Western Major Baseball League

Western Major Baseball League

Western Major Baseball League logo
Sport	Baseball
Founded	1931
No. of teams	12
Country	Canada
Most recent champion(s)	Swift Current 57's
Most titles	Swift Current 57's (5 titles)
Official website	www.wmbl.ca

The Western Major Baseball League or WMBL is a collegiate summer baseball league. The league can trace its roots back to 1931. The current league evolved from several predecessors including The Southern Baseball League, the Northern Saskatchewan Baseball League and Saskatchewan Major Baseball League. The Southern Baseball League existed from 1931 to 1974. The Northern Saskatchewan Baseball League existed from 1959 to 1974. The two leagues merged in 1975 to create the Saskatchewan Major Baseball League. The name was changed to the Western Major Baseball League in 2000 to reflect more teams playing in Alberta, and in the future, British Columbia.

The WMBL is a wood bat league along the lines of such American collegiate circuits as the Cape Cod League, the New England Collegiate Baseball League, the Coastal Plain League, the Northwoods League, the Horizon Air Summer Series, the Pacific International League and the West Coast League.

As of 2015, WMBL Membership consists of 10 teams in two divisions of play. The top three teams in each division plus two wild cards qualify for the post-season. Two new teams began play in the 2016 season, the Brooks Bombers and Fort McMurray Giants.

Former teams include the Saskatoon Yellow Jackets (2014), Sherwood Park Dukes (2008), St. Albert Prospects (2007), Red Deer Generals (2005), Moose Jaw Devons, Oyen Pronghorns, Kindersley Royals, Eston Ramblers (1993), Saskatoon Liners, Saskatoon Nationals, Hazlet Elks (1993), and Unity Cardinals.

Cranbrook, British Columbia was granted an expansion team and will begin play after the city builds a new stadium.

The Saskatchewan Major Baseball League (SMBL) was formed in 1975 as a combination of The Southern Baseball League and North Saskatchewan Baseball League. Three teams from each former league entered the new loop—Eston Ramblers, Saskatoon Royals, and Unity Cardinals from the north and Moose Jaw Devons, Regina Red Sox, and Swift Current Indians from the south.