As we head into the second month of the season, let's take a look at the early standings.
SJL:
Those once lowly El Paso Dawgs are off to a great start and are currently red-hot. The Dawgs have quietly put together a strong and deep starting rotation although there are some concerns that their two top starters- Vincent Medina and Zachary Shackleford- are both considered injury risks. Their offense is keyed by two very talented youngsters in the middle of the lineup in shortstop Nathan Littlepage and rising superstar center fielder Pete Wiederkehr. Whether they have the roster depth for the long haul remains to be seen but it is great to see the rise of this team, which for the first decade of WPK history was the weakest team. Of course, the mighty Columbus Whalers are right there again, with the surprising Seattle Alligators in 3rd place.
MGL:
The reigning WPK champion Denver Brewers are unsurprisingly in first place but the Oklahoma City Diamond Kings, who remained in contention until quite late in 1977, are pushing them in the early going. Phoenix has also gotten hot lately to move into 3rd place. The Brooklyn Aces and Los Angeles Spinners are both sitting at .500 but while Brooklyn has been trending upwards lately, the Spinners are reeling a bit.