My niece plays in the WPBL. Watching her take the field in a professional women’s baseball league that didn’t exist a year ago got me thinking about something else I care about: data.

The WPBL just played its first professional game in over 70 years. That means there’s essentially no established analytics culture around it yet — no known stat models, no biomechanics baselines, nobody’s really dug in. Someone gets to be first.

So I’m opening this up. Short papers on data in the WPBL’s inaugural season. No entry fee, no prize money — just publication here on the blog and a certificate recognizing the work. If you’re a student, an aspiring analyst, or just someone who likes digging into a new dataset, this is a low-stakes way to put something real on your portfolio during a moment that won’t repeat itself.

Topics

Anything grounded in the WPBL’s 2026 season is fair game, including but not limited to:

– Traditional or advanced analytics on team or player performance

– Stuff+ style pitch modeling, to whatever extent public data allows

– Biomechanics or movement analysis from available broadcast/video footage

– Social media or fan engagement analysis around the league’s launch

– Roster construction, draft analysis, or comparison to other leagues

If your idea doesn’t fit neatly into these buckets but is grounded in real WPBL data, pitch it anyway.

Data sources

Everything must be built on publicly available data — box scores, ESPN broadcast footage, the league’s own published stats, social media, or other open sources. No proprietary or credentialed data (TrackMan, Rapsodo, etc.) unless you have your own legitimate access to disclose.

Format

– 1,500–3,000 words, PDF or shareable doc link

– Cite your data sources and methodology clearly

– Charts/visuals encouraged but not required

– One submission per author; co-authored papers welcome

Timeline

– **Announced:** August 12, 2026

– **Submissions due:** Sunday, August 30, 2026 (one week before the end of the regular season)

– **Winners published:** during the WPBL playoffs, here on the blog

Review

Papers will be reviewed by a small panel with backgrounds spanning baseball operations, player development, and analytics. I’ll share the full panel once it’s finalized.

Submit

Send your paper to **navarre_dave@yahoo.com** with the subject line “WPBL CFP Submission — [Your Name].”

Looking forward to seeing what people find.