# 2015 Carolina League season

The 2015 Carolina League was a Class A-Advanced baseball season played between April 9 and September 7. Eight teams played a 140-game schedule, with two teams from each division competing in the playoffs.
The Myrtle Beach Pelicans won the Carolina League championship, defeating the Wilmington Blue Rocks in the final round of the playoffs.

## Team changes

* The Carolina Mudcats ended their affiliation with the Cleveland Indians and began a new affiliation with the Atlanta Braves.
* The Lynchburg Hillcats ended their affiliation with the Atlanta Braves and began a new affiliation with the Cleveland Indians.
* The Myrtle Beach Pelicans ended their affiliation with the Texas Rangers and began a new affiliation with the Chicago Cubs.

## Teams

2015 Carolina League :
| Division | Team | City | MLB Affiliate | Stadium |
| North | Frederick Keys | Frederick, Maryland | Baltimore Orioles | Harry Grove Stadium |
| North | Lynchburg Hillcats | Lynchburg, Virginia | Cleveland Indians | Calvin Falwell Field |
| North | Potomac Nationals | Woodbridge, Virginia | Washington Nationals | G. Richard Pfitzner Stadium |
| North | Wilmington Blue Rocks | Wilmington, Delaware | Kansas City Royals | Daniel S. Frawley Stadium |
| South | Carolina Mudcats | Zebulon, North Carolina | Atlanta Braves | Five County Stadium |
| South | Myrtle Beach Pelicans | Myrtle Beach, South Carolina | Chicago Cubs | TicketReturn.com Field |
| South | Salem Red Sox | Salem, Virginia | Boston Red Sox | Lewis Gale Field |
| South | Winston-Salem Dash | Winston-Salem, North Carolina | Chicago White Sox | BB&T Ballpark |

## Regular season
### Summary

* The Myrtle Beach Pelicans finished with the best record in the league for the second consecutive season.

### Standings

North division :
| Team | Win | Loss | % | GB |
| Lynchburg Hillcats | 72 | 68 | .514 | – |
| Potomac Nationals | 65 | 74 | .468 | 6.5 |
| Frederick Keys | 64 | 76 | .457 | 8 |
| Wilmington Blue Rocks | 62 | 77 | .446 | 9.5 |
| South division |||||
| Myrtle Beach Pelicans | 81 | 57 | .587 | – |
| Winston-Salem Dash | 75 | 63 | .543 | 6 |
| Carolina Mudcats | 71 | 68 | .511 | 10.5 |
| Salem Red Sox | 66 | 73 | .475 | 15.5 |

## League Leaders
### Batting leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| AVG | Chesny Young, Myrtle Beach Pelicans | .321 |
| H | Clint Frazier, Lynchburg Hillcats | 143 |
| R | Adam Engel, Winston-Salem Dash | 90 |
| 2B | Clint Frazier, Lynchburg Hillcats | 36 |
| 3B | Ivan Castillo, Lynchburg Hillcats | 12 |
| HR | Nellie Rodríguez, Lynchburg Hillcats | 17 |
| RBI | Nellie Rodríguez, Lynchburg Hillcats | 84 |
| SB | Adam Engel, Winston-Salem Dash | 65 |

### Pitching leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| W | Matt Heidenreich, Winston-Salem Dash | 12 |
| ERA | Nick Pivetta, Potomac Nationals | 2.29 |
| SV | Cody Wheeler, Frederick Keys | 17 |
| SO | Mitch Horacek, Frederick Keys | 146 |
| IP | Jakob Junis, Wilmington Blue Rocks | 155.2 |

## Playoffs

* The Myrtle Beach Pelicans won their third Carolina League championship, defeating the Wilmington Blue Rocks in three games.

### Playoff bracket

| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Finals | Finals | Finals |
| N1 | Lynchburg | 0 | | | |
| N2 | Wilmington | 2 | | | |
| N2 | Wilmington | 2 | N2 | Wilmington | 0 |
| | | | S1 | Myrtle Beach | 3 |
| S1 | Myrtle Beach | 2 | S1 | Myrtle Beach | 3 |
| S2 | Winston-Salem | 1 | | | |

## Awards

Carolina League awards :
| Award name | Recipient |
| Most Valuable Player | Nellie Rodríguez, Lynchburg Hillcats |
| Pitcher of the Year | Matt Heidenreich, Winston-Salem Dash |
| Manager of the Year | Mark Johnson, Myrtle Beach Pelicans |