A recent trip to the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, was a first for the Hinsdale Little League in a tournament that included 10 U.S. teams and the same number of international teams with players aged 12 and under.
The Hinsdale boys were eliminated with losses in their first two games. However, on a local level, the Hinsdale Little League has easily been the most successful in Illinois. And on a more local level, Hinsdale has been dominant.
Since claiming its first state title in 2017, Hinsdale has added three additional Illinois championships: in 2021, 2022 and 2024.
The first step each year that leads to the Little League World Series is District competition in the state. Hinsdale is in Illinois’ District 11, which this year also included teams from Clarendon Hills, Plainfield, Naperville National, and Naperville Continental leagues.
When Hinsdale claimed the District 11 championship in July it marked the 10th consecutive season in which that was the case and the 13th time in the past 17 summers that Hinsdale was the last team standing when the District 11 tournament finished. The 2024 Little League tournament that led to the Little League World Series started with 80 teams in the 12 and under age group in Illinois, which is what Hinsdale won to advance to the Region tournament in Indiana.
“Hinsdale is very lucky because we are blessed with both great talent and amazing facilities,” Hinsdale Little League President Bill Jaqua said. “However, the passion and energy this community has for the sport pushes these boys to want to work for each other, and that is the ultimate driver behind our track record of success.”
Chad Wanless, manager of this year’s team that advanced to the Little League World Series by winning the State championship and then the Great Lakes Regional in Whitestown, Indiana, said he believes the success of the other recent State champions was a big contributor to the run by the 2024 team.
“This year’s 12U District group watched and aspired to those past-year successes,” Wanless said. “Our players are friends with many of those boys and hoped to follow in their footsteps. And many former players came back to talk to and work with our team, so it is not a single-year journey, but really the past and future coming together for present team’s success.”
Wanless said that he and Jaqua both have sons who played on the Hinsdale 10 and Under team that won a State championship this summer (competition ends at the State level for that age group).
“Most of that 10U group was at our Regional Championship game and are already dreaming of their potential journey in two years,” Wanless said. “What makes it even better is that we have boys from this Little League World Series team already talking about helping future teams get there.”
Illinois State Little League Baseball coordinator Greg White of River Forest said he believes Hinsdale’s run as the top program in the state comes down to the quality of training and coaching the players get.
“Income level is a factor,” he said. “A lot of their boys have their own personal trainers and play together year-round,” White said. “Hinsdale has been strong for a while, and there’s no question that success breeds success.”
Wanless said this year’s World Series team was made up of players from four different travel teams.
“They play Little League together, and the core played together the last three years on the 10U and 11U District teams, but got together as a group the first time this year in late June,” he said. “But all of our kids did play travel ball, and private training comes with most travel programs.”
Chuck Fieldman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
