UNDATED – Just a day after giving teams a green light, the American Legion National Headquarters decided to suspend all of the remaining 25 states from American Legion Baseball play this summer.
That came as a surprise to the Chairman of the South Dakota American Legion Athletic Commission.
Dan Sudbeck says “on Saturday, the American Legion Athletic Commission had a special meeting to determine the fate of our baseball season. After a two hour discussion, it was decided to proceed with a season with some guidelines.”
But then, an email came down on Sunday saying headquarters was suspending play.
It means that all states are not allowed to have organized seasons run by the American Legion programs in that state.
It doesn’t mean teams can’t play, but it says they won’t be sponsored by legion baseball. In other words, teams are on their own if they decide to play games this summer.
Some teams, like Rapid City Post 22 and Post 320 had already started some limited practice with hopes of at least some sort of season.
Both Rapid City Post 22 and 320 programs had indicated that if there would be no official American Legion season, they would still play. Sunday’s decision from national headquarters has not changed that attitude.
South Dakota coaches have a meeting this week where they will discuss playing this summer without legion sponsorship.
