dittoz wrote:Dittoz sees only a little thus far (sorry, couldn't resist the 3rd party stuff - seems to be "IN"
)
For the Sac/Stockton area:
At the 12u level;
In Sacto, Lady Magic continues to be a viable force - relatively stable roster.
Other possible challengers include Comets-Loomis who were a late comer to the party in F'09 but continue to build and will challenge many with strong pitching and experienced coaching.
In 14's Lady magic again continues to be a threat to take their 3rd Metro Championship in as many years. They've picked up only a couple new players and are one of the early favorites to take the national bid again this season as strong pitching and situational play leads them well.
Don't leave both 14u Breeze teams out of the running in Sac metro 14's though. Breeze-95 real strength continues to be in pitching. While not completely dominant, it's more than sufficient for the Sac area and keeps the in many games. Breeze-96 continues their run as hitting powers and with good coaching, they too will ruffle more than a few feathers. Both Breeze teams need to play in higher level tournaments though, and until they do, will remain unproven.
The final piece of the Sac 14 metro puzzle can be found in TNT. While still looking for a strong #2 in the circle, they are formidable as they stand and are probably the most overlooked contender for the Sac bid to Moline in August. They'll play mostly 16s, and return in June for 14 metros.
To the South, look for Grapettes-Reid to be the early favorites in the Stockton-area metro. The other 14 Grapettes team is in a serious rebuilding phase after a lot of unfortunate publicity on this site, and the departure of 2 of their 3 pitchers Along with their leadoff hitter and their #2 catcher. They still retain a pitcher/catcher combo who will dominate many teams but elsewhere, only their little speedster in CF still remains from prior seasons. With power hitters behind the plate and on the corners combined with the new girls they may yet surprise many.
R/R 14's are a younger team and will be competitive, but still seek that elusive #1 pitcher.
All American 14's are also young and will be a force in 2011.
In 16's, Breeze-16 lost a few of their bigger bats and sat least one of their top pitchers and are struggling to maintain dominance from last year's 14u National team. Foothill Gold lost one of their two pitchers in the fall and will likely struggle locally on Sundays. Comets 16u will remain strong. Hype 16 may surprise, but lost several after the fall season including at least one in the circle and may see some new additions after HS ends. Heat 16-Menefee picked up several new and retain 2 of their pitchers from fall.
Hitting will remain a weak point as they look for leadership. To the south, AASA 16s are in a rebuilding phase and in search of pitching.
Grapes 16 - Bilbao gained a high % hitting backup catcher / Util during the fall, but still seeks additional pitching. Should be a viable contender in the spring if pitching holds up. Also look for the new Outlaws team to surprise many. Based further south, they have excellent coaching and took some quality players from many area teams after last summer.
Most of the rest of the Sac and Stockton-area teams are seeing the usual jumping of players amongst teams but the strength seems to remain elusive for any single team...
