Please send your complaint via email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..  

IMPORTANT:   People need to be aware of a serious shortage in umpires around the area.  This shortage is VERY real!   Also, depending on the time of year, many of the IHSA umpires may be working high school games and/or regional games.  

We have a few good years with Sports Engine (SE).  However, in late 2023, Sports Engine sunset their "Sports Management" tool in favor of a "Season Management" tool.   After investigating the new release from Sports Engine, we recognized that the platform no longer aligned with SWIBL's operating model.  There were too many issues to make it work.  

Due to the numerous issues, a decision was made to go back to a "custom" solution developed in-house.  This gives us a solution that will allow for cross-divisional play, a simpler UX (user interface - hopefully) greater reporting and much more.

The swibl-baseball.org domain will continue to exist for the near future.  The old side will remain active for several more weeks at which time, requests to swibl-baseball.org will be redirected to our new site at swibl.org.

If there are any additional questions, please reach out to SWIBL by emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

As a league, it is our goal to place teams of like kind and quality together.  When trying to determine where your team best fits refer to the following descriptions:

Red:  This is for a true Select Baseball team.  These teams generally play in 2-3 tournaments per month and host a tryout every year with the objective of looking for the best of the best regardless of what town or school the kids are from

White:  This group is normally comprised of a group of kids from the same neighborhood, school, town, etc.  While they may host a tryout each year they generally are doing so looking to replace one or two kids.  This group will play in 1-2 tournaments a month and then focus is not solely dedicated to winning.

Blue:  Generally teams coming in to SWIBL for the first time from park and rec leagues should start in this group.  These teams are comprised of kids from same neighborhood, school, town, etc...and their objective is just for the kids to have fun.  These teams generally are not the most talented around.

SWIBL allows the following baseballs for league play:  Rawlings ROLB1, Rawlings R100P, Wilson A1010, Wilson A1010S, Diamond DOL.  Baseballs can be sourced from wherever a team chooses.

No.  SWIBL policy is not to sell, or provide, contact information to any company including our league sponsors.   Additionally, no phone numbers or emails are publicly displayed on our website.  Only individuals who may have a need to know have access to that data.

Coaches have the autonomy to manage their team the way that they feel is best.  This includes player selection, batting lineups, fielding positions, roster, practices, etc.  SWIBL does not have any role in the overall management, construction or structure of a team.  SWIBL limits their involvement with team issues only when there are legal questions involved or if parents feel their child is at risk.

Depends.  The total number of league games is normally determined by the number of teams within a given age/division.  Our target is between 15-20 games for 9U-14U and roughly 32 games for 7U and 8U.  In addition, teams should factor in the League Championships which occur at the end of the season.  That could be up to an additional 4-5 games.

NOTE:  7U and 8U, we target roughly around 16 dates (8 home, 8 away) and each date is a double header.  7U and 8U games are one hour in length. 

Teams have complete discretion on the total number of games they play during a season.   Some teams may play just the league games and 2-3 tournaments for a total of around 30-40 games.  Other teams may choose to play 40+ games.   It is completely at the teams (and parents) discretion on the number of games a team plays.

League play usually starts mid-to-late March/early April and runs through early July.   All games should be scheduled/played before July 3rd (in most cases) prior to the start of the League Championships.   The League Championship tournament will run immediately following the July 4th holiday.   Each year the actual dates will vary based on what day July 4th falls on.

The league fees are due at the first league meeting usually held in late NOVEMBER or early DECEMBER.    Arrangements can be made in advance to delay payment if a team is not capable of making payment at this meeting.   These arrangements have to be made directly with the League Commissioner. 

NOTE:  A team's position in the league is NOT guaranteed until ALL FEES are paid. 

No.   Fields are the responsibility of the team.   The league does not schedule fields for teams or helps secure the fields on behalf of a team or a club.  Teams are responsible for locating the fields where they will play their home games.  In addition, teams are responsible for all costs for the usage of the fields.   Costs will vary depending on the venues.

NOTE:  While SWIBL does not provide access to the fields in the region, we do have relationships with various parks and recreation departments and can provide teams with contacts for certain venues.  You can email the league and someone will respond if we have a contact for a specific venue.

We would estimate that most team's budget may be between $3000-$4000 per year; however, it really depends on the team themselves.  The following are examples of possible items that factor into the overall budget for a team:

• Uniforms
• Equipment (baseballs, bats, batting nets, etc.)
• Batting cage rental
• Indoor practice facility charges over winter
• Total games played (both league and non-league)
• Total # of tournaments played

The cost for an individual family can be offset via fundraisers or team sponsors.  

NOTE:  SWIBL places no regulations on team budgets nor does the league get involved in the financial management of the teams.