# 2002 Southern League season

The 2002 Southern League was a Class AA baseball season played between April 4 and September 2. 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 Birmingham Barons won the Southern League championship, defeating the Jacksonville Suns in the playoffs.

## Team changes

* The Chattanooga Lookouts moved from the East Division to the West Division.
* The Tennessee Smokies moved from the West Division to the East Division.

## Teams

2002 Southern League :
| Division | Team | City | MLB Affiliate | Stadium |
| East | Carolina Mudcats | Zebulon, North Carolina | Colorado Rockies | Five County Stadium |
| East | Greenville Braves | Greenville, South Carolina | Atlanta Braves | Greenville Municipal Stadium |
| East | Jacksonville Suns | Jacksonville, Florida | Los Angeles Dodgers | Wolfson Park |
| East | Orlando Rays | Kissimmee, Florida | Tampa Bay Devil Rays | Cracker Jack Stadium |
| East | Tennessee Smokies | Sevierville, Tennessee | Toronto Blue Jays | Smokies Park |
| West | Birmingham Barons | Birmingham, Alabama | Chicago White Sox | Hoover Metropolitan Stadium |
| West | Chattanooga Lookouts | Chattanooga, Tennessee | Cincinnati Reds | Bellsouth Park |
| West | Huntsville Stars | Huntsville, Alabama | Milwaukee Brewers | 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 Birmingham Barons finished the season with the best record in the league for the first time since 1993.

### Standings

East Division :
| Team | Win | Loss | % | GB |
| Jacksonville Suns | 77 | 62 | .554 | – |
| Tennessee Smokies | 69 | 71 | .493 | 8.5 |
| Greenville Braves | 65 | 69 | .485 | 9.5 |
| Carolina Mudcats | 65 | 71 | .478 | 10.5 |
| Orlando Rays | 58 | 79 | .423 | 18 |
| West Division |||||
| Birmingham Barons | 79 | 61 | .564 | – |
| Mobile BayBears | 76 | 63 | .547 | 2.5 |
| West Tenn Diamond Jaxx | 73 | 67 | .521 | 6 |
| Huntsville Stars | 70 | 69 | .504 | 8.5 |
| Chattanooga Lookouts | 60 | 80 | .429 | 19 |

## League Leaders
### Batting leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| AVG | Bobby Darula, Chattanooga Lookouts | .325 |
| H | Aaron Miles, Birmingham Barons | 171 |
| R | Rich Thompson, Tennessee Smokies | 109 |
| 2B | Aaron Miles, Birmingham Barons | 39 |
| 3B | Miguel Olivo, Birmingham Barons | 10 |
| HR | David Kelton, West Tenn Diamond Jaxx Pete Laforest, Orlando Rays | 20 |
| RBI | David Kelton, West Tenn Diamond Jaxx | 79 |
| SB | Bernie Castro, Mobile BayBears | 53 |

### Pitching leaders

| Stat | Player | Total |
| W | Vinnie Chulk, Tennessee Smokies Diego Markwell, Tennessee Smokies | 13 |
| ERA | Vinnie Chulk, Tennessee Smokies | 2.96 |
| CG | Brandon Backe, Orlando Rays Peter Bauer, Tennessee Smokies | 3 |
| SHO | Aaron Cook, Carolina Mudcats | 2 |
| SV | Joe Valentine, Birmingham Barons | 36 |
| IP | Peter Bauer, Tennessee Smokies | 177.0 |
| SO | Matt Bruback, West Tenn Diamond Jaxx | 158 |

## Playoffs

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

### Playoff bracket

| Division finals | Division finals | Division finals | Finals | Finals | Finals |
| E1 | Jacksonville | 3 | | | |
| E2 | Carolina | 2 | | | |
| E2 | Carolina | 2 | E1 | Jacksonville | 0 |
| | | | W1 | Birmingham | 3 |
| W1 | Birmingham | 3 | W1 | Birmingham | 3 |
| W2 | West Tenn | 2 | | | |

## Awards

Southern League awards :
| Award name | Recipient |
| Most Valuable Player | Aaron Miles, Birmingham Barons |
| Pitcher of the Year | Vinnie Chulk, Tennessee Smokies |
| Manager of the Year | Wally Backman, Birmingham Barons |