Today it was announced that the inspirations from the Windy City, Jackie Robinson West, will vacate all of its victories from this summer’s Little League World Series amid accusations of using ineligible players and rezoning of district lines.
As reported by CBSSports.com:
Mountain Ridge Little League of Las Vegas will be handed the US Little League World Series title as a result.
In a statement, Little League International CEO Stephen D. Keener said: “For more than 75 years, Little League has been an organization where fair play is valued over the importance of wins and losses. This is a heartbreaking decision. What these players accomplished on the field and the memories and lessons they have learned during the Little League World Series tournament is something the kids can be proud of, but it is unfortunate that the actions of adults have led to this outcome.
“As our Little League operations staff learned of the many issues and actions that occurred over the course of 2014 and prior, as painful as this is, we feel it a necessary decision to maintain the integrity of the Little League program. No team can be allowed to attempt to strengthen its team by putting players on their roster that live outside their boundaries.”
Little League International determined that Jackie Robinson West used a falsified boundary map for their 2014 tournament, and that JRW officials met with other leagues in Illinois District 4 to try to get the territory they wrongfully claimed was theirs for their 2014 tournament.
For more on this story, read here.
