One of the things that was never terribly satisfying about the first year was the divisional setup: it felt wrong to not have the Black Yankees in something called the American League, or at least able to do battle with some of their traditional rivals.
So, the WBL has been split into a National League and an American League, with teams moved into divisions that promise a little more fealty to traditional rivalries.
Here’s what it looks like now:
| American League | ||
| Bill James Division | ||
| Baltimore Black Sox | ||
| Cleveland Spiders | ||
| Detroit Wolverines | ||
| Memphis Red Sox | ||
| New York Black Yankees | ||
| Cum Posey Division | ||
| Chicago American Giants | ||
| Los Angeles Angels | ||
| Miami Cuban Giants | ||
| Portland Sea Dogs | ||
| San Francisco Sea Lions | ||
| National League | ||
| Effa Manley Division | ||
| Brooklyn Royal Giants | ||
| Homestead Grays | ||
| New York Gothams | ||
| Ottawa Mounties | ||
| Philadelphia Star | ||
| Marvin Miller Division | ||
| Birmingham Black Barons | ||
| Houston Colt 45’s | ||
| Indianapolis ABC’s | ||
| Kansas City Monarchs | ||
| Wandering House of David |
If this structure was in place last year, Baltimore, Chicago, the Gothams, and Birmingham would have won their divisions, with Detroit, Cleveland, Portland, and the House of David being the wild card teams–in other words, the same teams make the playoffs, although the seeding would have changed a bit.