City Lights Public League notebook No. 72, Baseball rankings and Player of the Week
News and notes from around the Public League.
(Mike Clark photo)
UPDATE: Kenwood beat Morgan Park 9-2 on Monday to clinch at least a share of the Jackie Robinson South title at 10-3. The Broncos clinch an outright title with with either a win against Washington on Friday or a Brooks loss to Solorio on Wednesday.
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Regularly scheduled Public League conference games ended last week, and Lane ran the table to win the Jackie Robinson North at 14-0.
But the Jackie Robinson South is still undecided at this writing. Kenwood is 10-2 and Brooks is 10-3 before Monday’s games. The Broncos still have league games left at Morgan Park on Monday and home against Washington on Friday, while the Eagles finish conference at home against Solorio on Wednesday.
The Public League playoffs start next Monday at home fields of the better seeds. Then comes the second round on Tuesday, May 14; the quarterfinals on Thursday, May 16; the semis at UIC on Saturday, May 18 and the title game on Monday, May 20 at 5 p.m. at Wrigley Field.
The 24-team bracket features every school from the JR North and South, three teams from both the National North and American South and one team each from the North and South.
The top four in the rankings seem pretty clear-cut, and have been for a while. Fifth through 10th could go a number of ways and seem to change by the week.
Anyway, here’s a look at the latest rankings and Player of the Week.
Public League top 10 (with last week’s ranking in parentheses and records through Sunday, May 5):
1. Lane 22-8 (1)
Same old, same old for the Champions, who swept Ogden 8-3 and 9-2 to finish unbeaten in the JR North. They also blanked Richards 1-0.
2. Kenwood 14-8 (2)
Broncos split with Solorio, winning 15-5 and losing 12-3 to snap a 10-game winning streak. They also beat Simeon 8-6 to move closer to the JR South title.
3. Ogden 14-10-1 (3)
The Class 2A Owls wrapped a great JR North season in second place behind Lane at 11-3. They were swept 8-3 and 9-2 by the Champions but knocked off Taft 12-3.
4. Brooks 14-10 (4)
Eagles entered the week still in the JR South title hunt but need some help to overtake Kenwood. Last week they split with Washington (7-5 win, 7-6 loss) and rolled by St. Ignatius 13-1.
5. Jones 14-11-1 (5)
Eagles dropped to 8-5 in the JR South with a 7-5 loss to Lindblom. They also were blanked 11-0 by Neuqua Valley.
6. Morgan Park 9-11 (7)
Mustangs beat Simeon 14-5 in their only action of the week to split the rivalry series.
7. Lindblom 11-8 (8)
Solid pitching by Gustavo Padilla and Miguel Villegas powered a 2-1 week for the Eagles, who beat Jones 7-5 in the JR South and split two nonconference games, losing 5-1 to Young and knocking off Kennedy 11-1.
8. Von Steuben 13-13 (10)
Panthers have won eight of nine after splitting with Young (10-3 loss, 6-0 win) and knocking off Niles North 13-2.
9. Young 10-16 (NR)
Good week for the Dolphins, who went 2-1 in the JR North, splitting with Von Steuben (10-3 win, 6-0 loss) and beating Payton 9-4. They also knocked off Lindblom 5-1 and Lake View 4-3.
10. Taft 12-14 (6)
Eagles finished in a three-way tie for third in the JR North at 7-7 with Young and Von Steuben after splitting with Lincoln Park (8-1 win, 4-3 loss) and losing 12-3 to Ogden. They also blanked Chicago Academy 10-0.
Honorable mention, in alphabetical order: Payton 11-12-1, Simeon 11-13-1.
City Lights Player of the Week for April 29-May 5
Luis Campos, Farragut: The senior batted .556 for the North champ Admirals with a double, a triple, five RBI, six steals and a 1.525 OBP.
Honorable mention, in alphabetical order
Jimmy Anastasi, Young: The senior was 9-for-18 with two doubles, four runs, two RBI and three steals. He also picked up a win, pitching five innings with two walks and four strikeouts.
Xavier Arroyo, Lindblom: The senior was 5-for-10 with four runs, two RBI and eight steals.
Andrew Crenshaw: The Maryland-Eastern Shore recruit went 4-for-9 with four runs, 11 steals and a save against Jones.
Alex Karson, Von Steuben: The senior went 7-for-13 with a double, three homers, nine runs, seven RBI and three steals. He also threw a three-hit shutout with no walks and seven strikeouts to beat Young.
Gustavo Padilla, Lindblom: The senior pitched a six-inning complete game in a win against Kennedy, striking out six and allowing one earned run.
Nico Roman, Farragut: The freshman hit .571 with a 1.268 OPS as the Admirals wrapped up the North title and earned a promtion to the National North next season. He also had a double and six steals.
Josiah Saucedo, Solorio: The sophomore led the Sun Warriors to a 2-1 week. He was 4-for-6 with a double, triple, five walks, six runs, three RBI and an OBP of .818. On the mound, he pitched six innings in two appearances with nine strikeouts, allowing one earned run.
Miguel Villegas, Lindblom: The sophomore pitched three innings of shutout relief to earn a win against Jones.