The Midwest League of Minor League Baseball is one of three High-A baseball leagues in the United States. It was previously known as the Illinois State League from 1947 to 1948 and as the Mississippi-Ohio Valley League form 1949 to 1955, but has been the Midwest League since 1956 (with the exception of 2021 when known as the High-A Central). A league champion is determined at the end of each season. Champions have been determined by postseason playoffs, winning the regular season pennant, or being declared champion by the league office. For 2019, eight teams qualified for the postseason: the first- and second-half winners within each division, Eastern and Western, and wild card teams (the teams with the best second-place record) from each half in each division. Teams within each division met in a best-of-three quarterfinal round. The winners met in a best-of-three semifinal series to determine division champions. Then, the Eastern and Western division winners played a best-of-five series to determine a league champion.[1] As of 2022, the winners of each division from both the first and second halves of the season meet in a best-of-three division series, with the winners of the two division series meeting in a best-of-three championship series.[2]

League champions

Score and finalist information is only presented when postseason play occurred. The lack of this information indicates a declared league champion.
Year Champion Series Finalist
1947Belleville StagsNA(Belleville won both halves)
1948West Frankfort Cardinals3–0Mattoon Indians
1949Paducah Chiefs4–3Mattoon Indians
1950[a]Centralia SterlingsNA(Finals Cancelled - weather)
1951Danville Dans2–0Mount Vernon Kings
1952Decatur Commodores3–1Hannibal Stags
1953Decatur Commodores3–2Paris Lakers
1954Danville Dans3–0Clinton Pirates
1955Dubuque Packers3–0Mattoon Phillies
1956Paris Lakers3–1Dubuque Packers
1957Decatur Commodores2–0Clinton Pirates
1958Waterloo Hawks3–2Michigan City White Caps
1959Waterloo HawksNA(Waterloo won both halves)
1960Waterloo HawksNA(Waterloo won both halves)
1961Quincy Giants3–2Waterloo Hawks
1962Dubuque Packers3–1Waterloo Hawks
1963Clinton C-SoxNA(Clinton won both halves)
1964Fox Cities Foxes1–0Clinton C-Sox
1965Burlington BeesNA(Burlington won both halves)
1966Fox Cities Foxes2–1Cedar Rapids Cardinals
1967Appleton Foxes2–0Wisconsin Rapids Twins
1968Quad City Angels2–1Decatur Commodores
1969Appleton FoxesNA(Appleton won both halves)
1970Quincy Cubs2–0Quad Cities Angels
1971Quad City Angels2–1Appleton Foxes
1972Danville Warriors2–0Appleton Foxes
1973Wisconsin Rapids Twins2–1Danville Warriors
1974Danville Warriors2–1Appleton Foxes
1975Waterloo Royals2–0Quad Cities Angels
1976Waterloo Royals2–0Quad Cities Angels
1977Burlington Bees2–0Waterloo Indians
1978Appleton Foxes2–1Burlington Bees
1979Quad City Cubs2–1Waterloo Indians
1980Waterloo Indians2–1Quad City Cubs
1981Wausau Timbers2–0Quad City Cubs
1982Appleton Foxes2–1Madison Muskies
1983Appleton Foxes3–1Springfield Cardinals
1984Appleton Foxes3–2Springfield Cardinals
1985Kenosha Twins3–1Peoria Chiefs
1986Waterloo Indians3–0Peoria Chiefs
1987Kenosha Twins3–1Springfield Cardinals
1988Cedar Rapids Reds3–1Kenosha Twins
1989South Bend White Sox3–0Springfield Cardinals
1990Quad City Angels3–1South Bend White Sox
1991Clinton Giants3–1Madison Muskies
1992Cedar Rapids Reds3–2Beloit Brewers
1993South Bend White Sox3–1Clinton Giants
1994Cedar Rapids Kernels3–1Rockford Royals
1995Beloit Snappers3–0Michigan Battle Cats
1996West Michigan Whitecaps3–1Wisconsin Timber Rattlers
1997Lansing Lugnuts3–2Kane County Cougars
1998West Michigan Whitecaps3–1Rockford Cubbies
1999Burlington Bees3–2Wisconsin Timber Rattlers
2000Michigan Battle Cats3–0Beloit Snappers
2001[b]Kane County Cougars1–0South Bend Silver Hawks
2002Peoria Chiefs3–1Lansing Lugnuts
2003Lansing Lugnuts3–0Beloit Snappers
2004West Michigan Whitecaps3–2Kane County Cougars
2005South Bend Silver Hawks3–2Wisconsin Timber Rattlers
2006West Michigan Whitecaps3–1Kane County Cougars
2007West Michigan Whitecaps3–2Beloit Snappers
2008[c]Burlington Bees2–0South Bend Silver Hawks
2009Fort Wayne TinCaps3–0Burlington Bees
2010Lake County Captains3–2Clinton LumberKings
2011Quad Cities River Bandits3–0Lansing Lugnuts
2012Wisconsin Timber Rattlers3–1Fort Wayne TinCaps
2013Quad Cities River Bandits3–0South Bend Silver Hawks
2014Kane County Cougars3–0Lake County Captains
2015West Michigan Whitecaps3–2Cedar Rapids Kernels
2016Great Lakes Loons3–1Clinton LumberKings
2017Quad Cities River Bandits3–0Fort Wayne TinCaps
2018Bowling Green Hot Rods3–1Peoria Chiefs
2019South Bend Cubs3–0Clinton LumberKings
2020None (season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic)[3]
2021Quad Cities River Bandits[4]3–2Cedar Rapids Kernels
2022South Bend Cubs2–1Lake County Captains
2023Cedar Rapids Kernels2–1Great Lakes Loons

Championship wins by team

Active Midwest League teams appear in bold.

Wins Team Championship years
9Fox Cities Foxes/Appleton Foxes/Wisconsin Timber Rattlers1964, 1966, 1967, 1969, 1978, 1982, 1983, 1984, 2012
9Waterloo Hawks/Royals/Indians/Lansing Lugnuts1958, 1959, 1960, 1975, 1976, 1980, 1986, 1997, 2003
8Quad City Angels/Cubs/River Bandits1968, 1971, 1979, 1990, 2011, 2013, 2017, 2021
6Decatur Commodores/Wausau Timbers/Kane County Cougars1952, 1953, 1957, 1981, 2001, 2014
6West Michigan Whitecaps1996, 1998, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2015
5South Bend White Sox/Silver Hawks/Cubs1989, 1993, 2005, 2019, 2022
4Burlington Bees1965, 1977, 1999, 2008
4Cedar Rapids Reds/Kernels1988, 1992, 1994, 2023
4Wisconsin Rapids Twins/Kenosha Twins/Fort Wayne TinCaps1973, 1985, 1987, 2009
2Clinton C-Sox/Giants1963, 1991
2Danville Dans1951, 1954
2Danville Warriors1972, 1974
2Dubuque Packers1955, 1962
2Quincy Giants/Cubs1961, 1970
2Michigan Battle Cats/Great Lakes Loons2000, 2016
1Belleville Stags1947
1Beloit Snappers1995
1Bowling Green Hot Rods2018
1Centralia Sterlings1950
1Lake County Captains2010
1Paducah Chiefs1949
1Paris Lakers1956
1Peoria Chiefs2002
1West Frankfort Cardinals1948

Notes

  • a Centralia was declared champion after inclement weather and military call-ups forced the cancellation of the playoffs.[5]
  • b Kane County was declared champion after the playoffs were cancelled in the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks, which caused a stoppage in professional baseball.[6]
  • c Burlington was declared champion after inclement weather forced the playoffs to be cut short.[7]

References

  • "Midwest League Champions". Midwest League. Minor League Baseball. Retrieved August 14, 2017.
  • "Midwest League Seasons". Midwest League Guide. Retrieved August 14, 2017.
  1. ↑ "Playoff Procedures". Midwest League. Minor League Baseball. Retrieved August 14, 2017.
  2. ↑ "MiLB Playoff Procedures". MiLB.com. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  3. ↑ "2020 Minor League Baseball Season Shelved". Minor League Baseball. June 30, 2020. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
  4. ↑ Avallone, Michael (September 27, 2021). "Quad Cities Claim First High-A Central Championship". Minor League Baseball. Retrieved October 9, 2021.
  5. ↑ "1950 Mississippi-Ohio Valley League". Midwest League Guide. Retrieved August 14, 2017.
  6. ↑ "2001 Midwest League". Midwest League Guide. Retrieved August 14, 2017.
  7. ↑ "2008 Midwest League". Midwest League Guide. Retrieved August 14, 2017.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.