Hometown Days Wiffle Ball Championship moves to new complex after finale

The Hometown Days Wiffle Ball Championship closed its run at Migley Field in New Carlisle, and future tournaments will move to a new complex developed with town officials and organizer Koby Keck. The farewell marked the end of nearly two decades of championship baseball at the ballpark known locally as the Friendly Confines and, by organizers, as Mini-Wrigley.

Migley Field was built in 2006 as a tribute to the Chicago Cubs, and it became the home of the New Carlisle Newts and the Hometown Cup Finals for nearly two decades. The championship itself began in 2005, the same year Hometown Days was founded as a three-day summer festival on the last full weekend of July, centered around Memorial Park. What started as a community gathering grew into one of the largest wiffle events in the nation, with teams from across North America coming to New Carlisle to play on what organizers call Wiffle Ball’s Grandest Stage.

The tournament’s format helped fuel that growth. The Championship is a slow-pitch event open to players of all ages and skill levels, with every team guaranteed four games. Sunday playoff berths are determined by the number of teams entered, giving the field room to expand while keeping every bracket tied to the size of the turnout. That structure, along with the festival setting, turned Migley into more than a venue. It became the place where Hometown Days and Wiffle Ball were almost impossible to separate.

The 2026 edition carried the weight of a finale and still delivered one of its signature showcases. The event was billed as the 22nd annual Home Run Derby at Migley Field, and Delvin Zinn won it against a field of 74 competitors. In a sport built on backyard feel and tight spaces, that kind of derby crowd underscored how large the New Carlisle stop has become.

Hometown Days organizers say the championship has also mattered beyond the field, serving as a fundraising venue for local community organizations. The new complex is intended to keep the tournament growing, but the move leaves behind a setting defined by its quirks, its proximity to Memorial Park, and the kind of memory that only a place like Migley could give the event.