1- Pittsburgh Polar Bears (37-11)- The Bears got off to a great start. They boast the league's best road record at 19-3. At once point earlier this season, they were riding a 15 game winning streak and won 21 or 23 games. 1B Brian Okajima, acquired from Anaheim, is producing in Pittsburgh. He solidifies a position that has been a hole for this team since Pedro Pascual left. He is leading the team in home runs with 10 and RBI with 35.
2- Richmond Rebellion (33-15)- Last season was a big step backwards for Richmond. Coming off of 3 division titles, the Rebellion seemed to be poised to position themselves among the powers of the NL. They then fell flat with a 72-90 record on the season. That certainly seemed to motivate this team. They've been playing very good baseball, with the league's best home record at 20-6. This team has been doing it by stifling their opponents offense with great pitching and defense. The Rebellion lead the NL in fewest runs allowed.
3- Baltimore Revolution (33-16)- As usual, the Revolution are at the top of the league. And, as usual, the team has tremendous balance, with great pitching and hitting. Aurelio Diaz is probably the very early front runner for the AL MVP award. He is hitting .362 with 18 home runs and 59 RBI in the season's first 49 games.
4- Milwaukee Titans (30-19)- While the uncertain future of the team's ownership still looms in Brewtown, the players seem to have grown accustomed to it. Their cruising along in the early going, already with a fairly comfortable 9 game lead in the NL North. The Titan's offense has been particularly impressive so far, currently ranked 2nd in the NL in runs scored.
5- Vancouver Tragedy Twins (30-19)- With the signing of, arguably, the top free agent starting pitcher of the offseason in Harold Paquette (to a max deal worth $110M over 5 seasons) the Twins pushed ahead of their rivals in San Diego and became the clear front runners in the NL West. The team responded with an early season surge that included a 14 game winning streak. So far, Paquette has been playing up to his massive salary. He is 6-3, with a 2.90 ERA in his first 10 starts and 62 innings of work.
6- Norfolk Whiskey Jacks (29-19)- The Jacks are another team that has had to deal with the distractions of uncertain ownership. The Tonic Inc. ownership group seemed to be one of the most stable in the league, with a team built from a revamped and loaded farm system, that was ready to compete for a title. The sudden bankruptcy of Tonic Inc. forced the league commissioner to step in and find a temporary GM while a new owner was found to take over the team in the long term. Luckily, an owner who was already used to sports success bought the team. The BB Racey Group has a been one of the top NASCAR owners for a few seasons now, currently running 2 cars in that circuit. The SPL was more than happy to have this group join their ranks. Fans in Virginia were doubly pleased when the new group announced that their beloved Whiskey Jacks would indeed be staying in Norfolk. Despite the off the field distractions, the best regular season team in the SPL last season continues to excel on the field, with the second best record in the AL.
7- New Orleans Jazz (28-20)- Last season's most surprisingly good team in the AL is out to prove that they are no fluke. Last season's Jazz squad set the franchise record for wins with 104 and clinched a bye for the first time since the team has played in New Orleans. While the Jazz have continued their model of constantly tweaking the roster, and are always among the most active teams in the league with regards to roster moves, they continue to win. Rolondo Villareal has made 10 starts so far this season, and is on the early All Star pace. He is 7-2 with a 3.56 ERA in 65 innings.
8- St. Louis Redbirds (28-21)- While the front office continues to turn over the roster and shop the veterans on the roster, nobody has seemed to bother to tell the players that this is supposed to be a rebuild year so far. They currently own the league's longest winning streak at 9 games and are tied for 1st place in their division. Ruben Lopez has been leading the way for the offense. He is currently hitting .306 with 14 home runs and 50 RBI and has the second longest current hit streak in the league.
9- Anaheim Hitmen (28-21)- The Hitmen are doing what they seem to do every season: very quietly operate under the radar as one of the best teams in the league. They are 3rd in the AL in home runs and already have 4 players with 10 or more dingers: Cristobal Roque, Ryan Bradford, Cesar Morales and Devaris Bowie.
10- Scranton Wild (28-21)- The Wild currently find themselves tied atop the AL North and trying to fend off the red hot St. Louis Redbirds. If they can do that, and win the division, it'll be the first time baseball fans in Scranton will get to experience playoff baseball. So far, there is definitely a hopeful buzz around town. Vladimir Dotel was red hot out of the gates. He had a 21-game hitting streak earlier this season (2nd longest out of any player this season) and is hitting .349 with 6 home runs and 20 RBI.
11- Chicago Gray Stockings (27-21)- The recently dethroned NL Champs are having a pretty solid season so far. The early season injury of veteran Peter Steenstra has been noticed though. The bullpen has really struggled without him. The have converted only 7 of 13 save chances, blowing nearly 50%. The bullpen ERA is 4.87, which is much too high for a team that has traditionally relied so heavily on a strong pitching staff. To compare, the starters have a combined ERA of 3.46.
12- Honolulu Rainbow Warriors (27-21)- The Rainbow Warriors are having a really nice season, despite playing in the most brutal division in the AL. All four teams in the AL West are above .500 and only 3 games separate the 1st place Hitmen from the fourth place Camels. Despite the team's general solid play, offseason acquisition Earl Ward has really struggled since his move to the Aloha State. Too many distractions for Earl maybe? He is only hitting .234 with 4 home runs and 15 RBI.
13- Cleveland Lake Shores (27-22)- The Lakes Shores might quietly boast the NL's best middle of the order. And they have really built around that core group of solid position player to put a winner on the field season after season. Now the team wants to break through and take the toughest step: win in the pennant and play in the WS. A few seasons ago, in Season 14, this team came oh-so-close. They played in a epic, classic NLCS versus their division rival, the Chicago Gray Stockings. They fell just short losing in a long seven game series, but surely softening up the Sox before their waxing at the hands of the Revolution. The World Series was so close they could taste it, and many of the Shores' players will tell you they still think of that series, that season to motivate them. They're hoping to have that chance to play for a WS again this season.
14- Philadelphia Stomp (27-22)- The team might still be smarting from the loss of Randy Meulens to the hated Baltimore Revolution this offseason. We know the fans still are, as many times during the day it continues to be the hot-topic of conversation on sports talk radio. Even with the loss of Meulens, the team still boasts a great trio of last season's super rookie Quilvio Lee, veteran Gary Scott and this season's RoY hopeful Al Francisco. With a solid rotation and a full season of Jim Andrews, the Stomp hope to shock the SPL world and upset their super-team division rivals in Baltimore and Norfolk and make a deep playoff run.
15- Salem Blues (26-22)- With four seasons of ownership uncertainty (and some bad team nick names, the Salem Mighty Ducks?) behind them, the Salem franchise was returned to the steady hand of its previous ownership. Fans couldn't have been happier, as the franchise's most successful season were at the hands of its current/previous owner. In its first tenure, the team only finished below .500 once, and left following back-to-back 90-win seasons and a team that was on the brink of breaking into the elite of the AL. The owners since that time didn't have a single winning season. Did I mention the fans were happy at the return of their old owner. The players were pretty excited too. Already the rightly named Blues are in better form than season's past and the future is bright in the Pacific Northwest.
16- Scottsdale Camels (25-24)
17- San Diego Wiley Coyotes (23-25)
18- Memphis Belles (23-25)
19- Kansas City Krazies (23-25)
20- Jackson Runnin' Rebels (23-26)
