Updated 04/06/2009

1. Corona Cougars - Corona, CA - The Southern Cal baseball scene is full of top-notch programs, and this team has already won TWO Super NIT's. The other powerhouses in this region like the So Cal Diamond Dawgs, West Covina Fear, Cal Vipers,  and Long Beach Fury will have a say in this region as will, of course,  the San Diego Stars, who need to play these teams more often to jump into this ratings party. Right now, the Cougars reign.

2. Banditos Black - Tomball, TX - Looks like the team to beat in 2009.  Knocked off their arch-rivals, the Texas Nationals, in a mid-February Nations Baseball  tournament to take the early lead in the battle for a National Title between the two Texas powerhouses. The odds are great that either Banditos Black or the Texas Nationals will be in the top three all year long.

3. Beaver Valley Red - Pittsburgh PA - Beast of the East. Added to it's already ridiculously deep pitching staff in the off-season, this team is built to win big tournaments.  With 10 top pitchers, BV Red will not have to "borrow" from other teams to compete in the big tourney's.  Should dominate the East, but will have to prove itself in 3 Super NIT's, Cooperstown, and Disney.  BV Red is playing perhaps the most intense schedule for a 10 year old team the East region has ever seen. It's spring-season schedule should have this team  going to Disney primed to make noise.

4. Rawlings Patriots - Tampa, FL -  The former Boltz lost several players from last year's awesome team, but we think this team has the stuff to win it all.  They'll be battling with Mizuno's Glory, the Bay Bombers, Pembroke Lake,  and the Miami Brawlers for this talent-rich state's crown, and right now, we'll put 'em ahead of Mizuno's Glory by a razor-thin margin.

5. Carolina Angels - Kernersville, NC -  Last year's National Champs are loaded again.  Like BV Red, they need to start showing their wares against the Big Boys in the Super NIT's and at Disney, but they have to be in the Top Five as the season starts. The Carolina's are famous for incredible baseball, and this team looks like the cream of the crop with sensational pitching and one of the best defensive teams in the nation.

6. Memphis Tigers - Memphis TN - This is going to be a quite a battle in the great state of Tennessee between the Tigers and the Smyrna Bulldogs.  Loaded again and ready to challenge for a National Title this year.

7. Mizuno's Glory - FL -  This powerhouse took some of the best players from other organizations and like the San Diego Stars, has a reputation of "borrowing" players from other teams for the big tourney's.  They're feared and they're loathed to a degree because of that rep, but they're winning, and with most of the same players at every tourney. They will have a bullseye on their backs at the big tourney's and a favorite to win wherever they go.

8. Texas Nationals - The Woodlands, TX -  This team will go nose to nose with the Banditos and NT Bulldogs all season long.  Better than most 11 year old teams in Texas, and as deep as any in the country. They'll be a favorite at the Super NIT's and Disney and it looks like the rivalry between them and the Banditos could be legendary in Travel Ball circles.

9. So Cal Diamond Dawgs - Los Alamitos, CA -  Not much separates this team from the number one Cougars, but since the Cougars won two Super NIT's, the Dawgs will have to spend some time trying to climb up the rankings behind their arch-rivals. This team will be in the mix all summer long.

10. Georgia Bandits - Ringgold, GA - Could be the best team in the nation when the dust clears. This national contender from last year is ready to launch it's season and some big tourney wins early could have it very close to the top of our rankings soon.

11. Litchfield Park Tigers- Litchfield Park, AZ - The pride of the desert region has assembled a blockbuster team that is expected to roll through it's area.  It will have to prove itself at Disney to make a run up the rankings, but it's Super NIT win is proof enough it's a team to be reckoned with.
 
12. West Covina Fear - West Covina , CA -  Again, the margin of diference between this SoCal power and the Cougars and Dawgs is slim. In any given tournament in Southern California, the Fear can win it all.  They will keep this region a hotbed of change as this team has the ability to knock off anyone it faces,
 
13. North Texas Bulldogs - Aledo, TX - Incredible hitting machine. The Bulldogs made their early mark by winning a big Triple Crown Tourney in March that featured the McKinney Marshalls and the Oklahoma Rays.   This team will make a lot of noise in Texas and beyond.
 
14. Pembroke Lakes Bulldogs- Pembroke Pines, FL - This team shook the Travel Ball world to it's core with Triple Crown Fall Nationals title win over Mizuno's Glory, a win that rocketed it into the Top 20 as we start this campaign.  Will have a say in who's the best team in  Florida, which may very well be this team.
 
15. Arkansas Seminoles - North Little Rock, AR - A Southeast power which will roll through it's state.  This team needs to hit the big stage and prove it can hunt with the Big Dogs but the odds are it can.
 
16. Smyrna Bulldogs- Smyrna, TN - Just because this team starts out 16 doesn't mean it can't win it all this season.  It will face enough big tests this year that by the time the season is heading towards July, we'll know if the Bulldogs can be the best team in the nation. They have the talent to take a run at it.
 
17. Lexington Thundercats- Lexington, SC - Watch out for the Thundercats this season.  They're the best team in South Carolina and a win at the Super NIT in North Carolina would go a long way to vaulting them up the rankings.
 
18. Bay Bombers- Panama City, FL -  This team is loaded and awesome, but we need to see it get to Disney and take on the Big Cats of Travel Baseball.  They have as much talent as anyone in the nation and could move up the rankings quickly this year.
 
19. Cincinnati Flames Red- Cincinnati, OH -  The best players in Ohio play for this team, and their July 4 tournament may be the best tourney all year other than Disney and the Super NIT's and Cooperstown.  They have monster pitching and will be the team to beat in Travel Ball crazy Ohio.
 
20. Okahoma Rays - Edmond, OK -  This team would make Mickey Mantle proud of his home state. They've assembled the best players in their region and brought 'em to Edmond and this team should roll over everyone in its' immediate vicinity. Their battles with the Texas Nationals and Banditos Black should be played in the Cotton Bowl and nationally televised.

21. San Diego Stars - Emerged once again as a contender for National Champs after an incredible run in the Spring Super NIT in late March out West. Pitching staff is ridiculously deep and this team looks like a top three in the nation team all year long. They'll rocket up the polls in our next edition.
 
22. RBI Hawks - Deland, FL -  This Florida powerhouse put itself on the map by beating Mizuno's Glory in the Fall. Middle of the lineup can go deep on anyone, and they have proved their worth against 11's also.
 
23. TPSA Bandits- Cullman, AL - Put themselves in with the big dogs after a tremendous performance at the Atlanta Super NIT. This team's bats can compete with anyone in the country and they are a Southeast power that will win most tournaments it enters.
 
24. Motor City Hit Dogs - Detroit, MI -  A great team that got greater in the of-season.  The rest of the highly skilled Michigan travel ball area just shook their heads when the Motor City Hit Dogs added even more power to an already powerful lineup in  the off-season.
 
25. Indiana Prospects - Indianapolis, IN -  This team can hit with anyone in the country. They pound the ball like no other team in the rustbelt and they have the ability to slam their way into National contention.

HONORABLE MENTION
 
West TN Wildcats - Hornebeak, TN
Greensboro Titans - Greensboro, NC
Bullet Baseball - Lakes Charles. LA
TABU - Fremont, CA
Germantown Giant 10's - Germantown, TN
Bullet Baseball - Tampa, FL
Beaver Valley Black - New Castle, PA
Georgia Grip- Lawrenceville, GA
McKinney Marshalls - McKinney, TX
Legends - Pasadena, TX
Alabama Attack - Birmingham, AL
Sandtown Red Sox- Atlanta, GA
Charlotte Hurricanes-  Weddington, NC
Cincinnati Stix- Cincinnati, OH
SFV Black Widows - Mission Hills, CA
Arizona Blaze - Chandler, AZ
Gulf Coast Lightning- Pensacola, FL
PTB- The Elite- Peachtree City, GA
Mississippi Xpress- Central MS
Virginia Generals- Manassas, VA
Hackensack Comets - Hackensack, NJ
Greenbrier Panthers - Chesapeake, VA 

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