March 27th, 2020

The DC Grays of the Cal Ripken Collegiate Baseball League are one of nine teams featured in a new book about wood bat summer college baseball.
​
Will Geoghan, an award-winning reporter for several New England newspapers, spent a day with the DC Grays in the summer of 2016 as part of his reporting for his new book Summer Baseball Nation (University of Nebraska Press). On Friday, July 22, he saw Grays players host a clinic for Dc youth baseball players, saw the DC Grays RBI boys baseball team play in the MLB Regional RBI tournament in Maryland, and watched the DC Grays defeat the Baltimore Dodgers 12-2 at the Washington National Youth Baseball Academy.

​“That was a full day,” said Mike Barbera, President of DC Grays Baseball. “Will got to see the Grays win a big game on the field, and also the big impact we are having in the community with DC Grays RBI. I think he got a real sense for what we are all about.”

Along with the Grays of the Ripken League, the book also features teams from the Cape Cod League, the Northwoods League, the Alaska Collegiate League, the New England Collegiate Baseball League, the California Collegiate League, the Coastal Plains League.

The DC Grays are the only summer college baseball team that also partners with Major League Baseball on its landmark Reviving Baseball in the Inner-city (RBI) program. The Grays have operated DC Grays RBI since 2016 and now serve over 250 kids each summer with house baseball and softball leagues, as well as three travel teams that represent DC in regional tournaments. In 2019 the Grays were recognized in the Congressional Record for their DC Grays RBI program and their other community initiatives.

More information about Summer Baseball Nation, including how to order a copy, can be found here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1496213998/ref=rdr_ext_tmb