Baseball Set to Return to Lowell for the Summer of 2026

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Lelacheur Park was the place to be on Wednesday. Why? Because a major announcement took place that should have plenty of baseball fans in the area happy. The Futures Collegiate Baseball League, founded back in 2011, is heading to LeLacheur Park for the summer of 2026. In a partnership with UMass Lowell, the league will add a seventh team to its roster for next summer.

The league has teams based in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Connecticut. It provides college players with a chance to improve their skills in front of local fan bases and professional scouts. To date, 300 players from the FCBL have been drafted by MLB organizations since 2011. The league was the brainchild of Drew Weber, who was in attendance for Wednesday’s announcement. He was also the owner of the Lowell Spinners when they were associated with the short-season New York Penn League. A short-season league for players who were just drafted into pro ball. That league was dissolved back in 2020 by MLB. Since then, no summer baseball has been in Lowell until now. Mr Weber was asked if he ever thought summer baseball would return to Lowell. His answer was “I did think it would return”. He was also asked how he felt about the end of the New York Penn League. He said, “I was angry at MLB for the contraction of the league”.

As is the case at events like this, plenty of people took to the stage on the third-base side of home plate to thank as many people as possible for the contract signing that took place. UMass Lowell Chancellor Julie Chen spoke about being “Excited to bring summer baseball back to Lowell.” It was a sentiment that was shared by others. The Commissioner of the FCBL, Joe Paolucci, talked about the groundwork that started a few years ago to bring summer baseball to Lowell. He stated he was never worried about “The deal falling apart.”

The plan going forward is to have seven teams play in the league in 2026. Currently, there are six. That number could grow to eight for the 2027 summer season, if the renovations to a ballpark in Pittsfield, MA., are completed. Pittsfield is a member of the league; however, they have not played for a few summers because of the improvements being done. The Commissioner also stated that two more teams could be added to the league down the road, with Rockland, MA. being a possible site. If all of this happens, the Futures League could end up being a 10-team league shortly.

The Lowell team, at the moment, does not have a name or owners. The commissioner said, “He hoped that could be done in a couple of months.” The entrance fee into the league is $250,000. Not exactly cheap. Once the owner is found, an agreement with the school in the form of a lease will be signed. In this league, it is usually a 10 or 20-year lease. The league is a 44-game season, which means 22 home games at Lelacheur Park await fans in the area. The season begins just after Memorial Day and lasts through the middle of August. For coaches of college baseball teams, a max of four players can be put on a Futures League roster. Scheduling for next season should start by the end of October, with the hopes of the schedule being out by Thanksgiving weekend. At that point, the team would begin taking applications for season ticket holders and corporate sponsorship.

There is plenty to like about Wednesday’s announcement. For baseball fans in the Merrimack Valley, the good news is summer baseball is back at Lelacheur Park.