# 1970 International League season

The 1970 International League was a Class AAA baseball season played between April 17 and September 12. Eight teams played a 140-game schedule, with the top four teams qualifying for the post-season.
The Syracuse Chiefs won the Governors' Cup, defeating the Columbus Jets in the final round of the playoffs.

## Team changes

* The Buffalo Bisons ended their affiliation with the Washington Senators and began an affiliation with the Montreal Expos.
* During the season, the Buffalo Bisons relocated to Winnipeg, Manitoba and were renamed the Winnipeg Whips.

## Teams

1970 International League :
| Team | City | MLB Affiliate | Stadium |
| Buffalo Bisons Winnipeg Whips | Buffalo, New York Winnipeg, Manitoba | Montreal Expos | War Memorial Stadium Winnipeg Stadium |
| Columbus Jets | Columbus, Ohio | Pittsburgh Pirates | Jets Stadium |
| Louisville Colonels | Louisville, Kentucky | Boston Red Sox | Fairgrounds Stadium |
| Richmond Braves | Richmond, Virginia | Atlanta Braves | Parker Field |
| Rochester Red Wings | Rochester, New York | Baltimore Orioles | Silver Stadium |
| Syracuse Chiefs | Syracuse, New York | New York Yankees | MacArthur Stadium |
| Tidewater Tides | Norfolk, Virginia | New York Mets | Met Park |
| Toledo Mud Hens | Toledo, Ohio | Detroit Tigers | Lucas County Stadium |

## Regular season
### Summary

* The Syracuse Chiefs finished with the best record in the league for the first time in franchise history.
* On June 4, the Buffalo Bisons relocated to Winnipeg, Manitoba and were renamed the Winnipeg Whips.

### Standings

International League :
| Team | Win | Loss | % | GB |
| Syracuse Chiefs | 84 | 56 | .600 | – |
| Columbus Jets | 81 | 59 | .579 | 3 |
| Rochester Red Wings | 76 | 64 | .543 | 8 |
| Tidewater Tides | 74 | 66 | .529 | 10 |
| Richmond Braves | 73 | 67 | .521 | 11 |
| Louisville Colonels | 69 | 71 | .493 | 15 |
| Buffalo Bisons/Winnipeg Whips | 52 | 88 | .371 | 32 |
| Toledo Mud Hens | 51 | 89 | .364 | 33 |

## League Leaders
### Batting leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| AVG | Ralph Garr, Richmond Braves | .386 |
| H | Roger Freed, Rochester Red Wings | 168 |
| R | Don Baylor, Rochester Red Wings | 127 |
| 2B | Don Baylor, Rochester Red Wings | 34 |
| 3B | Don Baylor, Rochester Red Wings | 15 |
| HR | Hal Breeden, Richmond Braves | 37 |
| RBI | Roger Freed, Rochester Red Wings | 130 |
| SB | Ralph Garr, Richmond Braves | 39 |

### Pitching leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| W | Rob Gardner, Syracuse Chiefs | 16 |
| ERA | Rob Gardner, Syracuse Chiefs | 2.93 |
| CG | Ernie McAnally, Buffalo / Winnipeg | 14 |
| SHO | Rob Gardner, Syracuse Chiefs | 4 |
| SO | Ernie McAnally, Buffalo / Winnipeg | 178 |
| IP | Rob Gardner, Syracuse Chiefs Ernie McAnally, Buffalo / Winnipeg | 192.0 |

## Playoffs

* The Governors' Cup finals was reduced from a best-of-seven series to a best-of-five series.
* The Syracuse Chiefs won their second consecutive Governors' Cup, and seventh overall, defeating the Columbus Jets in four games.
* This was the fourth consecutive season that the Columbus Jets lost in the final round.

### Playoff bracket

| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Governors' Cup | Governors' Cup | Governors' Cup |
| 1 | Syracuse | 3 | | | |
| 4 | Tidewater | 0 | | | |
| 4 | Tidewater | 0 | 1 | Syracuse | 3 |
| | | | 2 | Columbus | 1 |
| 2 | Columbus | 3 | 2 | Columbus | 1 |
| 3 | Rochester | 2 | | | |

## Awards

International League awards :
| Award name | Recipient |
| Most Valuable Player | Roger Freed, Rochester Red Wings George Kopacz, Columbus Jets |
| Pitcher of the Year | Rob Gardner, Syracuse Chiefs |
| Rookie of the Year | Roger Freed, Rochester Red Wings |
| Manager of the Year | Frank Verdi, Syracuse Chiefs |

## All-star team

International League all-star team :
| Position | All-star |
| Catcher | Milt May, Columbus Jets Bob Montgomery, Louisville Colonels |
| First base | George Kopacz, Columbus Jets |
| Second base | Len Boehmer, Syracuse Chiefs |
| Shortstop | Frank Baker, Syracuse Chiefs |
| Third base | Mike Ferraro, Rochester Red Wings |
| Outfield | Don Baylor, Rochester Red Wings Roger Freed, Rochester Red Wings Ralph Garr, Richmond Braves |
| Pitcher | Rob Gardner, Syracuse Chiefs Ernie McAnally, Buffalo / Winnipeg Hal Reniff, Syracuse Chiefs |
| Manager | Frank Verdi, Syracuse Chiefs |