VERMONT — Vermont American Legion officials last week called off this summer’s Legion baseball season, citing both health concerns and financial issues. 
The final decision was announced this past Thursday and followed the cancellation earlier this month of Legion baseball regional tournaments and its national championship American Legion World Series. Other states had also reportedly canceled summer play.
Addison County’s team had been slated to move to the Southern Division this summer to better balance the number of teams in the state’s Northern and Southern divisions. 
The state Legion office notified its posts of the decision in an April 23 letter from Vermont American Legion Department Commander Ron LaRose. 
The letter noted posts that supported teams were facing financial hardships because they were closed and unable to serve food and beverages to members in recent weeks, and thus lacked funds to support the Legion’s baseball program, which typically begins in mid-June and concludes with a late-July state tournament. 
LaRose also noted that athletes would not be prepared for the Legion season without first playing high school or college baseball, raising the possibility of injury, and that many of the school fields used by Legion teams were not being maintained and would have required additional preparation.