# 1998 Southern League season

The 1998 Southern League was a Class AA baseball season played between April 2 and September 7. Ten teams played a 140-game schedule, with the top team in each division in each half of the season qualifying for the post-season.
The Mobile BayBears won the Southern League championship, as they defeated the Jacksonville Suns in the playoffs.

## Team changes

* The Southern League relocated to Jackson, Tennessee and were renamed to the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx. The club ended their affiliation with the Seattle Mariners and began a new affiliation with the Chicago Cubs.
* The Orlando Rays ended their affiliation with the Chicago Cubs and began a new affiliation with the Seattle Mariners.

## Teams

1998 Southern League :
| Division | Team | City | MLB Affiliate | Stadium |
| East | Carolina Mudcats | Zebulon, North Carolina | Pittsburgh Pirates | Five County Stadium |
| East | Greenville Braves | Greenville, South Carolina | Atlanta Braves | Greenville Municipal Stadium |
| East | Jacksonville Suns | Jacksonville, Florida | Detroit Tigers | Wolfson Park |
| East | Knoxville Smokies | Knoxville, Tennessee | Toronto Blue Jays | Bill Meyer Stadium |
| East | Orlando Rays | Orlando, Florida | Seattle Mariners | 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 | Mobile BayBears | Mobile, Alabama | San Diego Padres | Hank Aaron Stadium |
| West | West Tenn Diamond Jaxx | Jackson, Tennessee | Chicago Cubs | Pringles Park |

## Regular season
### Summary

* The Jacksonville Suns and Mobile BayBears finished the season with the best record in the league. This was the first time for the Suns since 1987 and the first time for the BayBears in team history.

### Standings

East Division :
| Team | Win | Loss | % | GB |
| Jacksonville Suns | 86 | 54 | .614 | – |
| Knoxville Smokies | 71 | 69 | .507 | 15 |
| Orlando Rays | 67 | 71 | .486 | 18 |
| Greenville Braves | 67 | 72 | .482 | 18.5 |
| Carolina Mudcats | 59 | 80 | .424 | 26.5 |
| West Division |||||
| Mobile BayBears | 86 | 54 | .614 | – |
| Huntsville Stars | 72 | 68 | .514 | 14 |
| West Tenn Diamond Jaxx | 66 | 74 | .471 | 20 |
| Chattanooga Lookouts | 65 | 73 | .471 | 20 |
| Birmingham Barons | 58 | 82 | .414 | 28 |

## League Leaders
### Batting leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| AVG | Jason LaRue, Chattanooga Lookouts | .365 |
| H | Gabe Kapler, Jacksonville Suns | 176 |
| R | Gabe Kapler, Jacksonville Suns | 113 |
| 2B | Robert Fick, Jacksonville Suns Gabe Kapler, Jacksonville Suns | 47 |
| 3B | Bo Porter, West Tenn Diamond Jaxx | 11 |
| HR | Gabe Kapler, Jacksonville Suns | 28 |
| RBI | Gabe Kapler, Jacksonville Suns | 146 |
| SB | Bo Porter, West Tenn Diamond Jaxx | 50 |

### Pitching leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| W | Dave Borkowski, Jacksonville Suns | 16 |
| ERA | Bryan Wolff, Mobile BayBears | 2.29 |
| CG | Brian McNichol, West Tenn Diamond Jaxx Jason Olsen, Birmingham Barons | 4 |
| SHO | Tim Harikkala, Orlando Rays Bryan Wolff, Mobile BayBears | 2 |
| SV | Sean Spencer, Orlando Rays | 18 |
| IP | Buddy Carlyle, Mobile / Chattanooga | 188.2 |
| SO | Brian McNichol, West Tenn Diamond Jaxx | 168 |

## Playoffs

* The Mobile BayBears won their first 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 | Knoxville | 0 | | | |
| E2 | Knoxville | 0 | E1 | Jacksonville | 1 |
| | | | W1 | Mobile | 3 |
| W1 | Mobile | 3 | W1 | Mobile | 3 |
| W2 | Huntsville | 0 | | | |

## Awards

Southern League awards :
| Award name | Recipient |
| Most Valuable Player | Gabe Kapler, Jacksonville Suns |
| Pitcher of the Year | Bruce Chen, Greenville Braves |
| Manager of the Year | Mike Ramsey, Mobile BayBears |