# 1965 Carolina League season

The 1965 Carolina League was a Class A baseball season played between April 16 and September 4. Ten teams played a 144-game schedule, with the top two teams in each division qualifying for the post-season.
The Tidewater Tides won the Carolina League championship, defeating the Durham Bulls in the final round of the playoffs.

## Team changes

* The Burlington Indians ended their affiliation with the Cleveland Indians and began an affiliation with the Washington Senators. The club was renamed the Burlington Senators.
* The Rocky Mount Senators ended their affiliation with the Washington Senators and began an affiliation with the Detroit Tigers. The club was renamed the Rocky Mount Leafs.

## Teams

1965 Carolina League :
| Division | Team | City | MLB Affiliate | Stadium |
| East | Kinston Eagles | Kinston, North Carolina | Pittsburgh Pirates | Grainger Stadium |
| East | Peninsula Grays | Hampton, Virginia | Cincinnati Reds | War Memorial Stadium |
| East | Rocky Mount Leafs | Rocky Mount, North Carolina | Detroit Tigers | Municipal Stadium |
| East | Tidewater Tides | Norfolk, Virginia | Chicago White Sox | Frank D. Lawrence Stadium |
| East | Wilson Tobs | Wilson, North Carolina | Minnesota Twins | Fleming Stadium |
| West | Burlington Senators | Burlington, North Carolina | Washington Senators | Burlington Athletic Stadium |
| West | Durham Bulls | Durham, North Carolina | Houston Astros | Durham Athletic Park |
| West | Greensboro Yankees | Greensboro, North Carolina | New York Yankees | World War Memorial Stadium |
| West | Raleigh Cardinals | Raleigh, North Carolina | St. Louis Cardinals | Devereaux Meadow |
| West | Winston-Salem Red Sox | Winston-Salem, North Carolina | Boston Red Sox | Ernie Shore Field |

## Regular season
### Summary

* The Peninsula Grays finished with the best record in the league for the first time in team history.
* The regular season schedule was expanded from 140-games to 144-games.

### Standings

East division :
| Team | Win | Loss | % | GB |
| Peninsula Grays | 86 | 58 | .597 | – |
| Tidewater Tides | 76 | 68 | .528 | 10 |
| Kinston Eagles | 72 | 71 | .503 | 13.5 |
| Wilson Tobs | 68 | 75 | .476 | 17.5 |
| Rocky Mount Leafs | 62 | 82 | .431 | 24 |
| West division |||||
| Durham Bulls | 83 | 60 | .580 | – |
| Greensboro Yankees | 79 | 65 | .549 | 4.5 |
| Winston-Salem Red Sox | 65 | 79 | .451 | 18.5 |
| Raleigh Cardinals | 64 | 79 | .448 | 19 |
| Burlington Senators | 63 | 81 | .438 | 20.5 |

## League Leaders
### Batting leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| AVG | Ed Stroud, Tidewater Tides | .341 |
| H | Teolindo Acosta, Peninsula Grays | 167 |
| R | Sam Thompson, Peninsula Grays | 121 |
| 2B | Tony Torchia, Winston-Salem Red Sox | 31 |
| 3B | Frank Coggins, Burlington Senators | 11 |
| HR | Mike Derrick, Kinston Eagles | 28 |
| RBI | Mike Derrick, Kinston Eagles | 103 |
| SB | Sam Thompson, Peninsula Grays | 64 |

### Pitching leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| W | Wayne McAlpin, Wilson Tobs Jim Morio, Peninsula Grays | 16 |
| ERA | Jimmie Brown, Rocky Mount Leafs | 1.81 |
| CG | Marvin Dutt, Durham Bulls Dock Ellis, Kinston Eagles Jim Morio, Peninsula Grays | 15 |
| SHO | Jimmie Brown, Rocky Mount Leafs Wayne McAlpin, Wilson Tobs Norbert Rodgers, Tidewater Tides | 6 |
| SO | Ernest Barron, Wilson Tobs | 202 |
| IP | Wayne McAlpin, Wilson Tobs | 205.0 |

## Playoffs

* The Tidewater Tides won their first Carolina League championship, defeating the Durham Bulls in two games.

### Playoff bracket

| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Finals | Finals | Finals |
| E1 | Peninsula | 1 | | | |
| E2 | Tidewater | 2 | | | |
| E2 | Tidewater | 2 | E2 | Tidewater | 2 |
| | | | W1 | Durham | 0 |
| W1 | Durham | 2 | W1 | Durham | 0 |
| W2 | Greensboro | 1 | | | |

## Awards

Carolina League awards :
| Award name | Recipient |
| Most Valuable Player | Bobby Murcer, Greensboro Yankees |
| Manager of the Year | Pinky May, Peninsula Grays |