1. Sioux City Explorers (38-21, 1st, West)
Record last week: 2-1 @ Kansas City, 3-0 @ Cleburne
Not much to argue about here. The Explorers went into Kansas City and took first place in the West from the Monarchs, then went further South and swept the Railroaders in Cleburne. The Explorers now own the potentially crucial season-series against the Monarchs 5-4 right now as well. When you have three of the top 10 starters in the league in team ERA, you’re going to be tough to beat in a short series, and Sioux City has just that in reigning pitcher of the week Jared Wetherbee (2.33), Zach Willeman (2.34) and Kyle Marman (3.13).
2. Kansas City Monarchs (37-21, 2nd, West)
Record last week: 1-2 vs. Sioux City, 3-0 @ Winnipeg
Despite the tough series loss at home against Sioux City, the Monarchs showed that they’re still right there with the Explorers at the top of the West, then went ahead and swept the Goldeyes in Winnipeg over the weekend. They did so with strong pitching, allowing just six runs in the three games, which is an encouraging sign for a team that has mostly won by out-scoring teams with their powerful offense that has been consistent all season.
3. Chicago Dogs (33-25, 2nd, East)
Record last week: 2-0 vs. Milwaukee, 3-0 @ Lincoln
Just like that, the Dogs are right back towards the top of the East thanks to a league-high six-game winning streak. The swings up and down have been big for the Dogs this season, but the offense woke up this week, scoring at least five runs in all six wins and more than 10 runs twice in that stretch. Now, they did need pretty much all of those runs with their pitching staff struggling to hold teams down. After they go just north to Milwaukee for three they go back home for a huge series against the DockHounds.
4. Lake Country DockHounds (32-24, 1st, East)
Record last week: 1-1 @ Kane County, 2-1 @ Gary SouthShore
The usually strong Lake Country pitching staff hit a few bumpers this week, allowing more than 10 runs on two separate occasions. The bats also struggled at home over the weekend, scoring just seven runs, with four being in one game against Gary SouthShore. The DockHounds now continue to take on the RailCats before heading to Chicago.
5. Sioux Falls Canaries (33-25, 3rd, West)
Record last week: 2-1 @ Winnipeg, 2-1 @ Fargo-Moorhead
The Canaries took care of business this week and in particular picked up a key series victory over Fargo-Moorhead, who was building momentum behind them in the competitive West division. However, the Canaries have fallen back now 4.5 games of first with the Monarchs in between them and Sioux City as well. They get a key opportunity on the road against Sioux City this weekend.
