SJL:
The SJL remains extremely competitive, with the Columbus Whalers finishing the week back on top as they look to earn their third straight trip to the Kinsella Classic Series representing the SJL as the best team in the league. But their lead is narrow: just 1 game ahead of 2nd place Jacksonville and 1 1/2 ahead of the surprising and surging Pittsburgh Roadrunners. The Boston Berserkers also remain in the hunt while most other would-be contenders are falling out of the race. It looks like Seattle and Chicago will continue to battle for last place, as they have most of the season.
MGL:
And as it has been for the past several seasons, the MGL pennant race is a two-team affair. And the two teams have remained the same as well: your Denver Brewers and the dreaded L.A. Spinners. Having split the first two games of a three game series the week ends with Denver holding a slim 1 1/2 game margin over L.A. With the Brooklyn Aces in an absolute nose-dive here in September, the Oklahoma City Diamond Kings have moved back into 3rd place, but at 14 games out they are just playing for the honor of being the best of the non-contenders. And what about those Phoenix Speed Devils, losers of 10 games in a row. They currently sit 53 games off the pace and are on pace to lose approximately 115 games. The MGL record for losses is 107, set by the Charlotte Sting in 1969. The MGL record for games behind first place at the end of a season is 46, set by the Portland Wild Things in 1971. So it looks like Phoenix will break both of these unenviable records. On the bright side, they may still avoid compiling the most losses in a single season in the WPK, as the SJL's El Paso Dawgs had a 117-loss season in 1967, a year in which they finished 51 games out of first. (Pittsburgh also finished 51 games out of first in 1973 with a 110 loss season.)