2001 Southern League season
| 2001 Southern League season | |
|---|---|
| League | Southern League |
| Sport | Baseball |
| Duration | April 5 – September 3 |
| Number of games | 140 |
| Number of teams | 10 |
| Regular season | |
| League champions | Jacksonville Suns |
| Season MVP | Josh Phelps, Tennessee Smokies |
| Playoffs | |
| League champions | Huntsville Stars Jacksonville Suns |
The 2001 Southern League was a Class AA baseball season played between April 5 and September 3. Ten teams played a 140-game schedule, with the top team in each division in each half of the season qualifying for the post-season.
The Huntsville Stars and Jacksonville Suns were co-champions of the Southern League championship.
Team changes
- The Chattanooga Lookouts moved from the West Division to the East Division.
- The Tennessee Smokies moved from the East Division to the West Division.
- The Jacksonville Suns ended their affiliation with the Detroit Tigers and began a new affiliation with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Teams
Map of teams
East Division 
West Division
Regular season
Summary
- The Jacksonville Suns finished the season with the best record in the league for the first time since 1998.
Standings
| East Division | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | Win | Loss | % | GB |
| Jacksonville Suns | 83 | 56 | .597 | – |
| Chattanooga Lookouts | 72 | 67 | .518 | 11 |
| Carolina Mudcats | 62 | 76 | .449 | 20.5 |
| Greenville Braves | 60 | 79 | .432 | 23 |
| Orlando Rays | 59 | 81 | .421 | 24.5 |
| West Division | ||||
| Birmingham Barons | 80 | 60 | .571 | – |
| Tennessee Smokies | 80 | 60 | .571 | – |
| Huntsville Stars | 75 | 63 | .543 | 4 |
| Mobile BayBears | 65 | 73 | .471 | 14 |
| West Tenn Diamond Jaxx | 59 | 80 | .424 | 20.5 |
League Leaders
Batting leaders
| Stat | Player | Total |
|---|---|---|
| AVG | Ben Broussard, Chattanooga Lookouts | .320 |
| H | Reed Johnson, Tennessee Smokies | 174 |
| R | Reed Johnson, Tennessee Smokies | 104 |
| 2B | Josh Phelps, Tennessee Smokies | 36 |
| 3B | Glenn Davis, Jacksonville Suns Orlando Hudson, Tennessee Smokies |
8 |
| HR | Josh Phelps, Tennessee Smokies | 31 |
| RBI | Joe Borchard, Birmingham Barons | 98 |
| SB | Jorge Nuñez, Jacksonville Suns | 44 |
Pitching leaders
| Stat | Player | Total |
|---|---|---|
| W | Chris Baker, Tennessee Smokies Mitch Wylie, Birmingham Barons |
15 |
| ERA | Steve Smyth, West Tenn Diamond Jaxx | 2.54 |
| CG | Chris Baker, Tennessee Smokies Scott Cassidy, Tennessee Smokies |
4 |
| SHO | Scott Cassidy, Tennessee Smokies | 3 |
| SV | Edwin Almonte, Birmingham Barons | 36 |
| IP | Jim Magrane, Orlando Rays | 182.0 |
| SO | Nick Neugebauer, Huntsville Stars | 149 |
Playoffs
- Due to the September 11 attacks, the final round of the playoffs was canceled. The Huntsville Stars and Jacksonville Suns were declared co-champions.
- The Huntsville Stars won their third Southern League championship.
- The Jacksonville Suns won their second Southern League championship.
Playoff bracket
| Division finals | Finals | ||||||||
| E1 | Jacksonville | 3 | |||||||
| E2 | Chattanooga | 2 | |||||||
| E1 | Jacksonville | ||||||||
| W2 | Huntsville | ||||||||
| W1 | Birmingham | 2 | |||||||
| W2 | Huntsville | 3 | |||||||
Awards
| Southern League awards | |
|---|---|
| Award name | Recipient |
| Most Valuable Player | Josh Phelps, Tennessee Smokies |
| Pitcher of the Year | Chris Baker, Tennessee Smokies |
| Manager of the Year | John Shoemaker, Jacksonville Suns |
See also
References
- ^ 2001 SOUL Standings at stats-crew.com, URL accessed March 17, 2025
- ^ 2001 SL Batting Leaders at baseball-reference.com, URL accessed March 17, 2025
- ^ 2001 SL Pitching Leaders at baseball-reference.com, URL accessed March 17, 2025