# 2005 Carolina League season

The 2005 Carolina League was a Class A-Advanced baseball season played between April 7 and September 5. Eight teams played a 140-game schedule, with two teams from each division competing in the playoffs.
The Frederick Keys won the Carolina League championship, defeating the Kinston Indians in the final round of the playoffs.

## Team changes

* The Potomac Cannons ended their affiliation with the Cincinnati Reds and began a new affiliation with the Washington Nationals. The club was renamed the Potomac Nationals.
* The Wilmington Blue Rocks ended their affiliation with the Kansas City Royals and began a new affiliation with the Boston Red Sox.

## Teams

2005 Carolina League :
| Division | Team | City | MLB Affiliate | Stadium |
| North | Frederick Keys | Frederick, Maryland | Baltimore Orioles | Harry Grove Stadium |
| North | Lynchburg Hillcats | Lynchburg, Virginia | Pittsburgh Pirates | Calvin Falwell Field |
| North | Potomac Nationals | Woodbridge, Virginia | Washington Nationals | G. Richard Pfitzner Stadium |
| North | Wilmington Blue Rocks | Wilmington, Delaware | Boston Red Sox | Daniel S. Frawley Stadium |
| South | Kinston Indians | Kinston, North Carolina | Cleveland Indians | Grainger Stadium |
| South | Myrtle Beach Pelicans | Myrtle Beach, South Carolina | Atlanta Braves | Coastal Federal Field |
| South | Salem Avalanche | Salem, Virginia | Houston Astros | Salem Memorial Ballpark |
| South | Winston-Salem Warthogs | Winston-Salem, North Carolina | Chicago White Sox | Ernie Shore Field |

## Regular season
### Summary

* The Frederick Keys finished with the best record in the league for the first time since 1993.
* The Winston-Salem Warthogs defeated the Salem Avalanche in a tie-breaking game to win the South Division in the second half of the season, qualifying for the playoffs.

### Standings
#### Overall standings

North division :
| Team | Win | Loss | % | GB |
| Frederick Keys | 79 | 61 | .564 | – |
| Lynchburg Hillcats | 78 | 62 | .557 | 1 |
| Potomac Nationals | 63 | 77 | .450 | 16 |
| Wilmington Blue Rocks | 60 | 80 | .429 | 19 |
| South division |||||
| Winston-Salem Warthogs | 77 | 64 | .546 | – |
| Kinston Indians | 76 | 64 | .543 | 0.5 |
| Salem Avalanche | 67 | 74 | .475 | 10 |
| Myrtle Beach Pelicans | 61 | 79 | .436 | 15.5 |

#### First half standings

North division :
| Team | Win | Loss | % | GB |
| Lynchburg Hillcats | 40 | 30 | .571 | – |
| Frederick Keys | 35 | 35 | .500 | 5 |
| Potomac Nationals | 31 | 39 | .443 | 9 |
| Wilmington Blue Rocks | 31 | 39 | .443 | 9 |
| South division |||||
| Kinston Indians | 41 | 29 | .586 | – |
| Winston-Salem Warthogs | 39 | 31 | .557 | 2 |
| Myrtle Beach Pelicans | 33 | 37 | .471 | 8 |
| Salem Avalanche | 30 | 40 | .429 | 11 |

#### Second half standings

North division :
| Team | Win | Loss | % | GB |
| Frederick Keys | 44 | 26 | .629 | – |
| Lynchburg Hillcats | 38 | 32 | .543 | 6 |
| Potomac Nationals | 32 | 38 | .457 | 12 |
| Wilmington Blue Rocks | 29 | 41 | .414 | 15 |
| South division |||||
| Winston-Salem Warthogs | 38 | 33 | .535 | – |
| Salem Avalanche | 37 | 34 | .521 | 1 |
| Kinston Indians | 35 | 35 | .500 | 2.5 |
| Myrtle Beach Pelicans | 28 | 42 | .400 | 9.5 |

## League Leaders
### Batting leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| AVG | Leo Daigle, Winston-Salem Warthogs | .341 |
| H | Frank Diaz, Potomac Nationals | 173 |
| R | Noah Hall, Winston-Salem Warthogs | 112 |
| 2B | Frank Diaz, Potomac Nationals | 45 |
| 3B | Javier Guzmán, Lynchburg Hillcats Rob Valido, Winston-Salem Warthogs | 7 |
| HR | Tom Collaro, Winston-Salem Warthogs Leo Daigle, Winston-Salem Warthogs | 29 |
| RBI | Leo Daigle, Winston-Salem Warthogs | 112 |
| SB | Rob Valido, Winston-Salem Warthogs | 52 |

### Pitching leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| W | Ryan Rodriguez, Winston-Salem Warthogs | 13 |
| ERA | Chance Douglass, Salem Avalanche | 2.90 |
| SV | Ehren Wassermann, Winston-Salem Warthogs | 20 |
| SO | Jim Johnson, Frederick Keys | 168 |
| IP | Chance Douglass, Salem Avalanche Michael O'Connor, Potomac Nationals | 167.2 |

## Playoffs

* The Frederick Keys won their second Carolina League championship, defeating the Kinston Indians in five games.

### Playoff bracket

| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Finals | Finals | Finals |
| N1 | Frederick | 2 | | | |
| N2 | Lynchburg | 0 | | | |
| N2 | Lynchburg | 0 | N1 | Frederick | 3 |
| | | | S2 | Kinston | 2 |
| S1 | Winston-Salem | 0 | S2 | Kinston | 2 |
| S2 | Kinston | 2 | | | |

## Awards

Carolina League awards :
| Award name | Recipient |
| Most Valuable Player | Leo Daigle, Winston-Salem Warthogs |
| Pitcher of the Year | Jim Johnson, Frederick Keys |
| Manager of the Year | Iván DeJesús, Salem Avalanche |