Santos: SBL to have 2023 season

Saipan Baseball League president Jay Santos poses at the Francisco “Tan Ko” M. Palacios Baseball Field. (MARK RABAGO)

Saipan Baseball League president Jay Santos assured fans of America’s pastime that there will finally be a 2023 Saipan Baseball League season early next year.

“We want to get an announcement out to everybody that the Saipan Baseball League will be organizing a league by the end of January or early February.”

Aside from the men’s league, Santos said SBL is looking to also organize a U18 and U15 league to develop the island’s up-and-coming baseball players. 

“We’re asking the community to start getting ready for those that want to field teams. In preparation for the league, now’s the time to get started,” he said.

The SBL head added that aside from the men’s, U18, and U15 leagues, they’re also keen in starting an interscholastic league for high school baseball players.  

“What we hope to do is get together with PSS Athletic Program director Nick Gross and see if we can form an inter-scholastic baseball league…I’m gonna hopefully meet with him sooner or later and see if we can organize high school baseball teams… Because that’s something missing in the sports calendar,” said Santos.

Admittedly, he said baseball kind of died down after the CNMI took the gold medal in the Northern Marianas Pacific Mini Games 2022 back in June.

Santos, however, said the plan all along is to start the SBL season in early 2023.

“It’s fine because we had expected it to be in the context of the normal season usually starting in February anyway…we have a nice baseball field now. That’s a good field and we’ve got to figure out ways to get with the Northern Marianas Sports Association to maximize and work closely with them in the maintenance of the field.”

Santos said SBL is also looking to partner with corporate sponsors to support the league.

“We’re going to be reaching out to not only those that want to sponsor teams, but also sponsor the league itself…I believe in the past it was like IT&E. We had stuff like that. But we’re putting those packages together now and we’re hoping that we’re gonna get strong sponsorship to support the league…Not only for our men’s league but also for our youth leagues.”

The league has been dormant the past couple of years due to Super Typhoon Yutu in 2018 and the COVID-19 pandemic that reached the CNMI’s shores in early 2020.

In fact, SBL was in the middle of its best-of-five championship series pitting the Chalan Kanoa Bears and Go See Mark when the Category 5 typhoon hit the island on Oct. 25, 2018.  

The Bears actually took the opener against Go See Mark, 8-5, on Oct. 22 or a few days before Yutu slammed Saipan and Tinian. 

The Category 5 typhoon left the Francisco “Tan Ko” M. Palacios Baseball Field unplayable with the bleacher crumpled, the bases and ground washed out, and the lights and nets broken.

The SBL later awarded the 2018 championship to the Bears by virtue of their Game 1 win.