# 1969 International League season

The 1969 International League was a Class AAA baseball season played between April 18 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 Jacksonville Suns relocated to Norfolk, Virginia and were renamed the Tidewater Tides. The club remained affiliated with the New York Mets.

## Teams

1969 International League :
| Team | City | MLB Affiliate | Stadium |
| Buffalo Bisons | Buffalo, New York | Washington Senators | War Memorial 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 | Frank D. Lawrence Stadium |
| Toledo Mud Hens | Toledo, Ohio | Detroit Tigers | Lucas County Stadium |

## Regular season
### Summary

* The Tidewater Tides finished with the best record in the league for their inaugural season.

### Standings

International League :
| Team | Win | Loss | % | GB |
| Tidewater Tides | 76 | 59 | .563 | – |
| Louisville Colonels | 77 | 63 | .550 | 1.5 |
| Syracuse Chiefs | 75 | 65 | .536 | 3.5 |
| Columbus Jets | 74 | 66 | .529 | 4.5 |
| Rochester Red Wings | 71 | 69 | .507 | 7.5 |
| Toledo Mud Hens | 68 | 72 | .486 | 10.5 |
| Buffalo Bisons | 58 | 78 | .426 | 18.5 |
| Richmond Braves | 56 | 83 | .403 | 22 |

## League Leaders
### Batting leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| AVG | Ralph Garr, Richmond Braves | .329 |
| H | Luis Alvarado, Louisville Colonels | 166 |
| R | Luis Alvarado, Louisville Colonels | 89 |
| 2B | Luis Alvarado, Louisville Colonels | 30 |
| 3B | Dave Cash, Columbus Jets | 12 |
| HR | Bob Robertson, Columbus Jets | 34 |
| RBI | Roy Foster, Tidewater Tides | 92 |
| SB | Ralph Garr, Richmond Braves | 63 |

### Pitching leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| W | Fred Beene, Rochester Red Wings Gerry Janeski, Louisville Colonels Ron Klimkowski, Syracuse Chiefs | 15 |
| ERA | Ron Klimkowski, Syracuse Chiefs | 2.18 |
| CG | Gerry Janeski, Louisville Colonels | 14 |
| SHO | Fred Beene, Rochester Red Wings | 4 |
| SO | Mike Adamson, Rochester Red Wings | 133 |
| IP | Fred Beene, Rochester Red Wings | 193.0 |

## Playoffs

* The Syracuse Chiefs won their sixth Governors' Cup, defeating the Columbus Jets in five games.

### Playoff bracket

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

## Awards

International League awards :
| Award name | Recipient |
| Most Valuable Player | Luis Alvarado, Louisville Colonels |
| Pitcher of the Year | Ron Klimkowski, Syracuse Chiefs |
| Rookie of the Year | Luis Alvarado, Louisville Colonels |
| Manager of the Year | Clyde McCullough, Tidewater Tides |

## All-star team

International League all-star team :
| Position | All-star |
| Catcher | Hal King, Louisville Colonels Bob Montgomery, Louisville Colonels |
| First base | Bob Robertson, Columbus Jets |
| Second base | Dave Cash, Columbus Jets |
| Shortstop | Luis Alvarado, Louisville Colonels |
| Third base | Mike Ferraro, Rochester Red Wings |
| Outfield | Terry Crowley, Rochester Red Wings Roy Foster, Tidewater Tides Ralph Garr, Richmond Braves |
| Pitcher | Ron Klimkowski, Syracuse Chiefs Jon Matlack, Tidewater Tides |
| Manager | Clyde McCullough, Tidewater Tides |