Venezuelan Summer League


The Venezuelan Summer League was a Minor League Baseball rookie-level circuit which operated as Major League Baseball academies in the Venezuelan state of Carabobo. The VSL was created in 1997 as an alternative to the Dominican Summer League to improve the development of young prospects from Venezuela in their early years in organized baseball. Besides Carabobo, the states of Aragua, Lara and Yaracuy were represented in the league.
Political instability in the region led to all the MLB teams pulling their affiliates out of the country and the league shutting down before the 2016 season.

Playoffs

The regular season champion and the league runner-up played a best-of-three-games playoff series for the league championship. The league was closed to all MLB Draft eligible players, e.g., players from the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico, with the exception of two players from Puerto Rico.
Over the years there have been players from Argentina, Colombia, Curaçao, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Sint Maarten and Venezuela.

Roster restrictions

Each team had a roster limit of 35 active players, at least 10 of which had to be pitchers. No player on the active list could have more than four years of minor league service. There were no age limits.

Teams

Champion teams