Rookie League/RBI 2008
The Twins Community Fund will host the Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities (RBI) Midwest Region Tournament Friday, July 18 through Sunday, July 20 at fields in Minneapolis and St. Paul.
The tournament will bring together youth baseball teams from the Minneapolis, St. Paul, Beloit, Chicago, Denver, Kansas City, Milwaukee, Seattle, Dedalia and St. Louis. Tournament games will be held at Dunning Fields in St. Paul and Neiman Fields and Parade Stadium in Minneapolis. Minneapolis and St. Paul also will enter one all-star team in each tournament division comprised of youth from the Minneapolis and St. Paul Twins RBI summer youth baseball leagues.
The tournament has three divisions including the girls softball division, the junior boys for 13-15 year olds and senior boys for 16-18 year olds. Winners from each division will advance to the RBI World Series in August at Major League Baseball's Urban Youth Academy in Compton, Calif.
Twins RBI is operated in partnership with Major League Baseball and the Minneapolis and St. Paul Parks and Recreation departments. The Twins Community Fund donated more than $120,000 in cash support to the Minneapolis and St. Paul Parks and Recreation departments to operate Twins RBI programs in 2008.
In addition, each city will receive grant of $10,000 to assist in renovation of baseball and softball fields. Another $35,000 in support will enable the cities to host the 2008 RBI Regional Championship Tournament, and offer an advanced baseball camp for RBI participants featuring Twins players and coaches.
In 1996, Baseball Hall of Famers Dave Winfield and Kirby Puckett founded the Rookie League after they were shocked to learn how few inner-city youth were playing baseball. The Twins Rookie League is for youth ages 8-12, living in Minneapolis and St. Paul.
RBI is a worldwide, Major League Baseball initiative for youth ages 13-18. Founded in 1989, the program is designed to promote baseball and softball in inner cities, while also increasing self-esteem and encouraging academic participation and achievement. RBI serves more than 125,000 youth in 175 cities. In Minneapolis and St. Paul, the Twins RBI, serves more than 6,000 youth.
The Twins Community Fund is a private, nonprofit organization whose mission is to enrich local and regional communities by providing resources for the healthy development of children and families through an association with baseball, softball and the Minnesota Twins.
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