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JYBSA History

JYBSA Has Been Proudly Serving Janesville's Youth Since 1958

Players line up for JYBSA's first sign up in 1958JYBSA was born in 1958 when a group of men with a goal saw their labors hatch with an eight-team league for boys ages 9-12.

Bob Geise was the man mainly responsible for generating the initial interest in a Janesville Little League program.  "My interest was selfish," Geise recalled.  "I wanted my kids to have an opportunity to be in organized sports."

"Our philosophy was that kids need adult supervision, not just to teach them baseball, but to learn how to function in a competitive atmosphere," said Bob Collins, a Parker Pen employee who served as the first commissioner of the program and was on the board of directors for 21 years.

They contacted the National Association of Little League for help in laying the groundwork for a program in Janesville.  Joe Lustig, the city manager at the time, also encouraged such a plan.

Lustig offered the use of Monterey Park as a site for the games.  Geise assured Lustig the organization would be financially self-sufficient, and it has remained that way to this day.  The group adopted the title Boys Baseball of Janesville, Inc., a non-stock, non-profit corporation complete with officers, a board of directors and committees.

To fill the rosters, tryouts were held on three consecutive Saturdays in April at Monterey Park.  Some 480 boys ages 9 through 12 attended.  About 60 officials and managers judged the boys' talents in base running, batting, fielding, pitching, and throwing.  Because rosters were limited to 15 players per team, with more than half of the players being turned down, Geise knew there would be a lot of disappointment.  "The most important thing is not whether he made the team, but that he did his best," Geise said in a letter to the parents of all the hopefuls.

Our first game was held on June 2, 1958.  Despite the chilly evening, the opening night ceremonies were not dampened with several hundred fans showing up.  Lustig was chosen to throw out the first ball to John Hall, city council president and a member of the Little League Board of Directors.

Today, our program offers T-ball, softball, and baseball to boys and girls in the Janesville area from ages 5 to 15.  Each year, we have roughly 950 players in our programs.  We are proud that we continue to be operated mostly by volunteers.  Although we now have paid employees who take care of our fields and concession stands, we have never had any paid executive or administrative staff, and we have instead always managed the organization through a dedicated volunteer board of directors.  

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