Carolina to participate in the Southern Collegiate Prospect Showcase against teams from the Florida Collegiate Summer League, the Southern Collegiate Baseball League, the Sunbelt Baseball League, and the Valley Baseball League.
A team of Ripken League players traveled to Cuba after the 2016 season. The team played three of Cuba's top teams in the week before the start of the Cuban National Series in some of Cuba's classic ballparks. On August 3, the Ripken League team upset the 2015 champions of the Cuban major leagues. The Ripken League team defeated the Pinar del Rio Vegueros, 3-2, at Estadio Capitan San Luis before a boisterous crowd of 400. On August 4, the Ripken League team lost to the Matanzas Cocodrilos 6-2 at Estadio Victoria de Giron (Victory at the Bay of Pigs). On August 5, Industriales defeated the Ripken League team 6-4 in a rain-shortened game in Havana's iconic Estadio Latinoamericano where the March 2016 exhibition game between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Cuban National Team had been played. Brady Anderson and B.J. Surhoff, who played for the Baltimore Orioles in Cuba in 1999, coached the team along with Ripken League co-founder Dean Albany."
As part of its exhibition series to prepare for the Olympics in Japan, the Israel National Baseball Team played three games against Ripken League competition in July 2021. On July 16, Israel defeated a Ripken League all-star team made up of players from the Braves, Giants, and Grays at FNB Field on City Island in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. On July 18, Israel came from behind in the final inning to beat the Bethesda Big Train, 8-7, before a standing-room-only crowd of 835 at Shirley Povich Field in Rockville, Maryland. On July 19, a Ripken League all-star team of players from the Aces, Big Train, and Thunderbolts defeated Israel, 9-3, at Leidos Field at Ripken Stadium in Aberdeen, Maryland.
| Cal Ripken Sr. Collegiate Baseball League | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Team | Joined | City | Stadium |
| North | ||||
| Bethesda Big Train | 2005[7] | Bethesda, Maryland | Shirley Povich Field | |
| Cropdusters Baseball | 2022 | Olney, Maryland | First Responder Field by ServPro | |
| Gaithersburg Giants | 2013 | Gaithersburg, Maryland | Criswell Automotive Field at Kelley Park | |
| Silver Spring-Takoma Thunderbolts | 2005[8] | Silver Spring, Maryland | Montgomery Blair Stadium | |
| Division | Team | Joined | City | Stadium |
| South | ||||
| Alexandria Aces | 2008 | Alexandria, Virginia | Frank Mann Field at Four Mile Run Park | |
| D.C. Grays | 2012 | Washington, D.C. | Washington Nationals Youth Baseball Academy | |
| Metro SoCo Braves | 2007[9] | Lorton, Virginia | South County High School | |
| Southern Maryland Senators | 2023 | Waldorf, Maryland | Regency Furniture Stadium | |
| 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 Maryland 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 | Bethesda Big Train |
| 2016 | Bethesda Big Train | Baltimore Redbirds |
| 2017 | Bethesda Big Train | Bethesda Big Train |
| 2018 | Baltimore Redbirds, Bethesda Big Train (co-champions) | Bethesda Big Train |
| 2019 | Bethesda Big Train | Bethesda Big Train |
| 2020 | None (season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic) | |
| 2021 | Bethesda Big Train | Bethesda Big Train |
| 2022 | Alexandria Aces | Alexandria Aces |
| 2023 | Bethesda Big Train | Alexandria Aces |
| 2024 | Bethesda Big Train | Alexandria Aces |
Every championship series from 2009 to 2018 pitted the Redbirds against the Big Train.[10] [11]
In 2007, CRSCBL alumnus Joe Smith earned a spot on a major league roster with the New York Mets.[12]
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.[13] In November 2016 he signed a 4-year, $30.5 million contract with the St. Louis Cardinals.[14]
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.[15]
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.[16]
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.[17]
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.[18]
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.[19]
In the 2015 MLB Draft, 32 former Ripken Leaguers were chosen, with the highest being Brandon Lowe in the 3rd round, by the Tampa Bay Rays.[20]
In the 2017 MLB Draft, 42 former Ripken Leaguers were chosen, with the highest being Logan Warmoth in the 1st round (22nd overall), by the Toronto Blue Jays.[21]
In the 2018 MLB Draft, 44 former Ripken Leaguers were chosen, with the highest being Logan Gilbert in the 1st round (14th overall), by the Seattle Mariners.[22]
In the 2019 MLB Draft, 36 former Ripken Leaguers were chosen, with the highest being Logan Driscoll in the 2nd round (72nd overall), by the San Diego Padres.[23]
In the 2020 MLB Draft, 6 former Ripken Leaguers were chosen, with the highest being Jordan Westburg in the 1st round (30th overall) by the Baltimore Orioles.[24]