The Southern League is a

Minor League Baseball Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National Le ...

league that has operated in the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, Dixieland, or simply the South) is List of regions of the United States, census regions defined by the United States Cens ...

since 1964. Along with the Eastern League and

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

, it is one of three circuits playing at the Double-A level, which is two grades below

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB). The league traces its roots to the original Southern League (1885–1899), the

Southern Association The Southern Association (SA) was a higher-level minor league in American organized baseball from 1901 through 1961. For most of its existence, the Southern Association was two steps below the Major Leagues; it was graded Class B (1902-19 ...

(1901–1961), and the original

South Atlantic League The South Atlantic League, often informally called the Sally League, is a Minor League Baseball league with teams predominantly in states along the Atlantic coast of the United States from New York to Georgia. A Class A league for most of its h ...

(1904–1963). The later circuit dissolved before the 1964 season and refounded itself as the Southern League. Following MLB's reorganization of the minor leagues in 2021, it operated as the Double-A South for one season before switching back to its previous moniker in 2022. In its inaugural 1964 season, the Southern League consisted of eight teams from

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

, and

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

. Following contractions, expansions, and relocations, the league consists of eight teams in Alabama,

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

, Georgia,

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

, and Tennessee. A league champion is determined at the end of each season. The

Birmingham Barons The Birmingham Barons are a Minor League Baseball team based in Birmingham, Alabama. The team, which plays in the Southern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox and plays at Regions Field in downtown Birmingham. The Baron ...

have won 8 Southern League titles, the most among all teams in the league, followed by the

Jacksonville Suns The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins. They are located in Jacksonville, Florida, and are named for shrimp caught in the area. The team pla ...

(6) and the

Montgomery Rebels The Montgomery Rebels was the name of several American minor league baseball franchises representing Montgomery, Alabama, playing in various leagues between and . ''Rebels'' was the predominant nickname of the Montgomery teams, but it was not the ...

(5).

History

Predecessor leagues (1885–1963)

The original Southern League was formed prior to the 1885 season as an eight-team circuit playing in the

. It operated at various times as a Class B league (equivalent to short-season Class A before 2021, and

Low-A Single-A, formerly known as Class A and sometimes as Low-A, is the fourth-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States, below Triple-A, Double-A, and High-A. There are 30 teams classified at the Single-A level, one for ...

since 2021). Fraught with financial problems, teams regularly dropped out before the season's end. After being nonoperational in 1891, 1892, and 1897, it disbanded permanently after halting play during the 1899 season. The

was formed in 1901 as a Class B circuit operating in nearly the same footprint as the first Southern League. It was elevated to Class A in 1902, Class A1 in 1936, and Double-A in 1946. The Southern Association remained a premier Southern baseball league until

radio and television broadcasts began to undercut attendance in the 1950s. The league disbanded after 1961. The original

, nicknamed the "SALLY League" and not related to the current

(formerly the

Western Carolinas League The Western Carolinas League was a Class D level (1948–52; 1960–62) and a low Class A level (1963–79) full-season league in American minor league baseball. The Western Carolinas League changed its name prior to the 1980 season and has been ...

), was formed in 1904. It operated at Class C until it was elevated to Class B in 1921 and Class A in 1946. A year after the Southern Association's disbandment, the SALLY League took its place at the Double-A level in 1963.

The modern league (1964–present)

The Double-A SALLY League dissolved after the 1963 season and refounded itself as the Southern League. The newly minted league wanted to distance itself from the SALLY League's past history in the low minors. Additionally, many leagues had contributed to its legacy. For these reasons, it elected to start with a clean slate and does not claim the original SALLY League's history or records as its own. In its inaugural campaign, the six-team Southern League consisted of the

Asheville Tourists The Asheville Tourists are a Minor League Baseball team of the South Atlantic League and the High-A affiliate of the Houston Astros. It is located in Asheville, North Carolina. Asheville teams have played under the Tourists moniker in different ...

Charlotte Hornets The Charlotte Hornets are an American professional basketball team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Hornets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team ...

Chattanooga Lookouts The Chattanooga Lookouts are a Minor League Baseball team of the Southern League and the Double-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. They are based in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and are named for nearby Lookout Mountain. The team plays its home g ...

, Columbus Confederate Yankees,

Knoxville Smokies The Knoxville Smokies are a Minor League Baseball team based in Knoxville, Tennessee. The team, which plays in the Southern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. The team was based in Kodak, Tennessee, a Knoxville suburb, fr ...

, Lynchburg White Sox, and

Macon Peaches The Macon Peaches was the predominant name of the American minor league baseball franchise representing Macon, Georgia, during the 20th century. Although Macon did not field teams during and immediately after World War I, the height of the Great ...

. Sam C. Smith, the last president of the SALLY League, served as president of the new Southern League. From 1967 to 1969, the league was reduced to six teams. It went back to eight clubs in 1970, but dropped to seven in 1971. With an odd number of teams, the Southern League joined forces with the Double-A

as the Dixie Association in 1971. The two leagues played an interlocking schedule with individual league champions determined at the end of the season. Up to this point, the Southern League pennant had simply gone to the team with the best record at the end of the regular season. For the first time, the top two Southern League teams met in a best-of-three series to determine champions. The Charlotte Hornets defeated the Asheville Tourists, 2–1, and then defeated the Texas League champion

Arkansas Travelers The Arkansas Travelers, known informally as The Travs, are a Minor League Baseball team based in North Little Rock, Arkansas. The Travelers are the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners and play in the Texas League. Hi ...

, 3–0, to win the Dixie Association championship. The partnership was dissolved after the season. President Smith died suddenly in April 1971, and Billy Hitchcock became the new president that August. Hitchcock introduced a number of changes that are still in use today. In 1972, the Southern League was split into two divisions, Eastern and Western. The playoffs, which began in the Dixie Association, were continued and expanded to a best-of-five series. The league also began selecting postseason All-Star teams and issuing awards for the

Most Valuable Player In team sports, a most valuable player (MVP) award is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particular competition, or ...

, Most Outstanding Pitcher, and

Manager of the Year Manager of the Year may refer to: * Major League Baseball Manager of the Year Award * League Managers Association Awards#LMA Manager of the Year, League Managers Association Manager of the Year * Premier League Manager of the Season {{disambiguati ...

. In 1976, it introduced a split-season format with the schedule divided in half and first and second half champions from each division being crowned. This expanded the playoffs to two rounds with the winners of each half competing for each division's championship and those winners meeting for the league championship. With the addition of two teams in 1978, the Southern League grew to 10 teams. Other improvements under Hitchcock's presidency included stadium refurbishments and efforts to make the league more family-friendly. Attendance figures rose dramatically during his tenure. Jim Bragan became president in 1981 after Hitchcock's retirement. Over his 14 years leading the Southern League, attendance continued to grow as several cities built new ballparks. In 1994, Arnie Fielkow succeeded Bragan as president, and Don Mincher took over in 2000. Lori Webb became president in 2012 after Mincher's death that March.

COVID-19 impact and takeover by Major League Baseball (2020–present)

The start of the 2020 season was postponed due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

before ultimately being cancelled on June 30. As part of Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganization of the minor leagues, the Southern League was reduced to eight teams and temporarily renamed the "Double-A South" for the 2021 season. Following MLB's acquisition of the rights to the historical names of the minor leagues, the Double-A South was renamed the Southern League effective with the 2022 season.

Current teams

Structure and season

The Southern League is currently divided into two divisions, North and South, of four teams each. Previously, from 1972 to 2004, the league was split into Eastern and Western divisions. There were no divisions in place from 1964 to 1970. As of 2020, each club had 140 games scheduled per season. Utilizing a split-season schedule, each half consisted of 70 games. The season typically began during the first or second week of April and concluded in the first week of September on

Labor Day Labor Day is a Federal holidays in the United States, federal holiday in the United States celebrated on the first Monday of September to honor and recognize the Labor history of the United States, American labor movement and the works and con ...

Players

The Southern League uses a

salary cap In professional sports, a salary cap (or wage cap) is an agreement or rule that places a limit on the amount of money that a team can spend on players' salaries. It exists as a per-player limit or a total limit for the team's roster, or both. Seve ...

. As of the 2024 season, clubs are required to spend a maximum of

US$ The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...

1,360,000 on player compensation, with a minimum salary of $30,250 per player. For players aged 23 and younger on standard contracts, only 50% of their salary counts towards the cap (up to $200,000 total). There is also a separate salary cap for coaches and technical staff. Rosters are limited to a size of 28 players on Opening Day weekend, although up to 9 players can be signed on the roster before the transactions date limit.

All-Star Game

The

Southern League All-Star Game The Southern League All-Star Game was an annual baseball game sanctioned by Minor League Baseball between professional players from the teams of the Double-A Southern League. Each division, North and South, fielded a team composed of players in t ...

was an annual midsummer game between two teams of the league's players, one made up of All-Stars from North Division teams and the other from South Division teams. First held in 1964, the event predominantly consisted of a single team of the league's All-Stars versus a

team through 1998. The division versus division format was used continuously from 1999 to 2019. No game was held from 1991 to 1995 as the Southern League and the other two Double-A leagues, the Eastern League and

, participated in the Double-A All-Star Game instead.

Teams timeline

DateFormat = yyyy ImageSize = width:1000 height:auto barincrement:20 Period = from:1964 till:2025 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal PlotArea = right:20 left:0 bottom:50 top:5 #> to display a count on left side of graph, use "left:20" to suppress the count, use "left:20"<# Colors = id:barcolor id:line value:pink id:bg value:white id:Full value:rgb(0.742,0.727,0.852) # Use this color to denote a team that is a current league member id:Past value:rgb(0.4,0.80,0.67) # Use to indicate a stint in the Dixie Association (1971) id:OtherC1 value:rgb(0.996,0.996,0.699) # Use this color to denote a team that has moved to another current league id:OtherC2 value:rgb(0.988,0.703,0.383) # Use this color to denote a team that has moved to a now defunct league PlotData= width:15 textcolor:black shift:(5,-5) anchor:from fontsize:s bar:1 color:Full from:1964 till:1967 text:

(1964–66; 1968–75) bar:1 color:OtherC1 from:1967 till:1968 bar:1 color:Full from:1968 till:1971 bar:1 color:Past from:1971 till:1972 bar:1 color:Full from:1972 till:1976 bar:1 color:OtherC2 from:1976 till:1980 text: WCL bar:1 color:OtherC1 from:1980 till:2020 text: SAL bar:1 color:OtherC1 from:2021 till:end text: SAL bar:2 color:Full from:1964 till:1966 text:

(1964–65; 1967–75; 1981–present) bar:2 color:Full from:1967 till:1971 bar:2 color:Past from:1971 till:1972 bar:2 color:Full from:1972 till:1976 bar:2 color:Full from:1981 till:2020 bar:2 color:Full from:2021 till:end bar:3 color:Full from:1964 till:1971 text:

(1964–72) bar:3 color:Past from:1971 till:1972 bar:3 color:Full from:1972 till:1973 bar:4 color:Full from:1964 till:1966 text:

(1964–65; 1976–present) bar:4 color:Full from:1976 till:2020 bar:4 color:Full from:2021 till:end bar:5 color:Full from:1964 till:1967 text: Columbus Confederate Yankees (1964–66) bar:6 color:Full from:1964 till:1968 text:

(1964–67) bar:6 color:Full from:1972 till:2020 text: Knoxville/Tennessee Smokies (1972–present) bar:6 color:Full from:2021 till:end bar:7 color:Full from:1964 till:1965 text:

(1964; 1966–67) bar:7 color:Full from:1966 till:1968 bar:7 color:OtherC1 from:1980 till:1988 text: SAL bar:7 color:OtherC1 from:1991 till:2003 text: SAL bar:8 color:Full from:1964 till:1971 text: Lynchburg/Evansville White Sox; Columbus White Sox/Astros/Mudcats (1964–90) bar:8 color:Past from:1971 till:1972 bar:8 color:Full from:1972 till:1991 bar:8 color:Full from:1991 till:2012 text:

Carolina Mudcats The Carolina Mudcats are a Minor League Baseball team of the Carolina League and the Single-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Zebulon, North Carolina, a suburb of Raleigh, North Carolina, Raleigh, and play their home games ...

(1991–2011) bar:8 color:OtherC1 from:2012 till:2020 text:

Caro Caro may refer to: Places * Caro, Michigan, United States * Caro, Morbihan, France * Çaro, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, France Other uses * Caro (given name), including a list of people with the given name * Caro (surname), including a list of peo ...

bar:8 color:OtherC1 from:2021 till:end text:

bar:9 color:Full from:1965 till:1971 text:

(1965–80) bar:9 color:Past from:1971 till:1972 bar:9 color:Full from:1972 till:1981 bar:10 color:Full from:1966 till:1967 text:

Mobile A's Mobile may refer to: Places * Mobile, Alabama, a U.S. port city * Mobile County, Alabama * Mobile, Arizona, a small town near Phoenix, U.S. * Mobile, Newfoundland and Labrador Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Mobile ...

(1966) bar:11 color:Full from:1968 till:1971 text: Savannah Senators/Indians/

Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. The club was founded in Boston, ...

(1968–83) bar:11 color:Past from:1971 till:1972 bar:11 color:Full from:1972 till:1984 bar:11 color:Full from:1984 till:2005 text:

Greenville Braves The Greenville Braves were an American minor league baseball franchise, based in Greenville, South Carolina, that served as the Class AA farm team of the Atlanta Braves between 1984 and 2004. The Braves played in Greenville Municipal Stadium f ...

(1984–2004) bar:11 color:Full from:2005 till:2020 text:

Mississippi Braves The Mississippi Braves, or M-Braves as they were referred to locally, were a Minor League Baseball team based in Pearl, Mississippi, a suburb of Jackson, from 2005 to 2024. They were the Double-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves and competed in ...

(2005–24) bar:11 color:Full from:2021 till:2024 bar:11 color:Full from:2024 till:end text:Columbus (Ga.) (2025– ) bar:12 color:Full from:1970 till:1971 text: Jacksonville Suns/Expos/Jumbo Shrimp (1970–2019) bar:12 color:Past from:1971 till:1972 bar:12 color:Full from:1972 till:2020 bar:12 color:OtherC1 from:2021 till:end text: IL bar:13 color:Full from:1970 till:1971 text: Mobile White Sox (1970) bar:15 color:Full from:1973 till:2004 text: Orlando Twins/SunRays/Cubs/Rays (1973–2003) bar:15 color:Full from:2004 till:2020 text:

Montgomery Biscuits The Montgomery Biscuits are a Minor League Baseball team based in Montgomery, Alabama. They are the Double-A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays and play in the Southern League. The team was founded in Orlando, Florida, in 1973 as the Orlando Twins ...

(2004–present) bar:15 color:Full from:2021 till:end bar:16 color:Full from:1976 till:1993 text: Charlotte O's/Knights (1976–92) bar:16 color:OtherC1 from:1993 till:2020 text: IL bar:16 color:OtherC1 from:2021 till:end text: IL bar:17 color:Full from:1978 till:1998 text: Memphis Chicks (1978–97) bar:17 color:Full from:1998 till:2020 text: West Tenn Diamond Jaxx; Jackson Generals (1998–2019) bar:18 color:Full from:1978 till:1985 text:

Nashville Sounds The Nashville Sounds are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville, Tennessee, and are named for the ci ...

(1978–84) bar:18 color:OtherC2 from:1985 till:1998 text: AA bar:18 color:OtherC1 from:1998 till:2020 text: PCL bar:18 color:OtherC1 from:2021 till:end text: IL bar:19 color:Full from:1985 till:2015 text:

Huntsville Stars The Huntsville Stars were a Minor League Baseball team that played in Huntsville, Alabama, from 1985 to 2014. They competed in the Southern League as the Double-A affiliate of Major League Baseball's Oakland Athletics from 1985 to 1998 and Milw ...

(1985–2014) bar:19 color:Full from:2015 till:2020 text:

Biloxi Shuckers The Biloxi Shuckers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Southern League (1964–present), Southern League and the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Biloxi, Mississippi, and are named in ref ...

(2015–present) bar:19 color:Full from:2021 till:end bar:20 color:Full from:1993 till:2020 text: Nashville Xpress; Port City Roosters; Mobile BayBears (1993–2019) bar:20 color:Full from:2021 till:end text:

Rocket City Trash Pandas The Rocket City Trash Pandas are a Minor League Baseball team of the Southern League and the Double-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Angels. They are located in Madison, Alabama, and play their home games at Toyota Field. History In November 20 ...

(2021–present) bar:21 color:Full from:2012 till:2020 text:

Pensacola Blue Wahoos The Pensacola Blue Wahoos are a Minor League Baseball team of the Southern League (1964–present), Southern League and the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins. They are based in Pensacola, Florida, and play their home ga ...

(2012–present) bar:21 color:Full from:2021 till:end ScaleMajor = gridcolor:line unit:year increment:2 start:1964 TextData = fontsize:L textcolor:black pos:(0,30) tabs:(400-center) text:^"Southern League Timeline" #> If the chart uses more than one bar color, add a legend by selecting the appropriate fields from the following three options (use only the colors that are used in the graphic.) Leave a blank line after the end of the timeline, then add a line with the selected values from the list, separated by a space. <#

All-time teams

A "^" indicates that team's article redirects to an article of an active team formerly of the Southern League * Asheville Orioles *

^ *

* Birmingham A's *

^ *

Charlotte Knights The Charlotte Knights are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox. They are located in Charlotte, North Carolina, and play their home games at Truist Field ...

^ *

Charlotte O's The Charlotte Knights are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox. They are located in Charlotte, North Carolina, and play their home games at Truist Field, which opened in 20 ...

Columbus Astros Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo (surname), Colombo''". It most commonly refers to: * Christopher Columbus (1451–1506), the Italian explorer * Columbus, Ohio, the capital city of the U.S. state of Ohio * Columbus ...

Columbus Clingstones The Columbus Clingstones are a Minor League Baseball team of the Southern League and the Double-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves. They are located in Columbus, Georgia, and play their home games at Synovus Park. They relocated to Columbus fr ...

* Columbus Confederate Yankees * Columbus Mudcats * Columbus White Sox * Evansville White Sox *

Jackson Generals The Jackson Generals were a professional baseball team located in Jackson, Tennessee. From 1998 to 2020, they were a part of Minor League Baseball's Southern League (SL) as the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs (1998–2006), Seattle Mari ...

Jacksonville Expos Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins. They are located in Jacksonville, Florida, and are named for shrimp caught in th ...

^ *

* Knoxville Blue Jays *

* Knoxville Sox * Lynchburg White Sox *

* Memphis Chicks *

Mobile BayBears The Mobile BayBears were a Minor League Baseball team based in Mobile, Alabama, United States. The team, which played in the Southern League, served as the Double-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres (1997–2006), Arizona Diamondbacks (2007–2 ...

* Mobile White Sox *

^ * Nashville Xpress * Orlando Cubs *

Orlando Rays The Orlando "Rays" and several different minor league baseball teams have called the city of Orlando, Florida home between 1919 and 2003. Most have played in the Florida State League. History The original Orlando franchise played between 1919 a ...

* Orlando Sun Rays *

Orlando Twins Orlando commonly refers to: * Orlando, Florida, a city in the United States Orlando may also refer to: People * Orlando (given name), a masculine name, includes a list of people with the name * Orlando (surname), includes a list of people wit ...

* Port City Roosters *

* Savannah Braves *

Savannah Indians The Savannah Pathfinders was the original name of the American minor league baseball franchise that represented Savannah, Georgia, during the 20th century. While Savannah's minor league teams sported at least ten nicknames during the century, ...

* Savannah Senators *

Tennessee Smokies The Knoxville Smokies are a Minor League Baseball team based in Knoxville, Tennessee. The team, which plays in the Southern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. The team was based in Kodak, Tennessee, a Knoxville suburb, fr ...

West Tenn Diamond Jaxx The Jackson Generals were a professional baseball team located in Jackson, Tennessee. From 1998 to 2020, they were a part of Minor League Baseball's Southern League (SL) as the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs (1998–2006), Seattle Marin ...

Champions

League champions have been determined by different means since the Southern League's formation in 1964. Through 1970, champions were the regular-season pennant winners—the team with the best

win–loss record Win–loss may refer to: * Win–loss analytics, analysis of the reasons why a visitor to a website was or wasn't persuaded to engage in a desired action * Win–loss record, also winning percentage * Win–loss record (pitching), the number of ...

at the conclusion of the regular season. The 1971 title was decided in a postseason series between the two teams with the best records. From 1972 to 1975, the winners of each of two divisions competed in a series to determine champions. The league operated using a

split season A split season is a schedule format implemented in a variety of sports leagues. The season is divided into two parts, with the winners of both halves playing each other at the end for the overall championship. Split seasons are usually found in sp ...

format from 1976 to 2020. Under this format, the winners of each half within each division played for the division championship, and the division winners met to play for the SL title. The 2021 winner was crowned via a series between the two teams with the best full-season records. The 2022 championship will be decided through the same split-season divisional format used for most of the league's existence. The

have won 8 Southern League championships, the most among all teams in the league, followed by the

(6) and the

(5).

Awards

The SL recognizes outstanding players and team personnel annually near the end of each season.

MVP Award

The

Most Valuable Player Award In team sports, a most valuable player (MVP) award is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particular competition, or ...

is given to honor the best player in the league.

Pitcher of the Year Award

The Pitcher of the Year Award, originally known as the Most Outstanding Pitcher Award, serves to recognize the league's best pitcher.

Manager of the Year Award

The

Manager of the Year Award In Major League Baseball, the Manager of the Year Award is an honor given annually since 1983 to two outstanding manager (baseball), managers, one each in the American League (AL) and the National League (baseball), National League (NL). The winne ...

is given to the league's top manager.

Top MLB Prospect Award

The Top MLB Prospect Award, created in 2021, is given to the league's top rookie prospect.

Presidents

Six presidents led the Southern League since its formation: * 1964–1971: Sam C. Smith * 1971–1980: Billy Hitchcock * 1981–1994: Jim Bragan * 1994–2000: Arnie Fielkow * 2000–2011: Don Mincher * 2012–2020: Lori Webb

References

;Specific ;General *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Southern League (1964-2020) 1964 establishments in the United States Sports leagues established in 1964 Minor baseball leagues in the United States