| NBC World Series | |
|---|---|
| Frequency | Annual |
| Location(s) | Wichita, Kansas, USA |
| Inaugurated | August 1935 (Lawrence Stadium, Wichita, Kansas, United States) |
| Most recent | August 2022 (Eck Stadium, Wichita, Kansas, United States) |
| Next event | August 3–12, 2023 (Eck Stadium, Wichita, Kansas, United States) |
| Participants | 16 NBC affiliated amateur teams qualify |
| Organized by | National Baseball Congress |
| Website | nbcbaseball |
The National Baseball Congress World Series or NBC World Series is an annual collegiate and semi-pro baseball tournament held in Wichita, Kansas. Satchel Paige, Don Sutton, Tom Seaver, Ozzie Smith, Tony Gwynn, Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens are just a few of the Major League Baseball stars who have played in the tournament.[1]
When the national tournament started in 1935, participants were primarily town teams and industrial teams. Team rosters featured aging former minor league and major league ballplayers and players ineligible for major league baseball. In the mid-1960s team rosters transitioned to collegiate players, including prospects on the fast path to the major leagues.[2] In 1975, the NBC World Series began recognizing a tournament participant who went on to a major league career as Graduate of the Year.[1]
The first NBC World Series called the "Little World Series" was held August 13–27, 1935 at Lawrence Stadium in Wichita. National Baseball Congress founder Hap Dumont was director of the National Tournament Committee of Wichita that put on the tournament. Thirty-two teams were invited to the first national tournament. A focus was put on diversity with five teams classified as "integrated," one team consisted of Native American players and another of Japanese players.[3]
Future Baseball Hall of Famer Satchel Paige was signed to a $1,000 personal appearance contract for the 1935 tournament. A victim of the baseball color barrier, Paige was not eligible to play minor league or major league baseball. Paige won four games, striking out 60 batters while leading the Bismarck Churchills to the first NBC World Series championship. He was named MVP of the tournament.
Dumont recruited Baseball Hall of Fame member Honus Wagner as the guest of honor at the 1935 opening night banquet. In addition to Wagner, celebrity guests who have been honored at the opening night banquet include: Stan Musial, Mickey Mantle, Dizzy Dean, Connie Mack, Allie Reynolds, Fred Clarke and Rin Tin Tin.[4]
Teams bolstered by military service players dominated the WWII (1943–1945) and Korean War (1952–1955) tournaments. During these eras, major league players were serving at military bases across the country and playing for the base teams. 1953 World Series MVP Billy Martin played in the 1954 NBC World Series with the Goodland, Kansas Tigers. A new rule making major league "name" stars unavailable in National Baseball Congress tournaments was implemented following the 1955 NBC World Series.[5]
Notably, the Santa Barbara Foresters and the Seattle Studs have made up one or both of the teams in every championship game since 2005, save for 2007, 2009, 2017, and 2024.