Summer Leagues
The unpaid, amateur baseball players involved have attended at least one year of college and have at least one year of athletic eligibility remaining. To find a collegiate summer team, they work with their college coaches and prospective teams' general managers. They report to summer leagues after completing the spring season with their collegiate teams. Some players arrive late due to their college team's postseason play, which sometimes runs into early June. Most amateur leagues use wooden baseball bats and operate from early June to early August.
In some cases, players are drafted during the collegiate summer season. These draftees can remain with their collegiate summer team until they sign a professional contract. During the season, players are housed by volunteer host families and bused to and from road games. The leagues vary greatly in their attendances, quality of play, and ability to attract scouts. The amount of coverage that a league receives from baseball media outlets is one way of gauging its quality. There are 3 major media outlets that cover a majority of the leagues, Baseball America, Our Sports Central, and Ballpark Digest.
Several leagues play under organized nonprofit organizations, run by a number of officers and directors from all parts of the United States. These volunteers help keep the organization running smoothly, as regional and national championship tournaments are held coast to coast.