A Baseball/Softball Steering Committee made up of parents, coaches and community members, was formed under the direction of the Warrensburg Parks and Recreation Park Board.

Its purpose was to evaluate and make recommendations to ensure the current Park’s and Recreation baseball and softball programs fit the current needs of the community. Wednesday, Sept. 27, the Steering Committee presented the framework of its plan to the Warrensburg Parks and Recreation Board.

Under these recommendations, the Warrensburg Parks and Recreation Board voted unanimously to leave the current baseball and softball league it participates in called the “Shippy League” and to task the committee to finish developing the new program it has been working on creating.

The new program is designed to better serve their patrons and address more needs of the youth in the community and potentially Central Missouri. This program will initially include two leagues: Recreational Developmental League (RDL) and Next Level League (NLL).

The new Baseball/Softball program will adopt the USSSA Baseball & Softball rules as a governing body while developing a tier system for skill advancement. The new RDL will be designed to create or improve skill sets and build a foundational knowledge for the sport. The goal of the new NLL will be to help those with an increased level of skill and participate in a semi-competitive league while elevating skill sets and personal improvement.

The Parks and Recreation Board directed the Baseball/Softball Steering Committee to proceed with working with the WPR Recreation Committee to plan and implement the newly approved leagues with more information to follow and sign-ups to begin early in 2018.