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Carolina League
Sport	Baseball
Founded	1945
No. of teams	8
Country	United States
Current champions	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 1 Current Member Teams and Stadiums 2 Carolina League Champions 3 Complete team list (1945-present) 4 See also 5 External links

Northern Division

Name	MLB Affiliation	Stadium
Frederick Keys	Baltimore Orioles	Harry Grove Stadium
Lynchburg Hillcats	Pittsburgh Pirates	Calvin Falwell Field
Potomac Nationals	Washington Nationals	G. Richard Pfitzner Stadium
Wilmington Blue Rocks	Kansas City Royals	Daniel S. Frawley Stadium

Southern Division

Name	MLB Affiliation	Stadium
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

1945-Danville 1946-Raleigh 1947-Raleigh 1948-Martinsville 1949-Burlington 1950-Winston-Salem 1951-Winston-Salem 1952-Reidsville 1953-Danville 1954-Fayetteville 1955-Danville 1956-Fayetteville 1957-Durham 1958-Burlington 1959-Wilson 1960-Greensboro

1961-Wilson 1962-Kinston 1963-Wilson 1964-Winston-Salem 1965-Tidewater 1966-Rocky Mount 1967-Durham 1968-High Point-Thomasville 1969-Raleigh-Durham 1970-Winston-Salem 1971-Peninsula 1972-Salem 1973-Winston-Salem 1974-Salem 1975-Rocky Mount 1976-Winston-Salem

1977-Peninsula 1978-Lynchburg 1979-Peninsula 1980-Peninsula 1981-Hagerstown 1982-Alexandria 1983-Lynchburg 1984-Lynchburg 1985-Winston-Salem 1986-Winston-Salem 1987-Salem 1988-Kinston 1989-Prince William 1990-Frederick 1991-Kinston 1992-Peninsula

1993-Winston-Salem 1994-Wilmington 1995-Kinston 1996-Wilmington 1997-Lynchburg 1998-Wilmington 1999-Myrtle Beach, Wilmington (1) 2000-Myrtle Beach 2001-Salem 2002-Lynchburg 2003-Winston-Salem 2004-Kinston 2005-Frederick 2006-Kinston

(1) Series tied 2-2 when canceled because of Hurricane Floyd. Teams declared co-champions.

Alamance Indians (1958-64) Alexandria Dukes (1978, 1980-83) Alexandria Mariners (1979) Asheville Tourists (1967) Burlington Bees (1945-51) Burlington Rangers (1972) Burlington Senators (1965-71) Burlington-Graham Pirates (1952-55) Danville 97s (1998) Danville Leafs (1945-58) Durham Bulls (1945-67, 1980-97) Fayetteville Athletics (1950-52) Fayetteville Highlanders (1953-56) Frederick Keys (1989-present) Greensboro Patriots (1945-57, 1968) Greensboro Yankees (1958-67) Hagerstown Suns (1981-88) High Point-Thomasville Hi-Toms (1954-58, 1968) High Point-Thomasville Royals (1969) Kinston Blue Jays (1982-85) Kinston Eagles (1956-57, 1962-73, 1978-81, 1986) Kinston Expos (1974) Kinston Indians (1987-present) Leaksville-Draper-Spray Triplets (1945-47) Lynchburg Hillcats (1995-present)	Lynchburg Mets (1976-87) Lynchburg Rangers (1975) Lynchburg Red Sox (1988-94) Lynchburg Twins (1970-74) Lynchburg White Sox (1966-69) Martinsville Athletics (1945-49) Myrtle Beach Pelicans (1999-present) Peninsula Astros (1969-70) Peninsula Grays (1964-68) Peninsula Pennants (1974) Peninsula Phillies (1971) Peninsula Pilots (1976-85, 1989-92) Peninsula Senators (1963) Portsmouth Tides (1963-67) Potomac Cannons (1999-04) Potomac Nationals (2005-present) Prince William Cannons (1990-98) Prince William Pirates (1984-86) Prince William Yankees (1987-89) Raleigh Capitals (1945-53, 1957-62) Raleigh Cards (1964-65) Raleigh Mets (1963) Raleigh Pirates (1966-67) Raleigh-Durham Mets (1968) Raleigh-Durham Phillies (1969)	Raleigh-Durham Triangles (1970-71) Red Springs Twins (1969) Reidsville Luckies (1948-54) Reidsville Phillies (1955) Rocky Mount Leafs (1962-63, 1965-72) Rocky Mount Phillies (1973-75) Rocky Mount Pines (1980) Rocky Mount Senators (1964) Salem Avalanche (1995-present) Salem Buccaneers (1987-94) Salem Pirates (1972-79) Salem Rebels (1968-71) Salem Redbirds (1980-86) Tidewater Tides (1963-68) Virginia Generals (1988) Wilmington Blue Rocks (1993-present) Wilson Pennants (1973) Wilson Tobs (1956-68) Winston-Salem Cards (1945-53) Winston-Salem Redbirds (1957-60) Winston-Salem Red Sox (1961-83) Winston-Salem Spirits (1984-94) Winston-Salem Twins (1954-56) Winston-Salem Warthogs (1995-present)

• Sports league attendances

• Carolina League Official site
• Carolinal League Champions

Carolina League
Northern Division		Southern Division
Frederick Keys | Lynchburg Hillcats | Potomac Nationals | Wilmington Blue Rocks		Kinston Indians | Myrtle Beach Pelicans | Salem Avalanche | Winston-Salem Warthogs