Carolina League
Carolina League | |
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Sport | Baseball |
Founded | 1945 |
No. of teams | 8 |
Country | United States |
Most recent champion(s) | Kinston Indians |
Official website | Official Website |
The Carolina League is a minor league baseball affiliation which operates in the South Atlantic region of the United States. Before 2002, it was classified as a "High A" league, indicating its status as a Class A league with the highest level of competition within that classification, and the fifth step between Rookie ball and the major leagues. Although Minor League Baseball, the umbrella organization for minor leagues that are affiliated with Major League Baseball, has eliminated the distinction between High-A and other full-season A leagues, most major-league teams still use such leagues as a standard promotion step. A few draftees, generally those taken in the early rounds of the draft and those with significant college experience, will be assigned to a High-A team upon signing a professional contract, but most players do not reach the High-A level until their third or fourth year of professional play.
The organization that later became the Carolina League formed in 1945, just as World War II was ending, and consisted of only two teams based in southern Virginia. Historically, however, as many as 12 teams in a given year have competed for the Carolina League pennant, and most of the league's teams have represented towns and cities in North Carolina. Today, the league consists of eight teams in a region stretching from Delaware to South Carolina, and is divided into a Northern Division and a Southern Division. The division champions from the first half and second half of each season compete in a best-of-three divisional playoff, with the winners advancing to the best-of-five league championship, the winner of which receives the Mills Cup.
A few of the many Carolina League players who have gone on to star in the Major Leagues are: Johnny Bench (Peninsula, 1966), Wade Boggs (Winston-Salem, 1977), Barry Bonds (Prince William, 1985), Rod Carew (Wilson, 1966), Dock Ellis (Kinston, 1965), Dwight Evans (Winston-Salem, 1971), Dwight Gooden (Lynchburg, 1983), Andruw Jones (Durham, 1996), Chipper Jones (Durham, 1992), Willie McCovey (Danville, 1956), Joe Morgan (Durham, 1963), Dave Parker (Salem, 1972), Tony Pérez (Rocky Mount, 1962), Jorge Posada (Prince William, 1993), Darryl Strawberry (Lynchburg, 1981), Bernie Williams (Prince William, 1988), and Carl Yastrzemski (Raleigh, 1959).
Director and screenwriter Ron Shelton's 1988 film “Bull Durham,” starring Kevin Costner, Tim Robbins, and Susan Sarandon, depicted a fictionalized account of the Durham Bulls, at that time a Carolina League team (they have since become a Class AAA team in the International League). Before he began making films, Shelton had a five-year minor league career in the Baltimore Orioles' organization, which included a stint in the Carolina League.
Contents |
Current Member Teams and Stadiums
Name | MLB Affiliation | Stadium |
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Kinston Indians | Cleveland Indians | Grainger Stadium |
Myrtle Beach Pelicans | Atlanta Braves | Coastal Federal Field |
Salem Avalanche | Houston Astros | Salem Memorial Baseball Stadium |
Winston-Salem Warthogs | Chicago White Sox | Ernie Shore Field |
Carolina League Champions
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(1) Series tied 2-2 when canceled because of Hurricane Floyd. Teams declared co-champions.
Complete team list (1945-present)
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Composite Standings
(through 62 years)
Composite Standings
Team | Years | W | L | Pct. | Titles |
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Wilmington Blue Rocks | 14 | 1070 | 879 | 4 | |
Myrtle Beach Pelicans | 8 | 590 | 524 | 2 | |
Kinston Indians | 43 | 6 | |||
Winston-Salem Warthogs | 62 | 11 | |||
Lynchburg Hillcats | 41 | 5 | |||
Frederick Keys | 26 | 1780 | 1818 | 3 | |
Salem Avalanche | 39 | 2599 | 4 | ||
Potomac Nationals | 29 | 1899 | 2118 | 2 |
See also
External links
Carolina League | ||
Northern Division | Southern Division | |
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Frederick Keys | Lynchburg Hillcats | Potomac Nationals | Wilmington Blue Rocks | Kinston Indians | Myrtle Beach Pelicans | Salem Avalanche | Winston-Salem Warthogs |