Legion Baseball Week 4 Power Rankings

Every week during the season, we will post our power rankings for the top 10 American Legion baseball teams in Wisconsin. Teams are ranked regardless of what Class they are in. The top 10 is selected based on a number of factors, including record, strength of schedule, and overall team talent. Our week four power rankings are below.

Honorable Mentions

Waupun Post 210 (14-2)

Superior Reds (20-7)

Marinette (18-9)

Rhinelander Post 7 (14-3)

West Salem Post 51

Prairie du Chien Post 68

10. Holmen Post 284

Last week: Honorable mention

Post 284 is 17-6 heading into the postseason. Their regional will be busy, and it won’t be easy to win. However, Holmen stands out as the preliminary favorite. The other teams in the regional haven’t done all that much this summer. Baraboo sits at 4-9, Tomah is 3-10, and the La Crosse North Stars have played around .500. Sparta figures to be similar to those teams. The toughest opposition Holmen might face is Onalaska, who is 18-14 heading into the regional.

9. Kewaunee County

Last week: 9

The Lakers have only lost once this summer, and enter the playoffs at 15-1. They’ll host a Class AA regional, which they are the strong favorites to win. They had success against the other teams (Ahnapee, Ashwaubenon and Pulaski) in the regional this year, and that doesn’t figure to change in a double elimination format.

8. Green Bay Shockers

Last week: 7

The Shockers entered the week on a high note after reaching the quarterfinals of the Gopher Classic tournament in Minnesota, but cooled off a bit after that. They went 1-3 at the tournament in Plover, making their record 17-9 this summer. On paper, their regional should be a dogfight between them and Marinette (honorable mention). The two face each other on Wednesday night in the second game of the regional. The loser will face either Bay Port or the Green Bay Blue Jays in an elimination game.

7. Beaver Dam Post 146

Last week: 8

Beaver Dam is our No. 1 team in Class AA entering regionals. Post 146 is 13-4 this summer, and is the overwhelming favorite in their regional. They made it to the state tournament last year, and that should be the expectation this time around, too. They open the playoffs with a game against Berlin, and will face either Allenton or Lomira/Theresa after that.

6. De Pere

Last week: 5

De Pere is 20-6 heading into the playoffs, where they are the strong favorite to win their regional. They open the tournament with a game against Manitowoc, and will face either Green Bay Southwest or Sheboygan after that. All three other teams in the regional have played around .500 this summer. The playoffs are always tough, but De Pere is easily the best team on paper in the regional.

5. Madison Impact

Last week: 6

The defending Class AAA state champions enter the playoffs on a good run. They won all four games at the Plover tournament over the weekend, which was good enough to win the tourney title. The Impact are now 16-6 this summer. Their regional opener is against Janesville, and they figure to run into No. 4 Beloit at some point in the week. They defeated Beloit in the state championship round last year to win the AAA title.

4. Beloit

Last week: 4

Beloit will begin the postseason with a 17-3 record and an 11 game winning streak. Their last loss came on July 1, and since then they haven’t really been tested. Last year’s state runner-up will host a tough regional this week. In addition to the hosts, it also is home to No. 5 Madison and Janesville. Madison and Beloit were Wisconsin’s representatives at the American Legion Great Lakes Regional last summer, but at least one of them will fall short of the state tournament this year.

3. Eau Claire Post 53

Last week: 3

Eau Claire is 20-3 entering the postseason, and hasn’t lost since July 4. They’re undoubtedly one of the hottest teams in the state, and will be the favorite in their regional. They lost twice to Chippewa Falls during the regular season, and they’ll face Post 77 in their playoff opener. If Trevor Olson pitches for Chippewa Falls, the game could end up being a tossup. Overall though, Eau Claire has more depth than any team in the regional (especially on the mound), and that should give them an advantage throughout the week.

2. Fond du Lac Post 75

Last week: 1

Fond du Lac ends the regular season with a 22-2 record. They dropped a game in extra innings to No. 1 Oshkosh last week, which gave them a regular season split with their divisional foe. They’ll have a shot at redemption in their regional, as their playoff opener is against Oshkosh. At least one of the top two ranked teams in the state will miss out on the state tournament. From what we’ve seen so far this season, it’s hard to tell which one it will be.

1. Oshkosh

Last week: 2

Oshkosh enters the playoffs as our No. 1 team in the state. They have a 21-2 record entering regionals thanks to wins over Kimberly, Hortonville, Kaukauna, Neenah and No. 2 Fond du lac last week. In an unfortunate twist of fate, they are in the same regional as Fond du Lac, so one of the two will miss out on the state tournament for sure. They open the postseason with a head-to-head matchup which will put the winner in the driver’s seat in the regional.

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