Carolina League

Carolina League

Carolina League logo
Sport	Baseball
Founded	1945
No. of teams	10
Country	USA
Most recent champion(s)	Myrtle Beach Pelicans
Classification	Class A-Advanced
TV partner(s)	CSN Mid-Atlantic Fox Sports Carolinas
Official website	Official Website

The Carolina League is a Minor League Baseball affiliation which operates along the Atlantic Coast of the United States. It is classified as a "Class A-Advanced" league.

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 in the Carolina League. Today, the league consists of 10 teams in a region stretching from Delaware to South Carolina, and is divided into a Northern Division and a Southern Division.

The league originated in the vicinity of Raleigh, North Carolina, and has since branched out.

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), Zack Greinke (Wilmington, 2003), 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).