What is an American Legion player?? Why is it special??

I've argued with Legion officials, other Legion programs, showcase\travel folks and a couple high school coaches about how they treat kids. Some warranted & some that I jumped to conclusions. Simply trying to express that I'm laying down the sword for the pen. Legion has some problems, but near the top of that list is the lack of knowledge about what is Legion baseball, a Legion player and why is it special.

I believe in what we do, but there seems to be a disconnect in the baseball world so here is my stand to request positive feedback. It is my hope that voices will be heard & preconceived inaccuracies can be revealed. There is a petition on a different post if you have complaints so I wanted a venue to voice the positive things about American Legion Baseball.

 

Popular statement: "You can't be seen in Legion."

Not true!

FACT: 100% of the players that have aged out from Kernersville Post 36
with two or more seasons played have been offered an
opportunity to play college baseball.

 

Heres a Thought

Today, Legion baseball is an organization run by folks passionate about community baseball, not by its leaders. Some are veterans, most are not. Legion baseball is honorable with moments of lapse and in need of direction.

A Legion player is an elite athlete in his age group and his community. They are mostly the best ballplayers around. They know and respect each other and those on other Legion teams. A Legion player wants to compete, and win. Most will play college ball but will return home some day and remember Legion playing days with their buddies as the height of their baseball life.

Legion baseball is special because it represents a towns honest effort against that of a neighboring town. When the effort is less than honest, it becomes just another baseball game.

Popular statement: "You can't be seen in Legion."
Once and for all; College recruiters and scouts see and know all High School ballplayers on EARTH. But if you have five grand burning a hole in your pocket it’s ok to pay for junior to play travel baseball. It can’t hurt. Just DON’T let him miss out on the chance to play American Legion Baseball with his buds against the Legion team in the next town. You will never get these two years back.

 

American Legion Baseball in the modern era

American Legion Baseball enjoys a reputation as one of the most successful and tradition-rich amateur athletic leagues. Today, the program registers over 5,400 teams in all 50 states, Canada and Puerto Rico. Almost 100,000 youths, ages 15 to 19, participate annually. Since its inception, the league has had 10 million players, and nearly 60 percent of current college players are program graduates.
Legion Baseball also has a reputation for serving the young people who play for it. In college scholarships, the league annually awards a total of $25,000 - $500 for a player selected from each department based upon leadership, character, scholarship and financial need. Recently, the Legion passed a resolution allowing corporate sponsorship, in the hope of creating more financial aid for college. Diamond Sports already funds $25,000 in scholarships for the Legion Baseball Player of the Year and the eight regional players of the year. Eight players receive a $2,500 scholarship and the "Captain" of the All Academic Team receives a $5,000 scholarship.
In 1949, the national player of the year was first named through the arrangement of Robert Quinn, director of The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. Fittingly, winners receive a trip to the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., making them the only amateur athletes invited to the exhibit. The award is now named after George W. Rulon, who served as program coordinator from 1961 to 1987.
Three other recognition awards were established in the 1970s: the Dr. Irvin L. "Click" Cowger RBI Award, the Rawlings Big Stick Award and the Bob Feller pitching awards. All recognize strong performances in the regional and national tournaments.
Over the years, plenty of other major corporations have joined Gatorade in sponsoring Legion Baseball. In the 1940s, Ford Motor Co. dealers supplied uniforms for local teams. Diamond Sports recently signed on as a sponsor, and Baseball Factory has agreed to scout Legion players with big-league aspirations.
A prestigious pedigree

Major League Baseball and American Legion Baseball don't have a formal partnership, but the two owe each other a tremendous debt of gratitude. MLB has sponsored Legion Baseball almost since its inception, and Legion Baseball has returned the favor, churning out major league prospects since the alumni base has been old enough to be scouted. The number of former Legion players who have gone on to the pros is far too large to chart. More than half of current major-leaguers played Legion Baseball. So did almost every working MLB manager, along with several former commissioners. In all, more than 60 program graduates are in the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Naturally, Legion Baseball's alumni base includes some of the sport's most recognizable names. Yogi Berra played for Fred W. Stockholm Post 245 in St. Louis and was once quoted as saying it was the most fun he ever had. Ted Williams suited up for a post in San Diego. Frank Robinson led his Oakland, Calif., team to the only back-to-back national championships in program history. Current Yankees slugger Mark Teixeira played in the league's 1997 World Series. Babe Ruth was too old to join when Legion Baseball started, but he spent the final years of his life promoting the program as its director of operations. Other prominent players include Ryne Sandberg, Roy Campanella, Dusty Baker, Albert Pujols, Greg Maddux and Chipper Jones.
Of all the notable former players, Legion Baseball had perhaps the greatest impact on former Cleveland Indians great Bob Feller. A self-described shy farm kid from rural Iowa, Feller cut his teeth playing for Variety Post 313. He says the experience taught him as much about life as it did baseball. Legion Baseball gave him an outlet to be discovered as a pitcher, but also gave him a chance to form lifelong friendships, learn to deal with letdown in athletic competition, and become better prepared for the mental and emotional strain of fighting in a war.
The first Legion alumnus elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, Feller wrote a column for The American Legion Magazine in June 1963, expressing his love and appreciation for the league after it honored him with a plaque in 1962.
"Truthfully, I feel I should have given a plaque to The American Legion rather than receiving one from it," Feller wrote. He penned the column free of charge and admitted that he never endorsed anything he didn't believe in during his career, even for large sums of money.
Yet baseball isn't the only area where former players have excelled. Legion Baseball graduates have gone on to prominence in other career fields. Former Vice President Dick Cheney played for Post 2 in Casper, Wyo. Famed journalist and author Tom Brokaw played Legion ball in South Dakota, and Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack was on a team in Pennsylvania.
In short, Legion Baseball graduates are proud contributors throughout our society and often are the most successful people in their respective career fields.

Advertisement​

 

Great post, Shop. Thanks for sharing!!

 

American Legion Baseball is a national institution, having thrived through a world war, several national tragedies, and times of great prosperity as well as great despair.
The league still stands behind the traditional values upon which it was founded in 1925. American Legion Baseball has taught hundreds of thousands of young Americans the importance of sportsmanship, good health and active citizenship. The program is also a promoter of equality, making teammates out of young athletes regardless of their income levels or social standings. American Legion Baseball has been, and continues to be, a stepping stone to manhood for millions of young men who have gone on to serve their country or community, raise families or play the sport at the highest level.