2025 MSBL League Profile: Southern Virginia Adult Baseball League, Mike Fowler, League President
By Steve LaMontia, Director of Communications
The Southern Virginia Adult Baseball League, formerly known as the Blue Ridge Men’s Adult Baseball League, is based out of Roanoke, Virginia, hosting weekly games in the Southwestern to Central Virginia area.
The Southern Virginia Adult Baseball League came into existence back in the 90s as an 18-over league under the supervision of Josh Lester. Josh retired after the COVID year of 2020 and the current league president, Mike Fowler, took over in 2021.
“We are hoping to attract 12 teams this year,” stated Fowler. “We just started a new 35-over division and we anticipate expanding from that, too.”
The Southern Virginia league begins at the end of March and continues into September. We asked Mike what some of the stiffest challenges are as president.
“Number one is finding fields to play on. That is a huge struggle. You also have to take charge and not let the managers control the league. You need to be a leader. The players appreciate that. They just want to come out and play and not worry about anything else.”
Mike is assisted in his duties by vice-president Cliff Cole and his voting and player coordinator Aaron Elliot. When Mike isn’t busy with his duties, he also is the player/manager of the Roanoke Anglers. He began playing in the league in 2010 and also finds time to play in the Central North Carolina MSBL for the Raleigh Red Sox.
“The highlight of my MSBL career in when my team made it to the championship and we were able to play at Pulaski Yankees Stadium.
What is the upside of your list of duties as league President?
“After everything is said and done, we are giving adults an opportunity to continue playing ball. I love experiencing the growth of the league and seeing new players come out to play.
Seeing the games include families is such an important element of what we do. I also appreciate MSBL always being there to help us along the way.”
