West Division preview

Evansville Otters

Last year: 34-62, 4th in West
Manager: Jason Verdugo (1st year)
Key returnees: SS Ryan Bethel (.247, 45 RBI, re-acquired from Washington); RHP Justin Jordan (6-8, 3.13).
Newcomers: LHP Ben Foster (9-5 for Evansville in 2005. Retired after 2 games in 2006); OF Trey Hendricks (.258, 10 HR for River City); OF Jose Pineda (7 years in Athletics' system, 35 HR over last 2 years in Class A).
Noteworthy: Though he spent eight years in professional baseball, Verdugo is better known for being the backup quarterback at Arizona State, behind starter Jake Plummer, in the mid-1990s.
Outlook: Verdugo, who was the pitching coach for St. Paul of the independent American Association the last three years, inherits a major rebuilding job. The Otters were next-to-last in the league in batting average (.241) and hit the fewest home runs (43) in 2007. Pineda was brought in to boost the offense and the addition of Hendricks should help, but there are still too many areas that need major upgrades. More wins are likely but asking for a .500 season might be too much.

Gateway Grizzlies

Last year: 64-29, 1st in West, lost to Washington in playoffs
Manager: Phil Warren (2nd year)
Key returnees: 1B Mike Breyman (.331, 22 HR, 70 RBI); RHP Eric Dessau (14-2, 3.13); OF Stephen Holdren (.311, 23 HR, 73 RBI); 3B Manny Paula (.299, 15 HR); RHP Eric Ridener (2-1, 20 saves, 2.11); OF Jeff Vincent (.279, 21 SB).
Newcomers: OF Michael Campbell (Male Athlete of Year at South Carolina in 2006); 2B Ryne Malone (led Florida State in home runs in 2006).
Noteworthy: The Grizzlies play in Sauget, Ill., - population 249 acording to the latest census - the smallest town with a professional baseball team.
Outlook: There is no shortage of offense with the Grizzlies, who return six starting position players from a club that hit 75 more home runs than any other team last season. Just how far the Grizzlies go depends on the pitching staff. Dessau tied for the league lead in wins, but the pitchers couldn't keep the ball in the park in the playoff loss to Washington. Will battle for the division title.

River City Rascals

Last year: 36-60, 3rd in West
Manager: Toby Rumfield (2nd year)
Key returnees: RHP Mike Benacka (2-5, 5.01, 20 saves, 60 strikeouts in 41.1 IP); SS Brad Hough (.285, 10 HR, 18 SB); OF Phil Laurent (.341, 12 HR, 46 RBI); OF Jeff Miller (.307, 7 HR); 1B Bobby Mosby (.273, 19 HR, 53 RBI).
Newcomers: OF Luke Barganier (.292 for Bradenton in South Coast League); RHP Armando Carrasco (6-2, 2.19 for Class A Quad City); LHP Scott Fogelson (6-7, 3.90 for Kalamazoo and Florence); RHP Danny Powers (34 games at Class AA last year); SS Greg Stone (.271 for Florence).
Noteworthy: River City has not made the playoffs since 2000, the longest postseason drought in the league.
Outlook: With a lineup that includes Hough, Laurent, Mosby and Barganier, the Rascals will score runs in bunches. The question is can anybody here pitch? Or play defense? Last year, the Rascals used 20 starting pitchers who combined for a 24-42 record and 5.66 ERA. And that was with a defense that led the league in errors. Carrasco and Powers should be two impact newcomers. If the pitching and defense improves significantly, then the Rascals could find their way into the pennant race.

Rockford RiverHawks

Last year: 52-43, 2nd in Central, lost to Windy City in playoffs
Manager: Bob Koopman (1st year)
Key returnees: RHP Garrett Bauer (7-5, 4.15); SS Brad Dutton (.288, 20 SB); OF Jason James (league-leading .345, 23 doubles, will be used as pitcher this season); RHP Mike Marksbury (0-0, 1.34, 14 saves, 32 strikeouts in 20.1 IP); RHP Robert Wooley (4-2, 3.51 for Southern Illinois).
Newcomers: RHP Jim Paduch (23 wins in 5 years as pro); 1B Chris Raber (17 home runs for Coastal Carolina University last spring); RHP Chris Schutt (30 wins in 5 years as pro); OF Corey Stang (.313 in 2 years in independent ball).
Noteworthy: Kurt Carlson, one of the RiverHawks' owners, is the brother of Bun E. Carlos, the drummer for Cheap Trick.
Outlook: The RiverHawks made an interesting coaching move after advancing to the playoffs for the fourth consecutive year. Bob Koopman, who managed the RiverHawks to the championship in 2004, returns as manager after spending the last two years as a coach. J.D. Arndt goes from manager to coach. It doesn't seem to matter who the manager is, the RiverHawks are always competitive. A replacement must be found for pitcher Tanner Watson (11-3, 2.17), who was Baseball America's Independent Player of the Year. Will be in the playoff hunt again, though likely will not have enough offense to surpass Gateway and Windy City.

Southern Illinois Miners

Last year: 49-47, 2nd in West
Manager: Mike Pinto (2nd year)
Key Returners: 1B Tim Dorn (.349, 12 HR in 39 games before being signed by Cardinals; homered in 5 consecutive games); RHP Travis Hope (5-3, 1.61, 14 saves); RHP Chris Little (8-8, 3.80); 1B Joey Metropoulos (.326, 9 HR in 39 games); SS Mike Scanzano (.309); RHP Nick Tisone (8-3, 3.82).
Newcomers: 3B Brandon Jones (.266, 8 HR with Sioux City of American Association).
Noteworthy: The Miners' logo was named the best in minor-league baseball as determined by fan voting on the CNBC web site.
Outlook: The Miners were the league's success story last season, setting attendance records by averaging more than 5,000 fans per game in the franchise's first year. On the field, the Miners had a potent offense but the pitching was way too inconsistent - 5.90 ERA on the road - to make the playoffs. Pinto believes he's fixed the pitching staff. A sure sign of trouble will be if the Miners use 13 different starting pitchers again this year.

Windy City ThunderBolts
Last year: 68-28, 1st in Central, won league championship
Manager: Brian Nelson (1st year)
Key returnees: OF Mike Coles (.330, 9 HR, 69 RBI, 27 SB); RHP Eric Fussell (12-2, 3.26); 1B Phil Hawke (.290, 10 HR, 78 RBI); RHP Brock Hunton (10-6, 2.96); SS Wes Long (.334, 36 2B, 67 RBI, 31 SB); RHP Matt Petty (2-2, 2.66, 26 saves).
Newcomers: C Ben Barone (NCAA Division Player of the Year in 2007); C Carlos Medina (former 8th-round draft pick of Dodgers); RHP Ross Stout (11-4, 2.38 with Macon of South Coast League).
Noteworthy: Last year was the first season in which the ThunderBolts had a winning record. They joined the league in 1999 as the Cook County Cheetahs.
Outlook: The ThunderBolts, who set the league's single-season record for wins, are loaded again with eight returning midseason all-stars. The biggest change is at manager, where Nelson replaces Andy Haines, who took a coaching job in the Flroida Marlins' system. Nelson was the hiting coach last year for Gary of the Northern League. The ThunderBolts won't win as many games because the West Divsion should be tougher than year's Central and the bullpen is unlikely to repeat its numbers (27-3 with 33 saves), but this is the team to beat.