A look inside Perfect Game’s 12u Preseason National Top 100

Perfect Game recently posted their 12u preseason national top 100 rankings. While there were a few changes, these rankings look strikingly similar to their End-of-Summer rankings from August of 2019. 4 teams from North Carolina (Rawlings Prospects NC, Canes Baseball NC - Foster, Dirtbags Black, and SBA Futures), 2 from South Carolina (Charleston Revolution - Whittle and East Coast Snipers -Clark/Hill), and 3 from Virginia (Virginia Stars - Camp, VA Seminoles - Fletcher, and Rip City) were all included in the preseason top 100. Here we review some of the highlights of these rankings as it relates to teams in our region.

 

North Carolina Representation
Rawlings Prospects NC earned our #1 spot after a 26-4 record this fall, but came in at #100 in Perfect Game's national preseason top 100.

4 teams from North Carolina were ranked in Perfect Game's preseason top 100. This included our #2 team Canes Baseball NC - Foster (#7), our #3 team Dirtbags Black (#17), our #4 team SBA Futures (#20), and our #1 team Rawlings Prospects (#100). These were the same 4 teams who finished in the top 100 at the End-of-Summer rankings this past summer. Dirtbags Black made the biggest move, going up from #44 to #17. This appears to be fairly reasonable representation by North Carolina's best teams, although #5 Mission Vipers Gold and #6 NCDB Rivercats could also make decent claims to be included.

Beyond North Carolina

Our #2 team in South Carolina, Charleston Revolution - Whittle, came in at #80, while our #3 team in South Carolina, East Coast Snipers - Clark/Hill, are #91 in the preseason top 100. These two were 67th and 80th, respectively in the End-of-Summer rankings this past summer. Notably, our #1 team in South Carolina, PRO Select, was left out of the preseason rankings. 3 team from Virginia - Stars Baseball - Camp, VA Seminoles - Fletcher, and Rip City, were ranked 10th, 71st, and 93rd, respectively. These teams were 11th, 63rd, and 84th, respectively, in the End-of-Summer rankings in 2019.

 

 

What Perfect Game got right

We really can't argue too much with the teams Perfect Game chose to include from North Carolina and our region. These teams have consistently performed well state-wide and against regional and national competition and teams like Canes - Foster, SBA Futures, Dirtbags Black, and Rawlings Prospects NC have demonstrated their place among the top 100 teams in the United States. Beyond North Carolina, it appears Perfect Game got most of top teams from Virginia and South Carolina correct. VA Seminoles - Fletcher, for instance, is coming off a 24-0 fall season but moved from 63rd to 71st in the rankings. They should be a team to watch as the spring progresses.

What Perfect Game got wrong

There's no way to sugarcoat this: having the Rawlings Prospects at #100 is a real disservice to that group. They went 26-4 this past fall and had wins over #7 Canes Baseball NC - Foster, #20 SBA Futures (x3), and #63 Line Drive Baseball (GA). They were the best team in North Carolina this fall, and the only teams even close to them in the state are all ranked inside the top 20. Simply put, it appears to be us Perfect Game may not have even reviewed the fall season when putting these rankings together. Our #1 team in South Carolina, PRO Select (SC), is another team who was overlooked this fall. PRO Select notched wins over #19 Archer Premier Baseball (GA), #91 East Coast Snipers, and #100 Rawlings Prospects just this fall, so not including them appears to be a misfire by Perfect Game.

 

One general observation about Perfect Game's preseason rankings thus far is that many of the teams included are the same teams that were included in End-of-Summer rankings in 2019, with only minor alterations in their ranking - Canes - Foster moved from 9th to 7th, SBA Futures from 19th to 20th, Dirtbags Black from 44th to 17th, and the Rawlings Prospects from 94th to 100th. The large upward move by Dirtbags Black was almost assuredly due to their runner-up finish at the Perfect Game Fall World Series. We do not feel this move was unwarranted, rather the observation is only to note it appears those responsible for these rankings took note of the results from Perfect Game events and perhaps not from others (Top Gun Winter World Series, for instance). One strategy around this seeming deficit in the rankings would be to incorporate some opinions from local coaches or tournament directors into their rankings.