GCAA U9 Baseball - Minors Season Update

The GCAA Minors (U9) baseball is enjoying an extremely competitive season and each team has developed their own unique strengths. With 1 week remaining in the season no team is guaranteed any position in the standings and almost every team still has an opportunity to move up in the standings. In the National League the Pirates lead the division by a slim half game lead over the Padres. The Pirates have taken hold on first with their ability to win the close game with good defense, strong pitching (lowest runs allowed in the National League) and timely hitting. Their overall balance continues to show as every player seems to contribute. The Padres are lurking right behind the Pirates. Each member of the Padres has consistently improved their hitting over the season and now the Padres feature a balanced hitting attack that easily leads the both leagues in runs scored. The Marlins are immediately behind the Padres and have shown their true grit by forging out a winning record and staying near the top of the pack all season long with tough game after tough game. Your in for a battle when facing the Marlins. The Diamondbacks could not be more evenly balanced (solid pitching and solid hitting). Every game seems to come down to the last out for the Diamondbacks with the game on the line. Watching their games, they have had an extremely exciting season and their record of 4 wins, 4 losses, 4 ties plus they have scored the exact same amount of runs they have let up, shows just how close it always is when you play them. The Mets are right behind the Diamondbacks and their improved pitching and defense is contributing to their late season run, in their last game they put it all together win a solid 7-0 win.

In the American League the Phillies hold a slim _ game lead over the Angels. One of the reasons for the Phillies success is their ability to take advantage of their opportunities in each game and capitalizing when the game is on the line. It seems like the Phillies hitters always come up big in the clutch. The Angels are hot on the Phillies tail and have stayed on top of the division by simply not allowing any runs (only 12 runs allowed in 11 games). The Angels games are the old fashion pitching contests with 0-0 and 1-0 type scores. The low scoring affairs had led to 4 ties and not surprisingly a league leading 3 shutouts. The Yankees follow the Angels in the American league race and in their last game tied the Phillies 1-1. The Yankees are a dangerous team that can play with any team. The Devil Rays are even with Yankees and have played their hearts out all year, if not for a couple of 1 run loses and a few bounces they could be ahead of the Phillies. The Rockies trail the Devil Rays but have vastly improved during the season. In 2 of their last 3 games they have given up only 1 run in each game and won an exciting 2-1 game verse the Yankees.

As the season draws to a close all the players continue to improve and everyone is having fun. It is also clear that heading into the final week of the regular season and the playoffs that just about any team can beat any other team. It should be an exciting finish.