[Interesting title] Something in the Water [Fun, engaging subheadline] Heading into September, three MLB teams in California have less than 40 losses. What’s going on in the Golden State? [Intriguing introduction] If you combine the total losses of the Carlsbad Sparks, the San Fernando Bears, and the Carson Sun Devils--the total losses of three separate teams--you get a number that any team would be thrilled to have as their win total for the whole season. And in case that doesn’t make it clear enough--that’s practically unheard of. [Evidence setting up next paragraph] Rounding the corner into the last month of the season, each team is sporting a sub-40-loss record. That means they’re each approaching the centennial mark in wins--and the Sun Devils have already hit it. At the risk of overusing a phrase that’s already been thrown around far too much this season: It’s a gold rush. [Verifiable facts and inferences] The Sun Devils (100-30) might be the least surprising team on that list, but it would be a stretch to say that they expected to find themselves here, exactly. [Relevant quote from interview] With sluggers like Mark Tills and Albert Pavola alongside the hottest offseason prospect in years, Haruki Ohsuni, manager Mike Shosa says, “we raised the bar extremely high for ourselves. The expectation was not only to have a good season and make the playoffs, but to win the World Series. That was the mindset from day one of spring training.” [Introductory sentence setting up paragraph (with intriguing claim)] It’s not October yet, but you’d be hard-pressed to find a team in the AL who could stand in their way. [Evidence supporting claim] The team’s overall batting average sits up at .286. The pitching staff, led by Ohsuni and JJ Ramos, have a combined average ERA of 4.4. In the AL West alone, the Sun Devils have gone an incredible 43-10, and they haven’t lost to the Dallas Rattlers yet. They’re poised to clinch home field advantage for the playoffs within weeks, if not days. [Relevant quote from interview; transitional sentence hinting at next paragraph] “We try not to talk about it much, because you don’t want to throw anything off,” says Tills, who’s having an MVP-worthy year with 30 home runs and a .324 BA. “But I think everyone knows that something special is happening.” [Introductory sentence setting up paragraph] Traveling south from Carson down the traffic-choked 101, the Carlsbad Sparks (95-35) are having the breakout season that no one saw coming. They haven’t been in the postseason for over ten years. [Relevant background information followed by quote] Since its start in 1969, the franchise has only ever posted four 90-win seasons. [Relevant quote supporting claim] Players and fans had gotten used to seeing huge chunks of Perkins Park left empty--“unless the Bears or the Mountaineers were in town,” says longtime ticket holder Shelly Baker from her seat on the third base line. “Then all of a sudden, the whole stadium is orange or royal blue. The turnaround from that to this has been frankly shocking.” [Transitional sentence hinting at next paragraph] You can’t blame fans for complaining of whiplash. Their team, which hadn’t had a winning season since 2010, is now vying for the best record in the National League. [Introductory sentence setting up paragraph] A big factor: their MLB-best pitching staff. [Relevant quote from interview] “[Luis] Martinez having a career year,” says pitching coach Derek Black. “No one can catch up to what [Jason] Carter is throwing. Our relievers have always been the core of the staff and they’re doing something really special this year.” [Interesting background information supporting prior quote] The staff has combined for the most shutouts (29) in team history, and they’re coming up on the season-long MLB record of 32 set by Chicago in 1907. Though the Sparks have never been known for their sluggers--despite moving in the fences in 2013 to encourage more home runs--their lineup is on fire this year, from utility infielder Carlos Abajo’s .390 on-base percentage to first baseman Will Martin’s .330 BA. Even Andy Glassley, the Sparks’ manager of just three years, can’t pinpoint exactly where the magic is coming from. [Relevant quote from interview] “It’s a little bit of the stars aligning,” he says, “in that we have the right guys at the right time, a great coaching staff, great team leadership. But most of it is that these guys are incredibly hard-working. We’re not taking no for an answer this year.” [Transitional sentence hinting at next paragraph] There’s virtually no scenario in which the Sparks miss out on the playoffs, but they’ve got competition at the top of the NL West in the form of--who else?--the San Fernando Bears (97-32). [Introductory sentence introducing next paragraph] For two weeks before the start of the season, the Bears’ front office hung a huge banner across the front of Veritone Park, saying only “It’s an even year.” Any Bears fan worth their salt knew what that meant: the Bears have made the playoffs every even-numbered year going back to 2010. [Relevant quote from interview] “It’s a really weird thing,” says the franchise’s star catcher, Bryan Preston. “But there really is this expectation and excitement around it. We’re coming off a bad year, but everybody felt confident.” [Author’s claim and introductory sentence] The Bears’ turnaround might not be as dramatic as the Sparks’, but it’s remarkable nonetheless. [Evidence for claim] They’re coming off of a dismal 64-98 season that saw the team plagued by injuries and underperforming to a painful degree. [Analysis/inference] Maybe some of the team’s transformation to a 97-win team has something to do with the even year mentality. [Transitional sentence hinting at next paragraph] More influential, though, are the several risky moves made by Bears management in the offseason. [Relevant quote from interview] “We dropped some of our more expensive, older players,” says general manager David Hughes. “We made the decision to really support and rely the guys in the farm system, as well as bringing in new, young talent.” [Analysis of quote with verifiable facts] That meant trading aging stars for young players on the cusp of breaking out, like outfielder Christian Torres and third baseman Josh Turner--both now batting over .300 and in the running for NL Rookie of the Year. Alongside Bears veterans like Preson, OF Hunter Sholan, and second baseman Joe Casper, and a pitching staff boasting an ERA of 4.6, the Bears are playing their best baseball in years--even for an even-numbered season. [Transitional sentence hinting at next paragraph] Heading into the last month of the season, they lead the Sparks by two games in the NL West-- with two head-to-head series that’ll be primetime viewing all over the country. [Engaging introductory sentences] Three teams at the peak of performance, all within 500 miles of each other. Maybe it’s the water, the dry desert soil, or the California sun that’s causing these West Coast teams to shine--or maybe it’s just a crazy coincidence. [Relevant quote from interview] “You can try to explain it away,” says Sun Devils manager Sosha. “But the only thing you can really say is that everything is just working.” [Insightful ending using relevant quote from interview] Put another way: “When you start to win,” Bears manager Kevin Ailman says, “You’re a genius no matter who you are, where you are, or what you’re doing.”