A True History of the DBL Baseball League
In 1993, while stationed at Bitburg AB, Germany, a man known as Dave Little, with a case of Heineken on his third floor balcony, began to suck down a few of those Heines while sitting at his 386 computer (yes a 386) and playing his favorite game of all games, Earl Weaver Baseball. After a few bottles, he began to realize playing Earl Weaver Baseball by himself was rather lonely. So before he sank into a state of depression at this realization, a brillant idea popped into his head! He began to say to himself, "There must be others out there who might have a strange obsession with baseball stats".
So began his quest to find others like him. It didn't take long for Dave to find the subjects he was looking to join his little simulated baseball league. The clues were all around him, look for the guys who wear MLB memorabilia. He saw the sucker with the Mets hat in his apartment complex. He heard the kid with the New England accent, most likely a Boston Red Sox fan. Then there was the guy from LA, who has got to be a Dodgers fan. He also made sure to find the one guy who knew nothing about baseball to make his chances of winning a little easier. One by one, he found his required seven managers, to make his eight team league complete.
The first season included a draft, and a quick creation of a constitution to set the standards of the league. Dave was happy, he was no longer a lonely fantasy baseball nerd, he now had other nerds to play his favorite game. As Season 1 ended, his joy was complete as he won the first ever DBL Championship, even though several managers may have thought the game was rigged.
The first six seasons went smoothly, as the core of the managers remained consistent, with only two managers needing to be replaced. It was in Season 6 when life changed for Dave, and the daily operations of the league were moved several apartments down to Michael, who to this day continues the league. It was also in this season when the league was given its official name, DBL Baseball. The DBL acronym stood for "Dave's Baseball League", little did Michael know that the league's acronym would mirror the founding father's initals!
Changes were on the horizon as the popularity of the league (who would have known this would be popular!) was spread across the land. Names were finding themselves on a waiting list. As managers were transferred to new bases, another stepped into place. Yet, the list grew longer, and there was no hope for those waiting to get a team before the Air Force shipped them off. So from Season 7 to 10, the league expanded another eight teams, giving us what we have today. Eventually, Michael had to move and there was a question mark over the league. Would it work from a long distance? The managers wanted to keep it alive. Michael did not know how it work, but he would make it work.
Once the base of operations was moved to Spokane, WA, and the computer was fired up, connected to a phone line and signed up for e-mail, Michael quickly began running seasons, utilizing e-mail, and snail mail for those with no e-mail, to report their stats. The information moved, but moved slowly. Then one day while staring at the magazine rack in the BX, something caught Michael's eye - a magazine on beginning HTML - How to Make A Web Site, and the web design adventure began. The first web site was rather primitive, but it got the job done. As time went by, the site evolved. Soon the software for the game was replaced with a Windows version. Now we have what DBL baseball is today. There has been winning and losing, but the best of the league has been the fun in building friendships through the use of smack talk and entertainment at the expense of the others. You know who are!
This site is dedicated to the original eight owners, although only two remain in the league, for grabbing onto a vision and going with it, for this would not be here today without them.
DBL Baseball
January 2008