# 1988 Southern League season

The 1988 Southern League was a Class AA baseball season played between April 8 and August 31. Ten teams played a 144-game schedule, with the top team in each division in each half of the season qualifying for the post-season.
The Chattanooga Lookouts won the Southern League championship, as they defeated the Greenville Braves in the playoffs.

## Team changes

* The Charlotte Orioles are renamed to the Charlotte Knights. The club remained affiliated with the Baltimore Orioles.
* The Chattanooga Lookouts ended their affiliation with the Seattle Mariners and began a new affiliation with the Cincinnati Reds.

## Teams

1988 Southern League :
| Division | Team | City | MLB Affiliate | Stadium |
| East | Charlotte Knights | Charlotte, North Carolina | Baltimore Orioles | Knights Park |
| East | Columbus Astros | Columbus, Georgia | Houston Astros | Golden Park |
| East | Greenville Braves | Greenville, South Carolina | Atlanta Braves | Greenville Municipal Stadium |
| East | Jacksonville Expos | Jacksonville, Florida | Montreal Expos | Wolfson Park |
| East | Orlando Twins | Orlando, Florida | Minnesota Twins | Tinker Field |
| West | Birmingham Barons | Birmingham, Alabama | Chicago White Sox | Hoover Metropolitan Stadium |
| West | Chattanooga Lookouts | Chattanooga, Tennessee | Cincinnati Reds | Engel Stadium |
| West | Huntsville Stars | Huntsville, Alabama | Oakland Athletics | Joe W. Davis Stadium |
| West | Knoxville Blue Jays | Knoxville, Tennessee | Toronto Blue Jays | Bill Meyer Stadium |
| West | Memphis Chicks | Memphis, Tennessee | Kansas City Royals | Tim McCarver Stadium |

## Regular season
### Summary

* The Greenville Braves finished the season with the best record in the league for the first time since 1984.

### Standings

East Division :
| Team | Win | Loss | % | GB |
| Greenville Braves | 87 | 57 | .604 | – |
| Jacksonville Expos | 69 | 73 | .486 | 17 |
| Columbus Astros | 69 | 74 | .483 | 17.5 |
| Charlotte Knights | 69 | 75 | .479 | 18 |
| Orlando Twins | 66 | 75 | .468 | 19.5 |
| West Division |||||
| Chattanooga Lookouts | 81 | 62 | .566 | – |
| Memphis Chicks | 79 | 64 | .552 | 2 |
| Knoxville Blue Jays | 75 | 69 | .521 | 6.5 |
| Birmingham Barons | 62 | 82 | .431 | 19.5 |
| Huntsville Stars | 59 | 85 | .410 | 22.5 |

## League Leaders
### Batting leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| AVG | Butch Davis, Charlotte Knights | .301 |
| H | Mark Lemke, Greenville Braves | 153 |
| R | Rafael Skeete, Charlotte Knights | 89 |
| 2B | Kevin Burrell, Memphis Chicks | 32 |
| 3B | Carlo Colombio, Columbus Astros Jerry Holtz, Charlotte Knights Barry Jones, Greenville Braves Dennis Hood, Greenville Braves | 8 |
| HR | Matt Winters, Memphis Chicks | 25 |
| RBI | Matt Winters, Memphis Chicks | 91 |
| SB | Jeff Huson, Jacksonville Expos | 56 |

### Pitching leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| W | Chris Hammond, Chattanooga Lookouts | 16 |
| ERA | Mark Gardner, Jacksonville Expos | 1.60 |
| CG | Gene Harris, Jacksonville Expos | 7 |
| SHO | Mark Clemons, Jacksonville Expos | 3 |
| SV | Germán González, Orlando Twins | 31 |
| IP | Steve Cummings, Knoxville Blue Jays | 212.2 |
| SO | Alex Sanchez, Knoxville Blue Jays | 166 |

## Playoffs

* The Chattanooga Lookouts won their first Southern League championship, defeating the Greenville Braves in four games.

### Playoff bracket

| Division finals | Division finals | Division finals | Finals | Finals | Finals |
| E1 | Greenville | 3 | | | |
| E2 | Jacksonville | 2 | | | |
| E2 | Jacksonville | 2 | E1 | Greenville | 1 |
| | | | W1 | Chattanooga | 3 |
| W1 | Chattanooga | 3 | W1 | Chattanooga | 3 |
| W2 | Memphis | 1 | | | |

## Awards

Southern League awards :
| Award name | Recipient |
| Most Valuable Player | Matt Winters, Memphis Chicks |
| Pitcher of the Year | Germán González, Orlando Twins |
| Manager of the Year | Buddy Bailey, Greenville Braves |