# 1983 Southern League season

The 1983 Southern League was a Class AA baseball season played between April 8 and August 31. Ten teams played a 146-game schedule, with the top team in each division in each half of the season qualifying for the post-season.
The Birmingham Barons won the Southern League championship, as they defeated the Jacksonville Suns in the playoffs.

## Team changes

* The Chattanooga Lookouts ended their affiliation with the Cleveland Indians and began a new affiliation with the Seattle Mariners.

## Teams

1983 Southern League :
| Division | Team | City | MLB Affiliate | Stadium |
| East | Charlotte Orioles | Charlotte, North Carolina | Baltimore Orioles | Jim Crockett Memorial Park |
| East | Columbus Astros | Columbus, Georgia | Houston Astros | Golden Park |
| East | Jacksonville Suns | Jacksonville, Florida | Kansas City Royals | Wolfson Park |
| East | Orlando Twins | Orlando, Florida | Minnesota Twins | Tinker Field |
| East | Savannah Braves | Savannah, Georgia | Atlanta Braves | Grayson Stadium |
| West | Birmingham Barons | Birmingham, Alabama | Detroit Tigers | Rickwood Field |
| West | Chattanooga Lookouts | Chattanooga, Tennessee | Seattle Mariners | Engel Stadium |
| West | Knoxville Blue Jays | Knoxville, Tennessee | Toronto Blue Jays | Bill Meyer Stadium |
| West | Memphis Chicks | Memphis, Tennessee | Montreal Expos | Tim McCarver Stadium |
| West | Nashville Sounds | Nashville, Tennessee | New York Yankees | Herschel Greer Stadium |

## Regular season
### Summary

* The Birmingham Barons finished the season with the best record in the league for the first time since 1967.

### Standings

East Division :
| Team | Win | Loss | % | GB |
| Savannah Braves | 81 | 64 | .559 | – |
| Jacksonville Suns | 77 | 68 | .531 | 4 |
| Charlotte Orioles | 69 | 77 | .473 | 12.5 |
| Columbus Astros | 64 | 79 | .448 | 16 |
| Orlando Twins | 62 | 83 | .428 | 19 |
| West Division |||||
| Birmingham Barons | 91 | 54 | .628 | – |
| Nashville Sounds | 88 | 58 | .603 | 4 |
| Chattanooga Lookouts | 68 | 75 | .476 | 22 |
| Knoxville Blue Jays | 64 | 82 | .438 | 27.5 |
| Memphis Chicks | 61 | 85 | .418 | 30.5 |

## League Leaders
### Batting leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| AVG | Iván Calderón, Chattanooga Lookouts | .311 |
| H | Iván Calderón, Chattanooga Lookouts | 170 |
| R | George Foussianes, Birmingham Barons | 106 |
| 2B | Larry Sheets, Charlotte Orioles | 37 |
| 3B | Iván Calderón, Chattanooga Lookouts | 15 |
| HR | Glenn Davis, Columbus Astros Larry Sheets, Charlotte Orioles | 25 |
| RBI | Miguel Sosa, Savannah Braves | 93 |
| SB | Mike Cole, Savannah Braves | 75 |

### Pitching leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| W | Don Heinkel, Birmingham Barons | 19 |
| ERA | Roger Mason, Birmingham Barons | 2.06 |
| CG | Don Heinkel, Birmingham Barons | 13 |
| SHO | John Cerutti, Knoxville Blue Jays Keith Comstock, Birmingham Barons Jeff Heathcock, Columbus Astros Kelly Scott, Nashville Sounds Mark Shiflett, Nashville Sounds Benny Snyder, Columbus Astros | 3 |
| SV | Dave Shipanoff, Knoxville Blue Jays | 18 |
| IP | Don Heinkel, Birmingham Barons | 207.1 |
| SO | Mark Gubicza, Jacksonville Suns | 146 |

## Playoffs

* The Birmingham Barons won their second Southern League championship, defeating the Jacksonville Suns in four games.

### Playoff bracket

| Division finals | Division finals | Division finals | Finals | Finals | Finals |
| E1 | Jacksonville | 3 | | | |
| E2 | Savannah | 1 | | | |
| E2 | Savannah | 1 | E1 | Jacksonville | 1 |
| | | | W1 | Birmingham | 3 |
| W1 | Birmingham | 3 | W1 | Birmingham | 3 |
| W2 | Nashville | 2 | | | |

## Awards

Southern League awards :
| Award name | Recipient |
| Most Valuable Player | John Morris, Jacksonville Suns |
| Pitcher of the Year | Don Heinkel, Birmingham Barons |
| Manager of the Year | Roy Majtyka, Birmingham Barons |