Six weeks into winter ball, three teams are still unbeaten, two Saturdays of regular season remain, and the playoffs land on Saturday, November 21.

 

The Alameda Goons (5-0), Silver Creek Pirates (4-0-1) and NorCal Stud Muffins (6-0) sit on top of their divisions. Behind them, every race still has a game worth circling. Here's where things stand, who's carrying their teams, and what's at stake on November 7 and 14.

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Division I: The Goons have set the bar

 

The Alameda Goons are 5-0 and have outscored opponents 46-6. They've allowed more than one run in a game just once.

 

Patrick Sweeney is the engine. He's 5-0 with 52 strikeouts in 31 innings and has allowed one earned run all season (0.29 ERA). At the plate, Jordan Williams leads all Division I hitters with a .533 average and a 1.388 OPS.

 

The chase is a two-team race at 4-2:

• San Jose Rockies. They opened with a 12-1 loss to the Goons and have gone 4-1 since. Steven Schynert is 3-0 with 33 strikeouts and hasn't allowed an earned run. Mason Manglicmot is hitting .474.
• Campbell Blue Jays. Hall of Famer Eric Barnes is hitting .500 with 10 hits and 8 runs scored. Jack Kaloust is 3-0 with a 1.27 ERA and 25 strikeouts. The Rockies won the head-to-head, 2-1, on October 17.

Also worth watching: Bay City Rays Legacy's Mario Santillan is hitting .538, and the Bay Area Diamondbacks (0-5) are still hunting their first win.

 

Circle it: Saturday, November 14, Rockies vs. Goons, 1:30 pm at Capuchino High School. It's a rematch of the opener and the last real shot for anyone to dent the Goons before the playoffs.

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Division II: Pirates dominant, everyone else in a scrum

 

The Silver Creek Pirates are 4-0-1 and have outscored opponents 61-4. The only thing they haven't done is beat the Bay Area Formosans Mountains, who held them to a 1-1 tie on opening day.

Behind them, three teams are separated by half a game:

• West Coast Redwoods Red (4-2) and Santa Clara Cardinals (4-2) are tied for second. The Cardinals' staff runs deep: Serena Martinez is 3-0 with 23 strikeouts, and Nick Swanson has 22. Jaiden Magallanes has scored 10 runs.
• Bay Area Formosans Mountains (3-2-1) have the division's best two-way player. Jack Warren is hitting .500 with a 1.611 OPS and is 2-0 on the mound with 17 strikeouts.

The hard-luck story is the West Bay Reds. They're 1-4-1, but they have the division's top two hitters: Anthony Gomes-Sirianni (.538, 1.623 OPS) and Jordan Benavides (.526, 10 hits). Their last three games were a 12-11 loss, a 15-14 loss, and a 12-12 tie. That's a team one swing away from a different record.

 

One more name: North Valley Phillies ace Daniel Smith has thrown 32.1 innings with 32 strikeouts and a 2.23 ERA, a league-high.

 

Circle it: Saturday, November 7, Cardinals vs. Pirates, 1:30 pm at Sea Cloud Park. Then November 14, Pirates vs. Formosans, 10:00 am at Fallon Sports Park, a rematch of the only game the Pirates haven't won.

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Division III: A November 14 showdown is taking shape

 

The NorCal Stud Muffins are 6-0, but the San Jose Orioles (5-1) haven't lost since the two teams met on opening day.

 

The Stud Muffins won that one 20-5. Since then, the Orioles have rattled off five straight wins by a combined 67-20. Rick Vasquez is hitting .538 with 9 runs scored, and Pedro Enriquez is 2-0 with a 1.80 ERA.

 

The Stud Muffins have been tested lately, winning 4-1 over Clayton and 4-3 over Tri Valley. Jorge Quezada (4-0, 25 strikeouts) and Marc Lujan (2-0, 1.50 ERA) anchor the Muffins' staff.

 

The most dominant arm in the league pitches here. Clayton Builders' Darrian Martins has 61 strikeouts in 29.1 innings, the most in the league, and has allowed two earned runs all season (0.61 ERA).

 

The bats to know:

• John Sigala, SF Nationals: .692 average, the best among the league's stat leaders
• Vincent Luna, Dublin Braves: .650 with a league-high 13 hits
• Isaiah Rojas, San Jose Guardians: .600 with 12 hits

Circle it: Saturday, November 14, Stud Muffins vs. Orioles, 10:00 am at Pioneer High School. If both win on November 7, it's a rematch for the division's top spot heading into the playoffs.

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Playoff primer: Saturday, November 21

 

All three divisions crown champions on the same day, each at its own field. Semifinals start at 9:15 am and 12:45 pm, and championship games start at 4:15 pm.

 

Division	Site	Semifinals	Championship
Division I	Aragon High School	9:15 am, 12:45 pm	4:15 pm
Division II	Capuchino High School	9:15 am, 12:45 pm	4:15 pm
Division III	Mills High School	9:15 am, 12:45 pm	4:15 pm

 

What to know:

• Playoffs are single-elimination.
• Games have a 2-hour and 45-minute time limit, since each field hosts three games that day.
• Run rules apply.
• The top four teams in each division make the playoffs. Semifinals are seeded 1 vs. 4 and 2 vs. 3, with the winners meeting for the title.
• November 14 is the last scheduled regular-season week, but it may be used to make up a rainout. The schedule on sjnaba.org is always the official one, so check there before you head out.

Fans are welcome at every site. Come out, bring a chair, and see who's playing their best baseball when it counts!