Class C
1. Line Drive/ SSS Sportscards
They are clearly the team to beat going into the season. Their roster is LOADED with talent and experience. They are returning a solid core from last year, and have added some serious offense with Tom Luna and Charlie Anderson. (former A World Series MVP Donny Sikora can’t hurt either.) They were very impressive knocking off an A and B team on their way to a top 5 finish at the first Conference tourney in Las Vegas. The only problem I see is them maybe hitting too many homeruns for outs in the C tourneys.
2. P&P 333/Suburban/Larry's Tire/CMT
I’m not sure if they are planning to play a full USSSA schedule. But looking at their roster, they HAVE to be number 2. Like Line Drive, they are loaded with talent and experience. They added two outstanding defenders in Gnome and Ortiz to good veteran team. Fairbanks is one of the best pitchers around and always a tough out at the plate. If they aren’t playing a lot of Utrip, they will slide in the rankings.
3. Mayhem/ Wolf-Hulbert/ DC Properties
It’s good to see some new blood in the C division. Instead of scattering and trying to stay down, the core of this team has tried to play up every year. Obviously they needed some help to compete at the C level, and 2010 C Co-Player of the Year Derek Figley, Butter, and Jay Bush will help. Losing Morrow and Frank’s church spinner hurts, but this team will be in the hunt most weekends.
4. TG/ TPS/ Elite
Another team I am glad to see moving up in class. They are young, fast, and will play some really good defense. Ray Z is a crafty pitcher that has to LOVE pitching to this defense. Adding Morrow makes them that much better defensively and adding DJ Hughes and Tim Young will help them score more runs. (One of the things they were lacking last year) Just like Line Drive, too many long balls could be a problem for this team.
5. Great Lakes Express
This team has the potential to be very good this year. They have a nice mix of veterans and youngsters. They have the best pitcher in C (when he remembers to cover 2nd base). If he stays with them all year and the youngsters play as well as they are capable, this team will surprise a lot of people.
The rest:
Korody/ Worth/ Line Drive Sportz/ TYJA
Young, fast, and talented. Not a lot of experience, which will hurt them against the top teams.
Havoc/ Larry’s Tire/ Bass
Another team from the Westside of the state that may not play enough Utrip to be relevant. Rob Leete always brings a solid team that will compete.
Pure Divine
Don’t know much about this team, but if Tim Fredenburg is involved, I wouldn’t sleep on them.
Pepsi/Moose Lodge/Tanel Betta Duck
The few names I do recognize are some young talented guys, but I think they may be in a little over their heads.
And if you are wondering why I left R & L out…. They are from Ohio, these are Michigan rankings. ;)
Class D
1. Mush Reloaded/ Sinister
This is the team to beat in D right now. They have 3 legitimate pitchers (Tommy, Jimmy Z, and Opie), depth at every position, and an offense that’s as good as or better than most C teams. They could run into problems finding playing time for all of their players.
2. Detroit Phillies/ Xtreme/ Sports 55
This team always shows up ready to play. They have a talented core of players that have been playing at the D/C level together for several years now. Plus they added a couple of really good players from Exotic in Al Rusek and Brett White. They should be a top team all year.
3. Perkins Insurance/ Trillium/ Butches
I can’t believe no one else has mentioned this team yet. They are loaded with veteran talent. And Joe Dunning is still one of the best pitchers around. (2011 Hall of Fame inductee) This team will be near the top every time they play.
4. DO/ Mushtube.com
Without knowing exactly who is still on this team, it’s hard for me to rank them any higher. They were the best team in E last year. They gave the D teams all they wanted in the D/E’s, so they should be fine in D this year.
5. Blue Crush
Looks like they are returning the same team they had at the end of last year, which was good enough to win the E North Worlds. Rumor is that they will be playing more NSA than Utrip this year. If that is the case, they will obviously not be in the top 5 for long.
The rest:
Detroit Drama
Without a roster and knowing if they are seriously going to give D a shot this year I couldn’t put them in my top 5. The team they had to end the season last year was very good and would be a top 5 team in D right now.
Khaos/ S&S Apparel
This is an interesting looking team. Solid veteran leadership with some young talent. They have a good pitcher in Johnny Robinson but I see some question marks around the infield.
Apex
Don’t know enough about this team to put them in the top 5 based on two March fundraisers tourneys. They do have Frank Nickowski so they could be a factor. Let’s see how they do in a tourney with better competition.
D-Nation
I commend these guys for trying to play up. But I don’t know if they have enough talent to compete with the top teams in D this year.
Class E
There are a ton of new teams in E this year, and I obviously don’t know a lot of player’s names at this level.
1. Trust/ Wicked Sports/ Mario
On paper, they are the team to beat. There is a TON of talent and experience on this squad. The thing that really sets them apart from everyone else IMO is consistent offense. Everyone on this roster can flat out hit. If they keep the ball in the park, they will be VERY tough to beat.
2. Dooley’s/ Pole Position/ LV Financial
I have a feeling there will be a lot of Sunday afternoon games between Dooley’s & Trust this season. The core of this team (Vain E) was right there most weekends last year. They have arguably the best pitcher in E, solid infield, and young, fast talent in the OF. They should also score a lot of runs.
3. Repo Monkey
This team should be in the hunt most weekends. They have a really good pitcher and some solid players. I don’t know if they will be able to beat Dooley’s or Wicked on a consistent basis.
4. XFactor/ Taylor Ford
I have heard a lot of good things about this team, but I don’t know enough about them yet to have them ranked any higher. They came on strong at the end of last season. Looks like they will have a good squad.
5. Team Turmoil
Any team with Andy Haidy pitching for them is going to be good. These guys always have a good squad, just a matter of whether or not they can get along for the whole season.
The rest:
Detroit Syndicate
Don’t know much about these guys, but there is certainly been a buzz about them early in the season. Word on the street is they are young, cocky, and talented.
Kings
They had a good showing in Cincinnati last month. Not so good at Total last week. They will probably be like that all year… solid middle of the pack team that can surprise when they get hot.
Trust Sports
Little brother should be in the hunt most weekends. Interested to see how Bobby Greene does without the very best team in the class.
MC Push/ Clark Bldg. Co.
Young and athletic with a few veterans mixed in. Should be good, but may not have enough offense.
Represent/ Big Gamers/ Defenders
Interesting mix of guys. If they gel, they could surprise a lot of people.
Well, those are my pre-season predictions.
Good luck to everyone this year!
Regards,
Old Man
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