Stevie’s World of Wiffle Ball tournament is raising funds again for Springfield families with children that have special needs. This charitable event is returning for its 21st year, with appearances of actors from two beloved American baseball flicks, both released in 1993:
The Sandlot, and
Rookie of the Year. On average, the tournament attracts around 50 teams. Last year it upped that number to 72, which is no small feat for a grassroots, community organization.
For 2024, they’ve signed up the highest number of teams to date. Eighty wiffle ball teams are slated to play on 18 different fields. Six of which are noteworthy area baseball diamonds which include Day Air Ballpark, home of the Dayton Dragons, Crossley Field, as well as a field designed in the likeness of the one used in
The Sandlot. Stevie’s World of Wiffle Ball begrudgingly had to cap the number of participants at this year's tournament for the sake of time.
The spike in registration may be attributed to several factors. The event has an undeniably worthy cause. Good times are had by participants and attendees of Stevie's World events. This year, 2023's special celebrity guests are returning, and other baseball movies actors will be present as well.
The year 2023 marked the 30th anniversary of The
Sandlot. From its cast, appearances for this year's event will include the actors:
Tom Guiry: “Smalls,” Chauncey Leopardi: “Squints,” Brandon Quintin Adams: “Denunez.”
Sandlot actors enjoyed the community engagement of the whiffle ball tourney so much last year that this year, they helped recruit fellow actors from
Rookie of the Year: Appearing from its cast are: Marty York: “Yeah Yeah,” Grant Gelt: “Bertram,” Thomas Ian Nicholas: “Rowengartner.” The entire group will be signing autographs and meeting fans at CoHatch, located in downtown Springfield, on September 20th at 6PM. They will then play in a game of their own on the 21st at noon.
This annual fundraiser has already helped multiple
beneficiaries throughout its existence thus far, and Stevie's World plans to continue this tradition indefinitely as it grows in contributors and participants.
On Saturday, September 21st, 80 teams will gather at Local 402, 4745 Derr Road. Adult and children’s teams, composed of six players each, are to step up to the plate with an altruistic purpose. The funds collected from this year’s event will support Armi, a 3 year-old diagnosed earlier in the year with B- Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, Kaine, a 4-year-old born with a Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD) in his heart, and Mateo, a 4-year-old born at just 29 weeks with Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome. His condition eventually required an operation, and during his recovery period he suffered a series of small strokes. Mateo had to relearn how to hold his head up, sit, eat, walk, and talk.
There will also be an “Angel In The Outfield,” honoree, Danni Mapp, who was a beneficiary of Stevie’s World of Wiffle Ball last year. Sadly, Danni passed away in June of this year, at the age of 5, and her story can be found on the organization’s
website.
The fundraising wiffle ball tournament was started in1984 when its creator, John Leep, sought a meaningful way to share America’s pass-time with his son, Steve. Current Stevie's World committee members are Leep and his wife, their son and 2 daughters. The Leep family charity project was inspired by a police officer’s fundraising tournament. The Leeps greatly appreciated the altruistic aspect of that tournament and applied the model to Stevie's World Whiffle Ball Tournament.
“My niece was pretty seriously disabled, and we managed to raise $500 dollars for her to purchase a new wheelchair the following year,” says Leeds. Within the first 12 years of adopting the fundraising model, the Stevie's World all-volunteer-team managed to raise, and donate, over $20,000 to local charities in Springfield. These organizations generally work to serve or support children with special needs in the extended Springfield community.
What’s more, Stevie’s World of Wiffle Ball plans to add a new signature field honoring Rockwood Field, of Birmingham Alabama. It is the oldest professional baseball park in the United States, and original home of the Negro Leagues. The signature fields will be denoted by use of fabricated replica scoreboards as well as other unique custom-made features.
One of the ways the event will raise money is by raffling off signed baseballs from two of the last surviving members of the original Negro League: 99 year-old veteran Bill Greason and 96 year-old Ron Teasley. The autographed baseballs were sent to John Leep directly through the mail from the legends themselves.
Along with the $120 registration fee for teams, and the signed baseballs, there are other ways which more funds were already, or will be, taken in to support the cause. This includes multiple raffle prizes beyond the aforementioned baseballs. Also, a whopping 70 businesses in and around Springfield have signed on as event sponsors.
The annual Stevie’s World of Wiffle Ball fundraiser is set to be an exciting day of community support and whiffle ball. To donate, volunteer, or for more information, follow
this link or go to their
Facebook page. With fewer than 20 volunteers of trusted acquaintances and friends of the Leep family, they hope to gather more in anticipation of what John Leep calls a “parking nightmare.”
For those who plan on attending, it is noted that once the park is full and Derr Road is lined with cars, Northridge United Methodist Church will offer their parking spaces for attendees. Last year there were an estimated 2,000 participants and attendees. That number is anticipated to increase considering the increase in number of teams and attending celebrities. Be sure to plan ahead!