News

The Florida Collegiate Summer League is back in full swing for the 2025 summer, and the Winter Park Diamond Dawgs look to get back to the top of the league and capture another Florida League title. The Leesburg Lightning have won each of the last two championships in both 2024 and 2023. However, the Diamond Dawgs are no stranger to the top of the league’s standings. Winter Park captured an FCSL title in both 2022 and 2019, giving them two titles in the past six seasons. 

Winter Park looks to get back on track after finishing last in the standings a season ago with a 12-23 record. The head coach for the Diamond Dawgs this season is Jim Newlin, who is entering his third season as the team’s lead man, and has helped lend a helping hand in the Diamond Dawgs 2019 Florida League title as an assistant coach. Newlin is assisted by two other coaches, Mike Baio and Brandon Burgess. The General Manager for the team this year is Ryan Missigman, who attends Rollins College and plays baseball under coach Newlin. He is assisted by four other interns who will be tasked with ensuring the 2025 season runs smoothly. 

As for the Diamond Dawgs players, there are 31 guys on the active roster, and eight of them are returning to the Florida League from previous seasons. The team has acquired two players via trade, and consists of 13 pitchers and 18 position players. Player bios on each individual player, his college, 2024 season stats, and more will be released in the coming days! We are so excited to welcome the 2025 edition of the Winter Park Diamond Dawgs to the Florida League, and returner or not, it’s bound to be a fun and exciting summer for all those that get to play a part.

The Diamond Dawgs play all of their home games at Alfond Stadium, located at 801 Aragon Ave in Winter Park, FL, which is located on the beautiful Rollins College campus. Winter Park will open its season at Alfond Stadium on Friday, May 30 at 6:00 PM against the DeLand Suns. Opening weekend will feature a three-game set between DeLand with the first two being played at Alfond Stadium. 

During the first month of the season, the Diamond Dawgs will play 13 home games before the calendar turns over to July. July fourth weekend is a great opportunity to come and support, as the team will play on both the third and fifth of July. On the third, Winter Park will travel to take on the Orlando Snappers, and on the fifth, it’s another away game against Leesburg. 

The regular season of the Florida League will conclude on July 19th. Winter Park’s last series takes place against the Winter Garden Squeeze, a three-game set that includes the final two games of the Diamond Dawgs season being at Alfond Stadium. 

The FCSL playoffs will begin the 21st of July, and the championship round takes place July 26-28, if the Diamond Dawgs are fortunate enough to get that far. The Florida League is a great opportunity to support the local community as we are a 501-C-3 nonprofit that provides valuable experience to collegiate baseball players in a wood bat league that will help develop their professionalism and get them ready for the next level of their playing career. 

Coming out to any of the games is a great way to support the local Winter Park Community, and we are thrilled to be getting the chance to host any potential spectators this summer!

TJ French (University of Georgia)