# 1966 Carolina League season

The 1966 Carolina League was a Class A baseball season played between April 15 and September 5. Eleven teams played a 140-game schedule, with the top two teams in each division qualifying for the post-season.
The Rocky Mount Leafs won the Carolina League championship, defeating the Winston-Salem Red Sox in the final round of the playoffs.

## Team changes

* The Lynchburg White Sox join the Carolina League from the Southern League. The club is affiliated with the Chicago White Sox.
* The Kinston Eagles ended their affiliation with the Pittsburgh Pirates and began an affiliation with the Atlanta Braves.
* The Raleigh Cardinals ended their affiliation with the St. Louis Cardinals and began an affiliation with the Pittsburgh Pirates. The club was renamed the Raleigh Pirates.
* The Tidewater Tides ended their affiliation with the Chicago White Sox and began an affiliation with the Philadelphia Phillies.

## Teams

1966 Carolina League :
| Division | Team | City | MLB Affiliate | Stadium |
| East | Kinston Eagles | Kinston, North Carolina | Atlanta Braves | 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 | Philadelphia Phillies | 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 | Lynchburg White Sox | Lynchburg, Virginia | Chicago White Sox | City Stadium |
| West | Raleigh Pirates | Raleigh, North Carolina | Pittsburgh Pirates | Devereaux Meadow |
| West | Winston-Salem Red Sox | Winston-Salem, North Carolina | Boston Red Sox | Ernie Shore Field |

## Regular season
### Summary

* The Winston-Salem Red Sox finished with the best record in the league for the first time since 1964.
* The regular season schedule was shortened from 144-games to 140-games.

### Standings

East division :
| Team | Win | Loss | % | GB |
| Kinston Eagles | 76 | 63 | .547 | – |
| Rocky Mount Leafs | 72 | 63 | .533 | 2 |
| Wilson Tobs | 72 | 65 | .526 | 3 |
| Peninsula Grays | 63 | 75 | .457 | 12.5 |
| Tidewater Tides | 58 | 81 | .417 | 18 |
| West division |||||
| Winston-Salem Red Sox | 82 | 58 | .586 | – |
| Burlington Senators | 76 | 62 | .551 | 5 |
| Raleigh Pirates | 71 | 66 | .518 | 9.5 |
| Lynchburg White Sox | 64 | 75 | .460 | 17.5 |
| Greensboro Yankees | 64 | 76 | .457 | 18 |
| Durham Bulls | 62 | 76 | .449 | 19 |

## League Leaders
### Batting leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| AVG | Jose Calero, Winston-Salem Red Sox | .330 |
| H | Alberto Cambero, Kinston Eagles | 170 |
| R | Alberto Cambero, Kinston Eagles | 115 |
| 2B | Bernie Carbo, Peninsula Grays | 30 |
| 3B | Harvey Yancey, Peninsula Grays | 11 |
| HR | Barry Morgan, Kinston Eagles | 28 |
| RBI | Barry Morgan, Kinston Eagles | 104 |
| SB | Edward Griffiths, Burlington Senators | 40 |

### Pitching leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| W | Robbie Snow, Winston-Salem Red Sox | 20 |
| ERA | Robbie Snow, Winston-Salem Red Sox | 1.75 |
| CG | Ron Klimkowski, Winston-Salem Red Sox | 20 |
| SHO | Dick Drago, Rocky Mount Leafs | 7 |
| SO | Wally Wolf, Peninsula Grays | 185 |
| IP | Ron Klimkowski, Winston-Salem Red Sox | 221.0 |

## Playoffs

* The Rocky Mount Leafs won their first Carolina League championship, defeating the Winston-Salem Red Sox in two games.

### Playoff bracket

| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Finals | Finals | Finals |
| E1 | Kinston | 0 | | | |
| E2 | Rocky Mount | 2 | | | |
| E2 | Rocky Mount | 2 | E2 | Rocky Mount | 2 |
| | | | W1 | Winston-Salem | 0 |
| W1 | Winston-Salem | 2 | W1 | Winston-Salem | 0 |
| W2 | Burlington | 0 | | | |

## Awards

Carolina League awards :
| Award name | Recipient |
| Most Valuable Player | Robbie Snow, Winston-Salem Red Sox |
| Manager of the Year | Joe Morgan, Raleigh Pirates |