The Venezuelan Summer League (VSL) was a professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

league that operated in

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

from 1997 to 2015, primarily in the state of

Carabobo Carabobo State (, ) is one of the 23 states of Venezuela, located in the north of the country, about two hours by car from Caracas. The state capital city is Valencia, which is also the country's main industrial center. The state's area is and ...

. Teams in the league served as academies for

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB) organizations, and were classified at the

Rookie League Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National L ...

level within

Minor League Baseball Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National Le ...

History

The VSL was created in 1997 as an alternative to the

Dominican Summer League The Dominican Summer League (DSL) is a branch of affiliated Minor League Baseball which is played in the Dominican Republic. The league was founded in 1985. After the demise of the Venezuelan Summer League after the 2015 season, it is the only ...

(DSL) to improve the development of young prospects from Venezuela in their early years in organized baseball. Besides

, the states of

Aragua Aragua State (, ) is one of the 23 states of Venezuela. It is located in the north-central region of Venezuela. It has plains, jungles and Caribbean beaches. The most popular beaches are Cata and Choroni. It has Venezuela's first national par ...

Lara Lara may refer to: People * Lara (name), can be a given name or a surname in several languages * Lara (mythology), a naiad nymph, daughter of the river Almo in Ovid's ''Fasti'' Places *Lara (state), a state in Venezuela * Electoral district ...

and

Yaracuy Yaracuy (, ;) is one of the 23 States of Venezuela, states of Venezuela. Yaracuy is located in the Central-Western Region, Venezuela. It is bordered by Falcón State, Falcón in the north, in the west by Lara State, Lara, in the south by Portug ...

were represented in the league. Each team had a roster limit of 35 active players, at least 10 of which had to be

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

s. No player on the active list could have more than four years of minor league service. There were no age limits. The league was closed to all

MLB Draft The Major League Baseball draft (officially the Rule 4 Draft; also known as the first-year player draft or amateur draft) is the primary mechanism by which Major League Baseball (MLB) assigns amateur baseball players from high schools, colleg ...

eligible players; that is, players from the

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Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

and

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

. Exceptions were made for two players from Puerto Rico. In addition to

, players in the league came from

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

Curaçao Curaçao, officially the Country of Curaçao, is a constituent island country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located in the southern Caribbean Sea (specifically the Dutch Caribbean region), about north of Venezuela. Curaçao includ ...

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. It shares a Maritime boundary, maritime border with Puerto Rico to the east and ...

El Salvador El Salvador, officially the Republic of El Salvador, is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south by the Pacific Ocean. El Salvador's capital and largest city is S ...

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

Nicaragua Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the geographically largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, comprising . With a population of 7,142,529 as of 2024, it is the third-most populous country in Central America aft ...

Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...

, and

Sint Maarten Sint Maarten () is a Countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands located in the Caribbean region of North America. With a population of 58,477 as of June 2023 on an area of , it encompasses ...

. The regular season champion and runner-up played a best-of-three-games playoff series for the league championship. The league had six squads in its first season, 1997, via three teams fielding split-squads. By 1999, the league had grown to 10 individual teams, and had nine teams as late as 2007. The league reduced to four teams in 2012, played the next two seasons with five teams, and was again reduced to four teams in 2015. Political instability in the region led to more teams opting out before the 2016 season, resulting in the league shutting down. After the suspension of the VSL, the semi-pro Bolivarian League remained as the only summer league in Venezuela (though that would cease operations in 2019). Venezuela would go without a fully-professional summer baseball league until 2021, when the

Venezuelan Major League The Venezuelan Major League, officially the Major League of Professional Baseball ( or LMBP) is a professional baseball league in Venezuela. Unlike the top-level Venezuelan Professional Baseball League, which plays a winter league schedule, the ...

was established.

Teams

1997–2004

Teams during this period were named for the city they operated in.

Single-squad teams

Source:

Split-squad teams

These clubs operated as split-squads, fielding two teams denoted by numbers (e.g. VSL Venoco 1 and VSL Venoco 2). Source:

2005–2015

Teams during this period were named for their affiliated MLB team(s).

Single-affiliate teams

Source:

Cooperative teams

Note that cooperative teams are linked to their respective teams (e.g. VSL Cubs/Twins links to VSL Cubs and VSL Twins). Source:

League champions

* 1997 – VSL Maracay 2 * 1998 – VSL Guacara 1 * 1999 – VSL Chino Canónico * 2000 – VSL San Felipe * 2001 – VSL Venoco * 2002 – VSL Aguirre * 2003 – VSL San Felipe * 2004 – VSL Tronconero 2 * 2005 – VSL Astros * 2006 – VSL Phillies * 2007 – VSL Astros * 2008 – VSL Pirates * 2009 – VSL Rays * 2010 – VSL Pirates * 2011 – VSL Rays * 2012 – VSL Phillies * 2013 – VSL Mariners * 2014 – VSL Tigers * 2015 – VSL Tigers Source:

MLB alumni

VSL players who have gone on to make MLB appearances include: *

Jose Altuve Jose Carlos Altuve (; born May 6, 1990) is a Venezuelan professional baseball second baseman for the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB). Having played for the Astros since 2011, he is the longest-tenured current member of the team, an ...

(HOU) * José Alvarado (TBR) *

Wladimir Balentien Wladimir Ramon "Coco" Balentien (; born July 2, 1984) is a Curaçaoan- Dutch former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners and Cincinnati Reds, and in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB ...

(SEA) *

Asdrúbal Cabrera Asdrúbal José Cabrera (; born November 13, 1985) is a Venezuelan-American former professional baseball infielder. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cleveland Indians, Washington Nationals, Tampa Bay Rays, New York Mets, Phila ...

(SEA) * Ramón Cabrera (PIT) *

Ezequiel Carrera Ezequiel Manuel Carrera Reyes (born June 11, 1987) is a Venezuelans, Venezuelan former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cleveland Indians, Philadelphia Phillies, Detroit Tigers, and Toronto Blue ...

(TOR) * Yonny Chirinos (TBR) *

Argenis Díaz Argenis Díaz (born February 12, 1987) is a Venezuelan former professional baseball shortstop. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2010. Playing career Boston Red Sox Díaz was signed by the Boston Red Sox org ...

(BOS) * Elías Díaz (PIT) *

Félix Doubront Félix Antonio Doubront oo-bront'(born October 23, 1987) is a Venezuelan pitcher for the Caliente de Durango of the Mexican League. He has previously played in Major League Baseball for the Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Toronto Blue Jays and ...

(BOS) * Luis Durango (SDP) * Sergio Escalona (PHI) *

Eduardo Escobar Eduardo José Escobar (born January 5, 1989) is a Venezuelan-American professional baseball third baseman who is a free agent. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago White Sox, Minnesota Twins, Arizona Diamondbac ...

(CWS) *

Víctor Gárate Víctor J. Gárate (born September 25, 1984) is a Venezuelan former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Washington Nationals, in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters ...

(HOU) * Avisail García (DET) * Severino González (PHI) * Mayckol Guaipe (SEA) * Jesús Guzmán (SEA) * César Hernández (PHI) * Oscar Hernández (TBR) * Dilson Herrera (PIT) * Edgar Ibarra (MIN) * Gregory Infante (CWS) *

Dixon Machado Dixon Javier Machado Moreno (born February 22, 1992) is a Venezuelan professional baseball shortstop in the Chicago Cubs organization. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Detroit Tigers and San Francisco Giants, and ...

(DET) * Jean Machi (PHI) * Germán Márquez (TBR) * David Martínez (HOU) * Yoervis Medina (SEA) * Diego Moreno (PIT) * Omar Narváez (TBR) *

Ángel Nesbitt Ángel Ladimir Nesbitt (born December 4, 1990) is a Venezuelan professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Detroit Tigers. Career Detroit Tigers Nesbitt was signed by the De ...

(DET) * Lester Oliveros (DET) * José Ortega (DET) * Hernán Pérez (DET) * Erasmo Ramírez (SEA) *

Wilking Rodríguez Wilking José Rodríguez Carrasco (born March 2, 1990) is a Venezuelan professional baseball pitcher in the New York Yankees organization. In 2007, Rodríguez signed with the Tampa Bay Rays as an international free agent. He has previously playe ...

(TBR) * Bruce Rondón (DET) * Josmil Pinto (MIN) * José Quintana (NYM) *

J. C. Ramírez Juan Carlos Ramírez (born August 16, 1988) is a Nicaraguan professional baseball pitcher for the York Revolution of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Phill ...

(SEA) * Felipe Rivero (TBR) * Miguel Rojas (CIN) *

Jorge Rondón Jorge Leonardo Rondón Hernandez (born February 16, 1988) is a Venezuelan professional baseball pitcher for the Senadores de Caracas of the Venezuelan Major League. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardin ...

(STL) * Rómulo Sánchez (PIT) * Eduardo Sánchez (STL) *

Eugenio Suárez Eugenio Alejandro Suárez (born July 18, 1991) is a Venezuelan professional baseball infielder for the Arizona Diamondbacks of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Detroit Tigers, Cincinnati Reds, and Seattle Mari ...

(DET) *

Rubén Tejada Rubén Darío Tejada (born October 27, 1989) is a Panamanian professional baseball shortstop for the Olmecas de Tabasco of the Mexican League. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Mets, St. Louis Cardinals, San ...

(NYM) * Ronald Torreyes (CIN) * Wilfredo Tovar (NYM) * Luis Valbuena (SEA) *

Felipe Vázquez Felipe Javier Vázquez ( Rivero, born July 5, 1991) is a Venezuelan professional baseball pitcher for Marineros de Carabobo of the Venezuelan Major League. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2015 to 2019 for the Washington Nationals a ...

(TBR) * Brayan Villarreal (DET) Note: team affiliations reflect a player's organization while in the VSL; the player may have reached MLB with a different franchise.

References

External links

Official website
archived March 2016 via

Wayback Machine The Wayback Machine is a digital archive of the World Wide Web founded by Internet Archive, an American nonprofit organization based in San Francisco, California. Launched for public access in 2001, the service allows users to go "back in ...

VSL Encyclopedia and History
at Baseball-Reference.com {{Professional Baseball Venezuelan Summer League Minor league baseball leagues Baseball leagues in Venezuela Sports leagues established in 1997 Sports leagues disestablished in 2015 1997 establishments in Venezuela 2015 disestablishments in Venezuela Defunct baseball leagues