2025 MSBL League Profile: Rhode Island MSBL, Frank Ribezzo, League President
League name – Rhode Island Men’s Senior Baseball League (RIMSBL)
Your name – Frank Ribezzo
What is the history of the league and how did it start? The league was started in 1989 with four teams – the Eastbay Blues managed by Brian Power, the Westbay Eagles managed by Sam Fusaro, the Blackstone Valley Athletics managed by Curt Verone and the Providence Grays managed by Fred Kelly. Eric Simonsen was the original President from 1989-1991. Thereafter, David Saad took over as President until 2017 when I took over. We have grown through the years and now expect to have 19 teams.
What age divisions of play are now offered? We have a 30 Division (each team gets three 27-year-old waivers), a 40 Division (each team gets three 37-year-old waivers) and a 50 Division (waivers on a case-by-case basis).
How many teams are anticipated this year? 18-19 teams. Six teams in the 30’s, six to seven teams in the 40’s and six teams in the 50’s.
When does the league begin play and when will it finish, including any playoffs? Our season starts around early May and playoffs finish up in early October.
When did you personally start playing in the league? I started playing in RIMSBL in 2002.
What is your personal baseball playing history? I played four years in high school and then played one year at the University of New Haven and four years at Rhode Island College (I got an injury waiver for a 5th season). I also played in 4-5 other amateur leagues throughout Rhode Island before I started playing in RIMSBL.
When did you become president? I started helping out with scheduling around 2009 and became President in 2017. Kevin Curt is our league’s Vice President and has also been crucial to our league’s success.
Who were your predecessors and are they still involved in any capacity? David Saad was the past President and Dave Masse the VP. Dave Saad has moved to Florida but he still helps out when asked and is a valuable league resource. Dave Masse still umpires in our league and is also a valuable league resource. Joe Peruzzi, Jim Cooney and Noah Clark are long time managers and players and all still help our league in significant ways.
What is your most memorable MSBL moment as a president or a player? There are too many to list but as a player I’d have to say the first time my team won a championship after 18 years of coming up short. As President I’d have to say the work Kevin, myself, Jim Cooney, Joe Peruzzi and others have done to grow the league the last seven years.
What challenges did you face when you started the league or when you took over? The league had been contracting for some time as it is difficult to attract enough of age players in a small state. We started an advertising campaign spearheaded by Jim Cooney which took us from 12-13 teams when I took over to as many as 19 or 20 in recent seasons. We’ve also worked through significant umpire shortages over the last several years.
What are your biggest challenges today? I’d say keeping costs affordable for players and having sufficient numbers of umpires to service our needs.
What gives you the greatest satisfaction? Knowing that this league will still be here when I stop playing. Maintaining a place for adult men to play baseball, have a great time and make lifelong friendships is what keeps me going.
What do you see for the league in the future? I’d like to see us continue to grow and to continue to attract great people into our league.
What is the reason for the continued success of the league? The great people we have in leadership positions including Kevin Curt, Noah Clark, Joe Peruzzi, Jim Cooney, Steve Lallo and the many managers who contribute their time, money and effort to making us a great league.
What part of running the league do you enjoy most? Seeing grown men on a baseball field having a blast.
Do you still play in the league? Yes, I still play in all three divisions. My knee hurts just typing that…lol
What is the history of your league team’s participation in any MSBL national tournaments? We regularly send at least three teams to MSBL tournaments every year and have had a lot of success including dozens of rings that I am aware of (mostly through Noah Clark’s teams) but also a recent father/son team run by Jim Cooney.
What would you say are the most important accomplishments in your league? I’d say maintaining a league that offers very competitive baseball while also maintaining a high degree of congeniality. Most of the players have played for multiple teams and have friends throughout the league.
How valuable is your relationship with MSBL? I think MSBL is a great resource for us. From providing affordable insurance, to access to incredible tournaments, to providing us with interested players.
What advice would you give to new league presidents? I’d tell them to work hard to bring great people into the league and to give them a stake in its success. Good managers are critical to the league’s success and having good people to act as ambassadors to the league will always help you to grow.
How important is family support? Family support is critical to a league’s success. Most of our players are married and many have young children. Families often come to watch their fathers (and in one case their mother) play. Even when they don’t come to the games, they are understanding of their loved one having time to do something they love and to make great friends.