1961 South Atlantic League season

1961 South Atlantic League season
League	South Atlantic League
Sport	Baseball
Duration	April 17 – September 5
Number of games	140
Number of teams	8
Regular season
League champions	Asheville Tourists

The 1961 South Atlantic League was a Class A baseball season played between April 17 and September 5. Eight teams played a 140-game schedule, with the top team winning the league pennant and championship.

The Asheville Tourists won the South Atlantic League pennant and championship, as they had the best record in the league.

Team changes

• The Macon Dodgers leave the league and join the Southern Association.
• The Savannah Pirates disbanded.
• The Greenville Spinners are reactivated and the club rejoins the league, last playing in the Tri-State League in 1955. The Spinners last played in the South Atlantic League in 1950. The team begins an affiliation with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
• The Portsmouth-Norfolk Tides join the league as an expansion team. The club begins an affiliation with the Kansas City Athletics.
• The Asheville Tourists ended their affiliation with the Philadelphia Phillies and began a new affiliation with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
• The Jacksonville Braves ended their affiliation with the Milwaukee Braves and began a new affiliation with the Houston Colt .45s. The club was renamed the Jacksonville Jets.

Teams

1961 South Atlantic League
Team	City	MLB Affiliate	Stadium
Asheville Tourists	Asheville, North Carolina	Pittsburgh Pirates	McCormick Field
Charleston White Sox	Charleston, South Carolina	Chicago White Sox	Hampton Park
Charlotte Hornets	Charlotte, North Carolina	Minnesota Twins	Clark Griffith Park
Columbia Reds	Columbia, South Carolina	Cincinnati Reds	Capital City Stadium
Greenville Spinners	Greenville, South Carolina	Los Angeles Dodgers	Meadowbrook Park
Jacksonville Jets	Jacksonville, Florida	Houston Colt .45s	Jacksonville Baseball Park
Knoxville Smokies	Knoxville, Tennessee	Detroit Tigers	Knoxville Municipal Stadium
Portsmouth-Norfolk Tides	Portsmouth, Virginia Norfolk, Virginia	Kansas City Athletics	Frank D. Lawrence Stadium High Rock Park

Map of teams

Asheville

Charleston

Charlotte

Columbia

Greenville

Jackson-
ville

Knoxville

Portsmouth-Norfolk

South Atlantic League teams

Regular season

Summary

• The Asheville Tourists finish the season with the best record in the league for the first time since 1928.

Standings

South Atlantic League
Team	Win	Loss	%	GB
Asheville Tourists	87	50	.635	–
Knoxville Smokies	75	64	.540	13
Greenville Spinners	72	66	.522	15.5
Columbia Reds	70	65	.519	16
Charleston White Sox	70	68	.507	17.5
Portsmouth-Norfolk Tides	66	72	.478	21.5
Charlotte Hornets	61	79	.436	27.5
Jacksonville Jets	51	88	.367	37

League Leaders

Batting leaders

Stat	Player	Total
AVG	Teolindo Acosta, Columbia Reds	.343
H	Teolindo Acosta, Columbia Reds Bill Roman, Knoxville Smokies	167
R	Gary Rushing, Asheville Tourists	108
2B	Wendell Antoine, Charlotte Hornets	37
3B	Bill Roman, Knoxville Smokies	17
HR	Gary Rushing, Asheville Tourists	25
RBI	Gary Rushing, Asheville Tourists	99
SB	Teolindo Acosta, Columbia Reds	40

Pitching leaders

Stat	Player	Total
W	Jack Taylor, Charlotte Hornets	17
ERA	Nick Willhite, Greenville Spinners	1.80
CG	Nick Willhite, Greenville Spinners	23
SHO	Nick Willhite, Greenville Spinners	6
IP	Nick Willhite, Greenville Spinners	230.0
SO	Nick Willhite, Greenville Spinners	161

See also

• 1961 Major League Baseball season

External links

• Minor League Baseball official website