Windermere Little League cancels its regular season

Due to safety concerns caused by COVID-19, the league announced Friday night that it was canceling the season.

By Troy Herring
| 10:39 a.m. May 16, 2020

Sports

The Windermere Little League regular season is officially over.

In a Facebook post on Friday night, the league announced that it would be canceling the baseball and softball season due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The decision to cancel the season was difficult, but it was being done in the interest of safety and because of the uncertainty of when — and if — recreation sports will be cleared to play, the post said.

“The WLL Board of Directors has been monitoring the impacts of COVID-19,” the league said in the post. “After pausing for the last two weeks to evaluate the current environment, possible playing options, steps we would need to implement to manage safety and solicit input from local government and health leaders, the WLL Board of Directors has made the decision to cancel the remainder of our Spring 2020 Regular Season.”

The call to end the season comes just over two weeks after Little League canceled its World Series and Regionals for the first time in its history.

Before the cancelation of the WLL season, the league said it had already spent money on the usual needs to operate during a season — uniforms were distributed, supplies were received for fields and equipment, et cetera — and that’s part of why WLL will be offering players and immediate family members a 25% discount for either the Fall 2020 or Spring 2021 season.

Though the season is now officially over, the league hopes that they’ll be able to hold Little League Sandlot days at some point, which is a much less structured offering where children can play pick-up games. The league said it would be able to put on the pick-up games given it is safe to play in a group setting, while also getting approval to access their fields.

“Although our fields will be dark this season, we want to thank each and every one of you who continue to support what we believe is the best Little League in Florida,” the league said in the post. “For those players and families who are returning next season, we can’t wait to see you all.”