The Prospect League is a collegiate summer baseball league comprising teams of college players from North America and beyond. All players in the league must have

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges and ...

eligibility remaining in order to participate. So as to maintain their college eligibility, players are not paid. Beginning in 2012, the league added four games to the season, making a total of 60 games per team (30 home and 30 road).

League history

Origin

In 1963, the Central Illinois Collegiate League (CICL), the precursor league to the Prospect league, was formed as a charter member of the

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athlete, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic sports, ...

(NCAA) summer

collegiate baseball ''Collegiate Baseball Newspaper'' (also known as ''Collegiate Baseball Magazine'' and ''Collegiate Baseball'') is an American publication based in Arizona that considers itself the "voice of amateur baseball" which has been published for over 40 y ...

program. The league existed under NCAA rules and guidance for 41 years. In 2005, the NCAA ended its official association with summer collegiate baseball; however, the CICL continued to preserve the amateur status of its member athletes by abiding by the rules and regulations of the National Alliance of College Summer Baseball (NACSB). In 2009, the CICL planned to expand to six teams by adding the Hannibal Cavemen, but in winter 2008, the league ownership voted against further expansion. Dr. Chris Hanners, owner of the Chillicothe franchise and one of the founders of the independent professional

Frontier League The Frontier League is a professional independent baseball league with teams in the Northeastern and Midwestern United States and Eastern Canada. Formed in 1993, it is the oldest currently running independent league in the United States. The le ...

, wanted to keep a Paints baseball team in Chillicothe. Dr. Hanners,

Leo Trich Leo Joseph Trich, Jr. (born July 23, 1951) is a former Democratic member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Biography Trich is a 1969 graduate of Washington High School. He attended California University of Pennsylvania and Washing ...

, former Frontier league director of development;

General Manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all ...

and majority owner of the

Butler BlueSox The Butler BlueSox are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Butler, Pennsylvania, in the United States. They are a member of the Tri-State Collegiate League and were formerly a member of the East Division of the summer collegiate Prospect Le ...

, and Duke Ward, former owner of the Frontier League's Richmond Roosters worked with the ownership of the CICL to form the Prospect League. The Prospect League began its inaugural season in summer 2009 with the original CICL teams forming the Western Division. Five expansion teams formed the Eastern Division. Three of the Eastern Division teams began play in markets previously served by Frontier League teams. Besides the Chillicothe Paints, the Richmond RiverRats (

Richmond, Indiana Richmond is a city in eastern Wayne County, Indiana. Bordering the state of Ohio, it is the county seat of Wayne County and is part of the Dayton, OH Metropolitan Statistical Area In the 2010 census, the city had a population of 36,812. Situ ...

) played in the previous home of the Frontier League's Richmond Roosters, which are now the Traverse City Beach Bums. The

Slippery Rock Sliders The Slippery Rock Sliders were a professional, and later collegiate summer baseball team based in Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania, in the United States. They were a member of the Frontier League and the East Division of the summer collegiate Prospect L ...

(

Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania Slippery Rock is a borough in Butler County, Pennsylvania. The population was 3,081 at the 2020 census. Slippery Rock is included in the Greater Pittsburgh Region. It is home to Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania, attended by nearly 9,00 ...

) played in the previous home of the Frontier League team of the same name.

2010 expansion

In 2010, the Prospect League expanded adding four new franchises: the Terre Haute Rex ( Terre Haute, Indiana), the

West Virginia Miners The West Virginia Miners are a collegiate summer baseball team located in Beckley, West Virginia. The team began play in the Prospect League for the 2010 season. Home games are played at Linda K. Epling Stadium Linda K. Epling Stadium is a base ...

(

Beckley, West Virginia Beckley is a city in and the county seat of Raleigh County, West Virginia, United States. It was founded on April 4, 1838. This city is the home of the West Virginia University Institute of Technology or West Virginia University, Beckley Campus. ...

), the DeKalb County Liners (

Sycamore, Illinois Sycamore is a city in DeKalb County, Illinois, United States. It has a commercial district based and centered on Illinois Route 64. The population was 18577 at the 2020 census, up from 17,519 at the 2010 census. Sycamore is the county seat of ...

), and the Nashville Outlaws (

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and t ...

). Due to a change in team ownership in 2010, the North Coast Knights became the Lorain County Ironmen.

2011 and 2012 team departures

In 2011 the DuPage Dragons franchise folded after five years with the CICL (2006–08) and Prospect League (2009–10). As a result, the league returned to a 2-division format after having 3 divisions in 2010. Richmond was moved to the six-team Eastern Division, while Danville, Nashville, Terre Haute, and Dubois County were moved to the eight-team Western Division. Before the 2012 season, the Nashville Outlaws folded, and the DeKalb County Liners left the league to join the Midwest Collegiate League, leaving the Prospect League with twelve teams in two, six-team divisions. The 2012 schedule consisted of 60 games with no "cross-over" games; with all games played among teams from the same division only. The only time teams from opposite divisions meet is in the Championship Series.

Expansion into New York

For the 2015 season, the league added its easternmost team yet, the

Jamestown Jammers The Jamestown Jammers were a minor league baseball team based in Jamestown, New York from 1994 until 2014. The team was the Short-Season A classification affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates and played in the New York–Penn League. The team playe ...

(

Jamestown, New York Jamestown is a city in southern Chautauqua County, in the U.S. state of New York. The population was 28,712 at the 2020 census. Situated between Lake Erie to the north and the Allegheny National Forest to the south, Jamestown is the largest po ...

). The Kokomo Jackrabbits (

Kokomo, Indiana Kokomo ( ) is a city in Indiana and the county seat of Howard County, Indiana, United States. It is the principal city of the Kokomo, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Howard County, the Kokomo-Peru CSA, which includ ...

) were also added to the league to play in the new Kokomo Municipal Stadium, set to open for the 2015 season. After the 2015 season, the Richmond RiverRats folded, and the Jamestown Jammers moved to the

Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League The Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League (PGCBL) is a 16-team collegiate summer baseball league founded in 2010. As of 2022, all teams are within New York (state). All players in the league must have NCAA eligibility remaining in order to pa ...

after just one season in the Prospect League.

Lafayette and DuPage join the league

The league stayed at 12 total teams for the 2016 season by adding the new Lafayette Aviators (

Lafayette, Indiana Lafayette ( , ) is a city in and the county seat of Tippecanoe County, Indiana, United States, located northwest of Indianapolis and southeast of Chicago. West Lafayette, Indiana, West Lafayette, on the other side of the Wabash River, is home t ...

) and DuPage Drones (

Lisle, Illinois Lisle ( ) is a village in DuPage County, Illinois, United States. The population was 22,390 at the 2010 census, and in 2019 the population was recorded to be 23,270. It is part of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Illinois Technology and Res ...

2017 contraction

For the 2017 season, the league contracted to 10 teams, as the Hannibal Cavemen and DuPage Drones both ceased operation. Hannibal reentered the league for the 2018 season as the

Hannibal Hoots The Hannibal Hoots were a collegiate summer league baseball team in the United States Prospect League. The team played two seasons in the league, but only one of those seasons saw them use Hannibal as its home; flooding along the Mississippi Riv ...

2019 expansion and reorganization

The league returned to a twelve team league for the 2019 season with the addition of the Cape Catfish in

Cape Girardeau, Missouri Cape Girardeau ( , french: Cap-Girardeau ; colloquially referred to as "Cape") is a city in Cape Girardeau and Scott Counties in the U.S. state of Missouri. At the 2020 census, the population was 39,540. The city is one of two principal citi ...

, the departure of the Kokomo Jackrabbits to the

Northwoods League The Northwoods League is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league. All players in the league must have NCAA eligibility remaining in order to participate. The league is amateur, and players are not paid, so as to maintain their college el ...

, the addition of the Normal CornBelters from the Frontier League and the addition of the DuPage Pistol Shrimp in

. The 2019 league featured two divisions, each with six teams. The West Division consisted of the Cape Catfish, DuPage Pistol Shrimp,

, Normal CornBelters, Quincy Gems and the Springfield Sliders. The East Division consisted of the

Champion City Kings The Champion City Kings are a college summer baseball team located in Springfield, Ohio. The Kings are a member of the East Division of the wood bat Prospect League and have been a member since 2013. The Kings play at Carleton Davidson Stadiu ...

, Chillicothe Paints, Danville Dans, Lafayette Aviators, Terre Haute REX and the

2020 season cancellation

On May 29, 2020, the Prospect League announced cancellation of the 2020 season due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...

. In January 2020, the league announced adding a new team in Alton, Illinois for the 2021 season. In September 2020, the league announced adding a new team in Johnstown, Pennsylvania for the 2021 season.

2021 expansion

In February 2021, the league announced the addition of two new teams in Iowa, the

Clinton LumberKings The Clinton LumberKings are a collegiate summer baseball team of the Prospect League. They are located in Clinton, Iowa, and play their home games at NelsonCorp Field. From 1956 to 2020, they were members of Minor League Baseball's Midwest Leag ...

and

Burlington Bees The Burlington Bees are a collegiate summer baseball team of the Prospect League. They are located in Burlington, Iowa, and have played their home games at Community Field since 1947. Founded in 1889, the Bees played in Minor League Baseball ...

. Both teams are former

Midwest League The Midwest League is a Minor League Baseball league established in 1947 and based in the Midwestern United States. A Class A league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganiza ...

teams displaced in the 2021 realignment of the minor leagues.

2023 expansion

In December 2021, the league announced the addition of the Jackson Rockabillys for the 2023 season, playing home games in

Jackson, Tennessee Jackson is a city in and the county seat of Madison County, Tennessee, United States. Located east of Memphis, it is a regional center of trade for West Tennessee. Its total population was 68,205 as of the 2020 United States census. Jackso ...

at West Tennessee Baseball Stadium (formerly known as

The Ballpark at Jackson The Ballpark at Jackson is a 6,000-seat minor league baseball stadium in Jackson, Tennessee, United States. It opened in 1998. The Ballpark at Jackson was built by the municipal government of Jackson, Tennessee, and was the home of the Jackson ...

). In August 2022, the league announced that a Southern Illinois team would begin play in 2023 at

Rent One Park Rent One Park is a stadium in Marion, Illinois that was completed in 2007. It is primarily used for baseball and was previously the home of the Southern Illinois Miners of the Frontier League from 2007–2021. The stadium has a contemporary, ...

Marion, Illinois Marion is a city in Williamson and Johnson Counties, Illinois, United States, and is the county seat of Williamson County. The population was 16,855 at the 2020 census. It is part of a dispersed urban area that developed out of the early 20th ...

. The league announced that the West Virginia Miners would be dormant for the 2023 season.

Members

Current members

: * Former professional baseball team : ^ Former professional baseball venue Charter members: Butler BlueSox, Champion City Kings (as the Slippery Rock Sliders), Chillicothe Paints, Danville Dans, DuPage Dragons, Hannibal Cavemen, Richmond RiverRats, Springfield Sliders, Quincy Gems

Dormant members

Former members

The Cape Catfish, DuPage Pistol Shrimp and Normal CornBelters joined the league in the 2019, replacing the Kokomo Jackrabbits, who left for the

, and the

, who suspended operations.

Division and League Champions

Playoff format

2009: After 56-game schedule, teams with best record in each division faced each other in a best-of-three series for the Championship. 2010: 56-game schedule divided in two halves. Winners from each half in each division faced each other in a one-game playoff (home field to team with best overall record). Where the same team won both halves in a division, the team with the next-best overall record from that division was declared the wild card. Championship Series was a two-game affair with the divisional playoff winner with the best overall record receiving a bye into the Championship Game. The remaining two divisional playoff winners met in a one-game play-in for the right to go to the Championship Game. Championship Series held at Chillicothe, Ohio. Teams in ''italics'' qualified for that season's playoffs as a wild card entry under that particular season's playoff format. 2011: 56-game schedule divided in two halves. Winners from each half in each division faced each other in a one-game playoff (home field to team winning the first half). Where the same team won both halves in a division, the team with the next-best overall record from that division was declared the wild card. Divisional playoff winners met in one-game playoff with home field awarded to the team with the best overall record from the regular season. 2012: 60-game schedule divided in two halves. Winners from each half in each division to face each other in a one-game playoff to be hosted by the first-half champions in each division. If the same team wins both halves, the team with the best overall record from that division will be declared the wild card. Winners of each divisional playoff game will meet in a best-of-three Championship Series, with home advantage given to the division that wins the annual All-Star Game (to be held in Butler, PA). Game One of the Championship Series will be played at the home field of the team from the losing division at the All-Star Game, with Game Two and Game Three (if necessary) held at the home field of the team from the winning division at the All-Star Game. 2013–2016: 60-game schedule divided into two halves. Winners from each half in each division to face each other in a best-of-three with game one being held at second-half winner and games two and three (if necessary) at home of first-half winner. There are no travel days in the Division Series. Each division champion plays in the best-of-three Prospect League Championship Series. Game one is held at the home of the team representing the division that lost that year's All-Star Game. Games two and three (if necessary) are held at the home of the team representing the division that won that year's All-Star Game. 2017–present: After a 60-game schedule, the top two teams in the East Division and the West Division play each other in the first round in a best of 3 series with the first place teams getting home field advantage. The winner of the East Division and West Division series face off in a best-of-three Prospect League Championship series with the team with the best record getting home field advantage.

Championship results

Awards

Mike Schmidt Award winners (Player of the Year)

Pitcher of the Year Award winners

References

External links

Prospect LeagueGoogle Map of the Prospect League teams
{{College Summer Baseball Summer baseball leagues 2008 establishments in the United States College baseball leagues in the United States Sports leagues established in 2008 Baseball leagues in Illinois Baseball leagues in Ohio Baseball leagues in Missouri Baseball leagues in Indiana Baseball leagues in West Virginia Baseball leagues in Iowa Baseball leagues in Pennsylvania