# 1972 International League season

The 1972 International League was a Class AAA baseball season played between April 16 and September 13. Eight teams played a 144-game schedule, with the top four teams qualifying for the post-season.
The Tidewater Tides won the Governors' Cup, defeating the Louisville Colonels in the final round of the playoffs.

## Team changes

* The Winnipeg Whips relocated to Hampton, Virginia and were renamed the Peninsula Whips. The club remained affiliated with the Montreal Expos.

## Teams

1972 International League :
| Team | City | MLB Affiliate | Stadium |
| Charleston Charlies | Charleston, West Virginia | Pittsburgh Pirates | Watt Powell Park |
| Louisville Colonels | Louisville, Kentucky | Boston Red Sox | Fairgrounds Stadium |
| Peninsula Whips | Hampton, Virginia | Montreal Expos | War Memorial 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 Louisville Colonels finished with the best record in the league for the first time in franchise history.
* The regular season was expanded from 140 games to 144 games.

### Standings

International League :
| Team | Win | Loss | % | GB |
| Louisville Colonels | 81 | 63 | .563 | – |
| Charleston Charlies | 80 | 64 | .556 | 1 |
| Tidewater Tides | 78 | 65 | .545 | 2.5 |
| Rochester Red Wings | 76 | 68 | .528 | 5 |
| Toledo Mud Hens | 75 | 69 | .521 | 6 |
| Richmond Braves | 65 | 78 | .455 | 15.5 |
| Syracuse Chiefs | 64 | 80 | .444 | 17 |
| Peninsula Whips | 56 | 88 | .389 | 25 |

## League Leaders
### Batting leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| AVG | Al Bumbry, Rochester Red Wings | .345 |
| H | Cecil Cooper, Louisville Colonels | 162 |
| R | Pepe Mangual, Peninsula Whips | 91 |
| 2B | Cecil Cooper, Louisville Colonels | 31 |
| 3B | Al Bumbry, Rochester Red Wings | 15 |
| HR | Richie Zisk, Charleston Charlies | 26 |
| RBI | Dwight Evans, Louisville Colonels | 95 |
| SB | Pepe Mangual, Peninsula Whips | 39 |

### Pitching leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| W | Craig Skok, Louisville Colonels | 15 |
| ERA | Gene Garber, Charleston Charlies | 2.26 |
| CG | Gene Garber, Charleston Charlies Harry Parker, Tidewater Tides | 13 |
| SHO | Harry Parker, Tidewater Tides | 5 |
| SV | Dick Colpaert, Charleston Charlies | 21 |
| SO | Jim McKee, Charleston Charlies | 159 |
| IP | John Montague, Peninsula Whips | 214.0 |

## Playoffs

* The Tidewater Tides won their first Governors' Cup, defeating the Louisville Colonels in five games.
* The semi-finals were reduced from a best-of-five series to a best-of-three series.
* The finals were reduced from a best-of-seven series to a best-of-five series.

### Playoff bracket

| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Governors' Cup | Governors' Cup | Governors' Cup |
| 1 | Louisville | 2 | | | |
| 4 | Rochester | 1 | | | |
| 4 | Rochester | 1 | 1 | Louisville | 2 |
| | | | 3 | Tidewater | 3 |
| 2 | Charleston | 1 | 3 | Tidewater | 3 |
| 3 | Tidewater | 2 | | | |

## Awards

International League awards :
| Award name | Recipient |
| Most Valuable Player | Dwight Evans, Louisville Colonels |
| Pitcher of the Year | Gene Garber, Charleston Charlies |
| Rookie of the Year | Al Bumbry, Rochester Red Wings |
| Manager of the Year | Hank Bauer, Tidewater Tides |

## All-star team

International League all-star team :
| Position | All-star |
| Catcher | Vic Correll, Louisville Colonels |
| First base | Cecil Cooper, Louisville Colonels |
| Second base | Chuck Goggin, Charleston Charlies |
| Shortstop | Mario Guerrero, Louisville / Syracuse |
| Third base | Tom Matchick, Rochester Red Wings |
| Outfield | Al Bumbry, Rochester Red Wings Dwight Evans, Louisville Colonels Richie Zisk, Charleston Charlies |
| Pitcher | Gene Garber, Charleston Charlies Craig Skok, Louisville Colonels |
| Manager | Hank Bauer, Tidewater Tides |