An important message from MSBL World Series Tournament Director Tom Prendergast
Greetings to all 2026 MSBL WS Players,
For the past 38 years, the MSBL Boys of Summer have traveled to the Valley of the Sun to play baseball – in and around the city of Phoenix, Arizona- during the months of October and November.
This will be year 39, and for a lot of us, we wouldn’t know what to do with ourselves if we weren’t at the MSBL World Series in the Fall. One could argue that this has become a way of life for many MSBL players.
Our kids have grown up around us, hanging out at the ball park, and now they are bringing their kids to the games. Our Adam Sigler Father & Son division teams feature many 3-generational teammates.
Ever since Val Lewis proposed this division to MSBL President Steve Sigler, it’s been one of our most popular divisions. Fathers and sons, daughters, brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews, aunts and uncles, and of course – grandpas. It’s certainly become somewhat of a family affair.
To keep our age groups competitive, we offer several different levels of play. We also have divisions for ex-professional players to participate in. Needless to say, there’s a ton of paperwork that’s required by the National Office, and most of our team managers do a fantastic job of recruiting, forming, and organizing the team months before the players arrive in Arizona.
A couple of years ago, we instituted a rule for all MSBL World Series players that requires them to have a government-issued, current photo ID with them at the ballpark. We did this for a couple of different reasons, the most obvious being: “Just how old is that guy?” But with the internet just a few clicks away, it’s pretty easy to track down some players’ obscure, minor league stats, in which he might have had a cup-of-coffee playing career. These days it’s kind of difficult to hide from the internet.
So, this is one of those non-negotiable rules. All of our participants must have the photo ID and be ready to provide it at a moment’s notice. The often-used excuse line, “well I must have left it in my hotel room,” doesn’t cut it. Neither will a picture on your iPhone of your photo ID. To play in an MSBL WS game, you must have one, period. Don’t leave home without it. And more than likely, no challenge goes unnoticed, so if your team requests to see an opponent’s ID, be prepared for the comeback request.
Once the tournament gets underway, our WS office at Tempe Diablo Stadium will be open for business.
We are looking forward to seeing everybody in a couple of months at the 39th MSBL World Series!
Tom Prendergast
MSBL WS Tournament Director