Florida Collegiate Summer League

“Find a need and fill it.” 

–Ruth Stafford Peale

Sara Whiting looked around Central Florida in 2003 and saw a need.  Her son was playing baseball at Duke University at the time and his coaches wanted him to play summer college league baseball in Maryland the next summer.  Being a good Mom and not wanting her son to be away if he didn’t have to, Sara did some checking to find out if there was a summer college league operating in Central Florida.  She found out there wasn’t.

That seemed odd to Sara.  After all, Central Florida is home to some of the best baseball talent in the country.  The area also boasts some excellent baseball facilities that sit empty for a good part of the summer.  Central Florida seemed like a natural area to host a summer college baseball league.  So Sara decided to fill the need.

Sara began contacting people in the baseball community around Central Florida to gather information and to ask for their input.  One of those people was Coach Sal Lombardo, Sara’s son’s former travel league coach and a well known baseball figure in the area.  He knew about some people in the area who were interested in starting a league and he put Sara in touch with them.

From the beginning, Sara wanted a league that was player-centric, meaning that everything done by the league is done to benefit the player.  She wanted the players to have a great experience and to continue developing their talents.  To accomplish this goal, Sara looked to the Cape Cod Baseball League for inspiration. 

With these goals in mind, Sara set up the league as a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation.  She wanted to make sure that the players needs always came before profits.  She also wanted to make sure that the league and its teams were always giving back to the communities in which they operate.

“Don’t give up.  Don’t ever give up.

                –Jim Valvano

Heading into the summer of 2004, the Florida Collegiate Summer League (FCSL) had a commitment for four teams.  The Whitings would own the Sanford River Rats and the league would have other individually owned and operated teams in Winter Park, Daytona, and Orlando.  Unfortunately, for financial reasons, all three of the other teams folded before the first pitch was thrown.  Sara was left with a one-team league.

Rather than throw in the towel, Sara decided to have the league own and operate all four teams.  This was a lot more work than was originally anticipated, but by the summer of 2004, everything was in place.  First pitch occurred in June 2004 and the league has been off and running ever since.

The years have seen some changes.  For instance, the league now only runs one team; the Sanford River Rats.  There are no longer teams in Orlando or Daytona, but the team in Winter Park is still in place, and the league has added teams in Leesburg, Clermont and DeLand.  With the exception of Sanford, all of the teams are individually owned and operated.

“If you build it, (they) will come.”

                –from the movie Field of Dreams

The league plays a 44 game schedule and all games start at 7:00 pm to allow the players to attend classes during the day (if they choose to take summer classes).  Because of the distance between the communities in the league, players rarely, if ever, have to stay overnight while out-of-town.  This also cuts down on expenses for the teams. 

FCSL games are run similarly to minor league games, with promotional activities, fan competitions, and community nights.  Entertaining the fans and making the evening a special experience for them is an important goal for the league. 

A special treat for the players is that the end-of-the-year championship game is held at Tropicana Field in Tampa.  Tropicana is the home of the Tampa Bay Rays.  In addition to being a great venue, playing at Tropicana gives the players a feel for what it’s like to play in the big leagues.

The success of the league is evidenced by the fact that two well known former MLB players are now coaches in the FCSL.  Davey Johnson coached the DeLand Sun this past summer after leading Team USA in the World Baseball Classic.  Frank “Sweet Music” Viola coached the Leesburg Lightning to the league championship.  Both men served as advisors to the league before being hired to coach their respective teams.

In the future, the FCSL would like to expand to bring their special brand of baseball to other communities in Central Florida.  But even more than expanding, the FCSL is interested in remaining one of the strongest summer college baseball leagues in the country and to continue to attract top notch college baseball talent and high quality coaches.  After all, that was Sara Whiting’s vision when she started the FCSL and it remains the league’s driving force today.

Florida Collegiate Summer League

Team (Home Field)

Clermont Mavericks (East Ridge HS – Clermont, FL)

DeLand Suns (Conrad Park – DeLand, FL)

Leesburg Lightning (Pat Thomas Stadium – Leesburg, FL)

Sanford River Rats (Sanford Memorial Stadium – Sanford, FL)

Winter Park Diamond Dawgs (Alfond Stadium at Harper-Shepherd Field – Winter Park, FL)

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