A BRIEF HISTORY |
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| In 1999, several parents came up with the idea of starting a full-time travel team in Glenview. Jim McManus and Paul Stevens led this push, and their goal was to start a full-time program at the 10 year-old level. While some had tried before to get this program started, they had the will to see it through and gained the agreement of Glenview Youth Baseball. They would be a GYB team, but they would also be the first full-time travel team in GYB.
That year they saw great success not only in their record, but how they were received. It went so well that in 2000 another full-time travel team was added. This team, which started at the 13 year-old level, was called the Storm. In 2000, the 11 year-old team, now in it’s second season, was another huge success. They would finish the year placing 3rd at the USSSA World Series in Overland Park, KS. The 13 year-old team had its struggles as they found out that starting at a later age was indeed a difficult thing to do. One thing was for sure, full-time travel was going to be very popular in Glenview. Unfortunately, the program suffered a loss during the next season. John Lichtenheld, a Storm player, passed away. GYB honors John’s memory each year by awarding one player at each level, including the Blaze, who best stands for the principles that John showed: team leadership, sportsmanship, positive attitude, effort, and consistency.2001 brought a third team to the Glenview Blaze. This team, managed by Rick Pullano, started at the 10 year-old level and hoped to grow as a team over the years. Again, all three teams enjoyed a wonderful season. This year brought the first graduates of the Glenview full-time travel program. These players went on to perform at the highest standards at Glenbrook South, Loyola, and Evanston high schools and a few even went on to play in college. You can view the Blaze Alumni page for a complete listing of players that have come through our program and gone on to play at the next level! Looking back at the first three years, the Blaze Board saw that this was going to be an idea that they could sell and decided to become one group, the Glenview Blaze Travel Baseball Organization. The board also decided to have teams from 10 to 13 years old for the 2002 season. Although they were successful, one goal escaped them. That would be taken care of the very next season. Four years after it started, the Blaze finally had a team at every level from 10 to 14 years old. In fact, they had two teams at the 14 year-old level. The managers guided each of their teams to the most successful season the Blaze has ever had. All six teams combined for 275 wins and 98 losses. The Blaze continues it’s long standing tradition with independent coaches at every level and continued success in the MSBL and various local and national tournaments. Supporting teams at 10, 11, 12, 13, and 14 years old, it is the goal of the Glenview Blaze Travel Baseball Organization to prepare our players for success in all facets of life and to develop them for the next level of their baseball career!
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