Laramie hosts Wyoming's only Legion baseball tournament this weekend

Cowboy Field became Wyoming’s Legion baseball center this weekend, and that made the Dooley Oil Classic the state’s lone tournament while the 2026 season pushed past its midpoint. In a summer when standings are starting to matter more than early experimentation, Laramie’s home field drew the most attention in Albany County because every other Legion club in Wyoming was playing into the same tightening race.

The Laramie Rangers hosted the Fort Morgan Wranglers, Buckley Bombers and Wellington Eagles from Colorado, along with the Laramie JV Rangers, in round-robin play at Cowboy Field. Aaron Lozano, listed by Wyoming American Legion Baseball as Laramie’s AA coach, had his varsity team home for the first time in nearly a month, a welcome change after a long stretch away from its own ballpark. KOWB carried the Rangers’ varsity games live, adding another layer of local interest as families followed the tournament from the stands and on the air.

The broader state picture showed why the weekend mattered. By June 8, nine weeks of the 2026 American Legion season were complete, and by June 15 Wyoming teams had played 10 weeks. WyoPreps also said the previous weekend was the busiest tournament weekend so far, with teams spread across five tournaments, a sign that summer baseball had moved squarely into its serious stretch. For teams like Laramie, that meant every home date carried more weight because the schedule was no longer just about getting reps, but about building position.

The benchmark elsewhere in the state was sharp. The Sheridan Troopers were sitting on a 15-game winning streak in the June 15 standings update, a run that showed how quickly one hot stretch can reshape the picture once the season is fully underway. Laramie’s best response came with the kind of weekend the Dooley Oil Classic offered, a chance to measure itself against outside competition at home instead of chasing games on the road.

That home-stage significance fit the tournament’s place in Laramie baseball history. The Rangers’ 2025 preview called the Dooley Oil Classic its 16th edition, while a 2023 preview listed it as the 14th, showing how firmly the event has settled into the summer calendar. With state titles in 1986, 1983 and 1977, the Rangers’ program has long carried a local standard, and this weekend’s tournament kept Cowboy Field at the center of that tradition.