2003 Southern League season
| 2003 Southern League season | |
|---|---|
| League | Southern League |
| Sport | Baseball |
| Duration | April 3 – September 1 |
| Number of games | 140 |
| Number of teams | 10 |
| Regular season | |
| League champions | Carolina Mudcats |
| Season MVP | Corey Hart, Huntsville Stars |
| Playoffs | |
| League champions | Carolina Mudcats |
| Runners-up | Huntsville Stars |
The 2003 Southern League was a Class AA baseball season played between April 3 and September 1. 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 Carolina Mudcats won the Southern League championship, defeating the Huntsville Stars in the playoffs.
Team changes
- The Carolina Mudcats ended their affiliation with the Colorado Rockies and began a new affiliation with the Florida Marlins.
- The Tennessee Smokies ended their affiliation with the Toronto Blue Jays and began a new affiliation with the St. Louis Cardinals.
Teams
Map of teams
East Division 
West Division
Regular season
Summary
- The Carolina Mudcats finished the season with the best record in the league for the first time since 1995.
Standings
| East Division | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | Win | Loss | % | GB |
| Carolina Mudcats | 80 | 58 | .580 | – |
| Tennessee Smokies | 72 | 67 | .518 | 8.5 |
| Greenville Braves | 68 | 70 | .493 | 12 |
| Jacksonville Suns | 66 | 73 | .475 | 14.5 |
| Orlando Rays | 65 | 72 | .474 | 14.5 |
| West Division | ||||
| Huntsville Stars | 75 | 63 | .543 | – |
| Birmingham Barons | 73 | 64 | .533 | 1.5 |
| Chattanooga Lookouts | 66 | 74 | .471 | 10 |
| West Tenn Diamond Jaxx | 65 | 73 | .471 | 10 |
| Mobile BayBears | 61 | 77 | .442 | 14 |
League Leaders
Batting leaders
| Stat | Player | Total |
|---|---|---|
| AVG | Chris Aguila, Carolina Mudcats | .321 |
| H | Corey Hart, Huntsville Stars | 149 |
| R | Bucky Jacobsen, Tennessee Smokies | 84 |
| 2B | Corey Hart, Huntsville Stars | 40 |
| 3B | Dave Krynzel, Huntsville Stars | 11 |
| HR | Bucky Jacobsen, Tennessee Smokies | 31 |
| RBI | Corey Hart, Huntsville Stars | 94 |
| SB | Billy Hall, Carolina Mudcats | 45 |
Pitching leaders
| Stat | Player | Total |
|---|---|---|
| W | Enemencio Pacheo, Birmingham Barons Cory Stewart, Mobile BayBears |
12 |
| ERA | Neal Cotts, Birmingham Barons | 2.16 |
| CG | Scott Autrey, Orlando Rays Dan Curtis, Greenville Braves Josh Hall, Chattanooga Lookouts Jon Switzer, Orlando Rays Heath Totten, Jacksonville Suns |
2 |
| SHO | Donnie Bridges, Carolina Mudcats Dan Curtis, Greenville Braves Chad Gaudin, Orlando Rays Jon Leicester, West Tenn Diamond Jaxx Jason Shelley, Huntsville Stars Heath Totten, Jacksonville Suns José Veras, Orlando Rays |
1 |
| SV | Mike Lyons, Tennessee Smokies | 31 |
| IP | Heath Totten, Jacksonville Suns | 181.1 |
| SO | Mike Nannini, West Tenn Diamond Jaxx | 158 |
Playoffs
- The Carolina Mudcats won their second Southern League championship, defeating the Huntsville Stars in three games.
Playoff bracket
| Division finals | Finals | ||||||||
| E1 | Carolina | 3 | |||||||
| E2 | Tennessee | 1 | |||||||
| E1 | Carolina | 3 | |||||||
| W1 | Huntsville | 0 | |||||||
| W1 | Huntsville | 3 | |||||||
| W2 | Birmingham | 2 | |||||||
Awards
| Southern League awards | |
|---|---|
| Award name | Recipient |
| Most Valuable Player | Corey Hart, Huntsville Stars |
| Pitcher of the Year | Joel Hanrahan, Jacksonville Suns |
| Manager of the Year | Frank Kremblas, Huntsville Stars |
See also
References
- ^ 2003 SOUL Standings at stats-crew.com, URL accessed March 17, 2025
- ^ 2003 SL Batting Leaders at baseball-reference.com, URL accessed March 17, 2025
- ^ 2003 SL Pitching Leaders at baseball-reference.com, URL accessed March 17, 2025