Women's Professional Baseball League to play first season in Illinois

The Women's Professional Baseball League announced that it will play its inaugural season in 2026 at Robin Roberts Stadium in Springfield, Ill.

The first season will include four teams: Boston, Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco. The league said it wanted a neutral venue in the middle of the country, and Springfield was also the site of the first game in which women were paid to play baseball in 1875.

"Robin Roberts Stadium not only offers a central, strategic location with convenient access to Chicago O'Hare and St. Louis international airports but is a first-rate venue where WPBL teams will be the only baseball played during our season," the league said in a statement.

Robin Roberts Stadium, named after the Pro Baseball Hall of Fame member, has a seating capacity of 5,200. In addition to a new video board beyond the outfield, the league said additional renovations are planned for the stadium ahead of the start of the season. That's scheduled for August following the conclusion of the season for the Springfield Lucky Horseshoes of the Prospect League.

"The WPBL will rewrite history by creating an elite league that provides the world's best female players with the platform they deserve and serve as a catalyst for the creation of a women's baseball culture in America," the league said in a statement.

More than 600 players attended a tryout at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C., in August, with 130 eligible to be selected in Thursday's live draft. Among them are former Little League World Series star Mo'ne Davis and current Savannah Bananas player Kelsie Whitmore.

Ayami Sato, a pitcher for Japan's women's national team, and former Toronto Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston will serve as special advisors to the WPBL.

"I am so excited that there will finally be a professional women's baseball league -- it is a dream come true for all the girls and women who play America's Pastime," league co-founder Justine Siegal said.

--Field Level Media