Carolina League

Carolina League

Infobox sports league

pixels = 150px
caption = Carolina League logo
sport = Baseball
founded = 1945
motto =
teams = 8
country = USA
champion = Potomac Nationals
folded =
website = [http://www.carolinaleague.com/ 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-five 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), Andy Pettitte (Prince William, 1993), 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.

The California League's Bakersfield Blaze have announced that the franchise will be moved to the Carolina League for 2010 [http://www.bakersfield.com/news/sports/blaze/story/536291.html] . Another California League franchise would have to move to the Carolina League, although the second team's identity has not been determined, in order to keep both leagues at an even number of teams for scheduling purposes.

Current teams

Composite Standings

(through 62 years)

ee also

*Sports league attendances

External links

* [http://www.carolinaleague.com/ Carolina League Official site]
* [http://www.rauzulusstreet.com/baseball/minors/carolinachamps.htm Carolinal League Champions]
*dmoz|Sports/Baseball/Minor_League/Leagues/A/Carolina_League|Carolina League


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно решить контрольную?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Carolina League — Deporte Béisbol País  Estados Unidos Fundación 1945 …   Wikipedia Español

  • Carolina League — Infobox compétition sportive Carolina League Généralités Création 1945 Organisateur(s) Carolina League …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Eastern Carolina League — The Eastern Carolina League was a minor league baseball affiliation which operated in the Eastern part of North Carolina. The league had two distinct periods of operation: 1908 1910 and a revival of the league in 1928 1929. It was classified as a …   Wikipedia

  • South Carolina League of the South — The South Carolina League of the South is a secessionist organization made up of County chapters. The S.C. L.O.S. is a leading State Chapter of the national League of the South headquartered in Killen, Alabama.State leadership includes Chairman J …   Wikipedia

  • Eastern Carolina League (disambiguation) — Eastern Carolina League may refer to:*Eastern Carolina League Former Class D Professional Baseball League. *Eastern Carolina League (collegiate baseball) Former College Summer Baseball League …   Wikipedia

  • Carolina Mudcats — Founded in 1959 Zebulon, North Carolina Team Logo …   Wikipedia

  • Carolina — may refer to:In geography: * North Carolina, U.S. state * South Carolina, U.S. state * The Carolinas, term used to refer collectively to the states of North and South Carolina * Province of Carolina, the British colonial province until 1729 *… …   Wikipedia

  • Carolina Monarchs — Pro hockey team text color = #cc3300 bg color = #ffcc00 team = Carolina Monarchs logosize = 140px city = Greensboro, North Carolina league = American Hockey League conference = Southern division = founded = operated = 1995 to 1997 arena =… …   Wikipedia

  • Carolina Panthers — Current season Established 1993 Play in and headquartered in Bank of America Stadium Charlotte, North Carolina …   Wikipedia

  • Carolina Hurricanes — Gründung November 1971 Geschichte New England Whalers 1972 – 1979 Hartford Wha …   Deutsch Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”