The newly-formed Diamond Baseball League (DBL) is looking at Columbia as the site for a possible expansion team but needs to develop a stadium worthy of the league’s aspirations.
Matt Perry, DBL co-founder, said the league, which is playing its inaugural season this summer, has had “discussions with people” in Columbia about bringing a team here, “but it does not include us purchasing any land.”
“We would need to develop a facility that meets our needs,” Perry said. “That’s what we’re trying to figure out, if there’s an opportunity to develop a championship stadium that could accommodate a team.”
Perry told COMO Business Times on Thursday that the league has not purchased any land in the Columbia area, adding, “We do have an interest in the market and potentially bringing a team there.”
The DBL formed in late 2025 and is now about halfway through its first season. The Jefferson City Renegades and the Sedalia Bombers, previously members of the MINK baseball league, left that league to join the new DBL. Both the DBL and MINK leagues are billed as professional-grade collegiate summer baseball leagues. The DBL secured its six inaugural markets in Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska, which includes facilities and multi-year stadium leases, according to the DBL’s website. The leadership team includes Bill Davidson and Matt Perry, principals of National Sports Services (www.nsssports.com), Ralph Nelson, a former Major League Baseball executive, and Dan Roman, a certified public accountant.
“We’re halfway through this season,” Perry said. “The play in the field has been very competitive, and for the first year, I think we’ve got a good footprint to keep us growing … I like the markets we’re in, we have really nice facilities, and we’re developing good front office staffs.”
According to the league website, “The league is focused on building a national reputation for player development, professionalism, and fan and community engagement, while replicating the environment of minor league baseball. The league anticipates soon becoming one of the premier and most successful summer collegiate leagues in America.
The MINK league, meanwhile, which is marking its 30th anniversary this summer, welcomed two new teams that replace Jefferson City and Sedalia. One of the new teams, the North Missouri Nattys of Kirksville, play their home games on the full synthetic turf baseball field at Kirksville High School.
