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, including 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 75 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 $51,000 – $1,000 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. Gatorade already funds $10,000 in scholarships for the Legion Baseball Player of the Year and the eight regional players of the year.
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 Company dealers supplied uniforms for local teams. Easton Sports recently signed on as a sponsor, and Baseball Factory has agreed to scout Legion players with big-league aspirations.
