Please open your hearts and share in the dream...

The Babe Ruth League is committed to giving young baseball and softball players a once-in-a-lifetime experience when participating in the World Series events. Part of this experience is giving each team an equal opportunity to travel around the country to participate in these World Series Events, which is why the Babe Ruth League uses the Host Family program to house all of the players during their week long stay.

Host families are the cornerstone of the Cal Ripken World Series and local community involvement. Without these volunteer families, this event would not be able to take place. Hosting the young players who travel to Aberdeen from all over the world serves as a great opportunity to meet new families within the community and to make a lifetime of memories with existing and new friends. Each year, 100 families are needed to house approximately 210 players participating in the tournament.

Several host families are still needed for the 2009 Cal Ripken World Series. We understand that becoming a host family requires a large time commitment with the expectations of: housing and feeding players, laundering uniforms, entertainment during down time, driving to and from practices, games, and activities, and also maintaining a good line of communication with World Series staff. In return, you will receive support from Ripken Baseball and the satisfaction of partaking in the experience of a lifetime.

While a lot is expected of host families, there are many benefits: “adopt” some great kids for 2 weeks…many of our host families still correspond with their former players years later, learn about different cultures, meet new families within Harford County, across the country and across the world, witness some great baseball at a state-of-the-art youth field: Cal Sr.’s Yard, a miniature replica of Oriole Park at Camden Yards.

When you sign up to be a host family, you will be assigned to a team. If you have hosted in the past and would like to remain on your team from last year, this can be arranged – just let us know! Your team leader will contact you to organize travel arrangements, welcome parties, carpooling schedules and other fun activities for the two-week World Series. When applying, each family will have to pass a background check and a home inspection. These processes are not complicated and are for the safety of the children.

For more information about hosting, please contact Kristy Seling at: 410-823-0808 or kseling@ripkenbaseball.com Click Here to read one family's experience of being a host family during the 2004 Cal Ripken World Series. Click banner on right to download the Host Family Brochure (PDF).