Compiled by Allan Simpson (PG Crosschecker) / Andrew Hartwell (College Summer Ball Blogspot)
Move over Chatham; make way for the Forest City Owls. We have a new No.1 team in the Perfect Game/Summer Ball weekly summer-league top 25 rankings.
The Owls of the Coastal Plain League went 5-1 over the last week to stretch their record on the summer to 25-3, while the Cape Cod League’s Chatham Anglers lost four games in a row after a hot 9-1 start. In the process, the two teams flip-flopped positions in the national rankings with Forest City taking over as No. 1 and Chatham slipping to No. 2.
The Owls have so dominated the CPL that they clinched the first-half championship in the West Division more than a week ago, and opened a 10-game lead on their nearest division foe. Lynchburg College’s Bryan Breedlove (4-0, 1.99 in 32 IP) and SIU-Edwardsville’s Spencer Patton (4-0, 0.97 in 33 IP), both righthanders, lead a formidable Owls pitching staff.
The Eau Claire Express, top team in the Northwoods League, holds steady in the No. 3 spot. The Express has received timely hitting from Wisconsin-Oshkosh infielder Nolan Fadness, who is hitting .341 in 91 at-bats this summer.
No summer league team has been as hot as the West Coast League’s Corvallis Knights, who have won a franchise-record 15 games in a row, including 10 in WCL competition. The Knights, the defending WCL champions, jumped to No. 6 in the current rankings after being unranked the first two weeks.
We’ll rank the top 25 summer college league teams every Tuesday or Wednesday from 20-plus leagues around the country, and here’s our take on the top teams in Week Three (last week’s ranking noted in parentheses).
| Rank |
Team |
League |
Record |
| 1. |
Forest City (N.C.) Owls (2) |
Coastal Plain |
25-3 |
| Walters State CC OF Will Skinner (.330-2-15), West Virginia OF Grant Buckner (.315-1-14) are team's top bats. |
| 2. |
Chatham Anglers (1) |
Cape Cod |
10-5 |
| Oklahoma State 1B Dean Green leads Anglers with 8 RBIs; Vanderbilt RHP Taylor Hill is 2-0, 1.35 in 13 IP. |
| 3. |
Eau Claire Express (3) |
Northwoods |
20-8 |
| New Mexico LHP Rudy Jaramillo (3-1, 1.70 in 42 IP), Baylor LHP Jon Ringenberg (1-1, 1.29 in 21 IP) have been solid. |
| 4. |
Santa Barbara Foresters (5) |
California Collegiate |
16-5 |
| Defending NBC World Series champs have won 6 of last 7; Texas freshman LHP Sam Stafford is 1-1, 1.74 in 21 IP. |
| 5. |
DeLand Suns (4) |
Florida Collegiate |
16-4 |
| Bethune-Cookman 3B Emmanuel Castro leads team at .320; Alabama RHP Jimmy Nelson has 37 SO in 29 IP. |
| 6. |
Corvallis Knights (NR) |
West Coast |
13-3 |
| Red-hot Knights lead league with team BA of .293; Mt. Hood (Ore.) CC 1B Taylor Ard is second in WCL at .417. |
| 7. |
Mat-Su Miners (18) |
Alaska |
13-3 |
| Miners' big arms are Centenary RHP Justin Kraft (1-0, 1.40), Lubbock Christian LHP R.L. Eisenbach (3-0, 2.79). |
| 8. |
Bourne Braves (NR) |
Cape Cod |
7-5-2 |
| George Washington RHP Eric Cantrell (2-0, 1.13, 16 IP, 1 BB/24 SO), a rising junior, has solidified Braves rotation. |
| 9. |
Outer Banks Daredevils (8) |
Coastal Plain |
19-10 |
| Mansfield (Pa.) LHP Eric Rosenberger (3-1, 3.04), Barton (N.C.) RHP Hunter Meekins (0.43 ERA in 21 IP) lead way. |
| 10. |
Wareham Gatemen (6) |
Cape Cod |
6-5-1 |
| Vanderbilt RHP Jack Armstrong (2-0, 2.38 in 11 IP) is son of Jack, former major-league all-star righthander. |
| |
|
|
|
| 11. |
Mankato Moondogs (11) |
Northwoods |
22-9 |
| 12. |
Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox (12) |
Cape Cod |
9-7 |
| 13. |
Wenatchee AppleSox (9) |
West Coast |
12-4 |
| 14. |
Vienna Senators (23) |
Clark Griffith |
15-4 |
| 15. |
Cotuit Kettleers (16) |
Cape Cod |
7-6-1 |
| 16. |
North Shore Navigators (20) |
New England |
14-6 |
| 17. |
Luray Wranglers (NR) |
Valley |
12-6 |
| 18. |
Bethesda Big Train (13) |
Cal Ripken Sr. |
15-5 |
| 19. |
Glens Falls Golden Eagles (22) |
New York Collegiate |
16-4 |
| 20. |
San Luis Obispo (Calif.) Blues (NR) |
Independent |
20-6 |
| 21. |
Staunton Braves (14) |
Valley |
13-6 |
| 22. |
Quincy Gems (25) |
Prospect |
15-6 |
| 23. |
Battle Creek Bombers (NR) |
Northwoods |
20-11 |
| 24. |
Victoria Generals (NR) |
Texas Collegiate |
13-7 |
| 25. |
Lima Locos (NR) |
Great Lakes |
11-3 |
|
