# 2006 Carolina League season

The 2006 Carolina League was a Class A-Advanced baseball season played between April 6 and September 4. Eight teams played a 140-game schedule, with two teams from each division competing in the playoffs.
The Kinston Indians won the Carolina League championship, defeating the Frederick Keys in the final round of the playoffs.

## Teams

2006 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 | Lewis Gale Field |
| South | Winston-Salem Warthogs | Winston-Salem, North Carolina | Chicago White Sox | Ernie Shore Field |

## Regular season
### Summary

* The Kinston Indians finished with the best record in the league for the first time since 2004.

### Standings

North division :
| Team | Win | Loss | % | GB |
| Wilmington Blue Rocks | 67 | 71 | .486 | – |
| Potomac Nationals | 64 | 76 | .457 | 4 |
| Lynchburg Hillcats | 63 | 75 | .457 | 4 |
| Frederick Keys | 61 | 77 | .442 | 6 |
| South division |||||
| Kinston Indians | 85 | 54 | .612 | – |
| Salem Avalanche | 76 | 61 | .555 | 8 |
| Myrtle Beach Pelicans | 72 | 68 | .514 | 13.5 |
| Winston-Salem Warthogs | 66 | 72 | .478 | 18.5 |

#### First half standings

North division :
| Team | Win | Loss | % | GB |
| Wilmington Blue Rocks | 35 | 35 | .500 | – |
| Lynchburg Hillcats | 34 | 36 | .486 | 1 |
| Potomac Nationals | 33 | 37 | .471 | 2 |
| Frederick Keys | 26 | 43 | .377 | 8.5 |
| South division |||||
| Kinston Indians | 47 | 23 | .671 | – |
| Winston-Salem Warthogs | 37 | 32 | .536 | 9.5 |
| Myrtle Beach Pelicans | 35 | 35 | .500 | 12 |
| Salem Avalanche | 32 | 38 | .457 | 15 |

#### Second half standings

North division :
| Team | Win | Loss | % | GB |
| Frederick Keys | 35 | 34 | .507 | – |
| Wilmington Blue Rocks | 32 | 36 | .471 | 2.5 |
| Potomac Nationals | 31 | 39 | .443 | 4.5 |
| Lynchburg Hillcats | 29 | 39 | .426 | 5.5 |
| South division |||||
| Salem Avalanche | 44 | 23 | .657 | – |
| Kinston Indians | 38 | 31 | .551 | 7 |
| Myrtle Beach Pelicans | 37 | 33 | .529 | 8.5 |
| Winston-Salem Warthogs | 29 | 40 | .420 | 16 |

## League Leaders
### Batting leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| AVG | Carl Loadenthal, Myrtle Beach Pelicans | .323 |
| H | Victor Mercedes, Winston-Salem Warthogs | 142 |
| R | Van Pope, Myrtle Beach Pelicans | 78 |
| 2B | Francisco Caraballo, Salem Avalanche Neil Sellers, Salem Avalanche | 40 |
| 3B | Victor Mercedes, Winston-Salem Warthogs | 8 |
| HR | Jason Fransz, Frederick Keys | 24 |
| RBI | Jordan Brown, Kinston Indians | 87 |
| SB | Pedro Powell, Lynchburg Hillcats | 63 |

### Pitching leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| W | Chuck Lofgren, Kinston Indians | 17 |
| ERA | Scott Lewis, Kinston Indians | 1.48 |
| SV | Mike James, Wilmington Blue Rocks | 25 |
| SO | Jimmy Barthmaier, Salem Avalanche | 134 |
| IP | Kevin Hart, Frederick Keys Mike Hinckley, Potomac Nationals | 148.1 |

## Playoffs

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

### Playoff bracket

| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Finals | Finals | Finals |
| N1 | Wilmington | 1 | | | |
| N2 | Frederick | 2 | | | |
| N2 | Frederick | 2 | N2 | Frederick | 0 |
| | | | S1 | Kinston | 3 |
| S1 | Kinston | 2 | S1 | Kinston | 3 |
| S2 | Salem | 0 | | | |

## Awards

Carolina League awards :
| Award name | Recipient |
| Most Valuable Player | Jordan Brown, Kinston Indians |
| Pitcher of the Year | Chuck Lofgren, Kinston Indians |
| Manager of the Year | Jim Pankovits, Salem Avalanche |