Baseball's Rebirth in the Old North State (1945- )

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1946 North Carolina State League – Playoff Recap



Concord puts down Rebellion, weaves another NCSL title

Game 1: Concord 8, Hickory 2
Game 2: Concord 5, Hickory 0
Game 3: Hickory 11, Concord 7
Game 4: Concord 2, Hickory 1
Game 5: Concord 5, Hickory 2

Is a dynasty brewing in the North Carolina State League? Concord had few problems dispatching of Hickory to repeat as champs. At least Landis won two games against them in the 1945 playoffs. The Rebels only got one.

Concord pitcher Steve Allen was no laughing matter, winning two games in impressive fashion, including the clinching game five. Catcher Steve Swartz was voted the championship series MVP.

As it turns out, Concord would be the only regular season champ to win its playoff series.


NCSL Post-Season Awards

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
1945 – CF Phil Durham (Landis)
1946 – CF Steve Martin (Hickory)

PITCHER OF THE YEAR
1945 – SP John Twitty (Landis)
1946 – SP Steve Allen (Concord)

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
1945 – n/a
1946 – 3B Justin Biermann (Thomasville)

MANAGER OF THE YEAR
1945 – Bill Shoemaker (Concord)
1946 – Bill Shoemaker (Concord)

NOTES
No joke, Steve Allen and Steve Martin won player awards in the North Carolina State League in 1946 ... Martin had a pretty balanced stat line: 108 hits, 15 doubles, 10 triples, 14 homers, 71 runs, 45 RBIs ... Allen finished 15-6, 49 Ks, 2.28 ERA – unanimous winner

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1946 Coastal Plain League League – Playoff Recap



Literally one out from being swept, Kinston rallies for amazing series win

Game 1: Greenville 7, Kinston 2
Game 2: Greenville 4, Kinston 0
Game 3: Greenville 3, Kinston 1
Game 4: Kinston 4, Greenville 3 (10 innings)
Game 5: Kinston 5, Greenville 1
Game 6: Kinston 6, Greenville 3
Game 7: Kinston 2, Greenville 0

Somewhere the 2004 Boston Red Sox are smiling!

In the first year of the Coastal Plain League, the Kinston Eagles nearly got swept in four games only to rally for an improbable series triumph.

The Greenies scored in the top of the ninth of game four to take a 2-1 lead, and the Eagles were down to their last out in the bottom of the frame. But George McCombs saved the day – and the series – batting home pinch runner RJ Hatcher to tie things up 2-2.

In the bottom of the 10th, Anderson stroked a two-out double and Kinston lived to fight another day. From there, it was all Eagles as Kinston brought home the CPL trophy.

Game seven remained deadlocked 0-0 into the eighth. Jordan Espinosa got Kinston on the board in the top of the frame with a two-run double into left, and pitcher Jay Williams finished off a five-hit shutout over the next two innings.

Fly, Kinston Eagles, fly.


Coastal Plain League Post-Season Awards

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
1946 – SS Jason England (Greenville)

PITCHER OF THE YEAR
1946 – SP Jerry Hedrick (Greenville)

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
1946 – LF Larry Douglas (Rocky Mount)

MANAGER OF THE YEAR
1946 – Willie Gonzalez (Greenville)

NOTES
Despite the agonizing end to their season, Greenville nearly swept all the awards ... Hedrick was the ultimate pitcher for this environment. The 30-year-old left-hander posted a 17-4 record in 22 starts, 1.20 ERA (!!), no home runs allowed (!!) and held opponents to .188 batting average. Wow.

Editor’s Note: This game has me questioning whether to believe the stats or ratings. Greenville pitcher Jerry Hedrick’s ratings are 40s across the board (on a 1-100 scale) – below average. The OOTP scout says “even as a left-hander, he will not last long at the big-league level.” Yet, he was by far the best pitcher, stat-wise, of anyone in any of the leagues…

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1946 Tobacco State League – Playoff Recap & Player Awards



First Tobacco State League championship series goes the distance

Game 1: Wilmington 2, Dunn-Erwin 0
Game 2: Dunn-Erwin 7, Wilmington 5 (11 innings)
Game 3: Dunn-Erwin 3, Wilmington 0
Game 4: Wilmington 11, Dunn-Erwin 0
Game 5: Dunn-Erwin 2, Wilmington 1
Game 6: Wilmington 2, Dunn-Erwin 0
Game 7: Dunn-Erwin 7, Wilmington 3

Another regular season champion goes down in the playoffs.

Wilmington couldn’t turn three shutouts, including an 11-0 whitewash in game four, into a league title.

Kyle Urbina, Dunn-Erwin’s 30-year-old left fielder, collected series MVP honors as the Twins stood tallest in TSL action in 1946. Urbina had eight hits in the series and scored two runs with a crucial RBI in game seven.


Tobacco State League Post-Season Awards

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
1946 – 1B Jim Bogle (Dunn-Erwin)

PITCHER OF THE YEAR
1946 – SP Jamie Robertson (Wilmington)

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
1946 – 1B Kyle Hern (Clinton)

MANAGER OF THE YEAR
Sean Stringer (Dunn-Erwin):

NOTES
“I told them to learn my system and we would win.” They did. And Sean Stringer's Dunn-Erwin team won a championship and player MVP honor ... Jim Bogle (great name) was a hammer, hitting 28 home runs, which is a lot in this low-HR, low-strike out environment.

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1946 Champions Playoff: Carolina League vs. North Carolina State League



Greensboro leaves no doubt, sweeps Concord for All-North Carolina bragging rights

The champions of the Carolina League and North Carolina State League renewed their special best-of-seven playoff series for a second year. Greensboro left no doubt who the superior team is in North Carolina – and the superior league:

Game 1: Greensboro 4, Concord 2
Game 2: Greensboro 7, Concord 5
Game 3: Greensboro 4, Concord 1
Game 4: Greensboro 17, Concord 1

Game four was an exclamation point, with the Patriots pounding out 17 hits and allowing just two.

Editor’s note: I like to see this result actually. It tells me the engine I set up is working correctly. The Carolina League teams should be superior. Not unbeatable but superior. They have more money, bigger stadiums, more room to sign the best guys, etc.

Not to say the other leagues can’t win a series, but it should be a rarity since the Carolina League can stockpile talent with its superior resources.

Talks are underway to involve the champions from the Coastal Plain League and Tobacco State League in 1947...


Champions Playoff History: "Best Team in North Carolina"
1945: Burlington Bees def. Concord Weavers 4-1
1946: Greensboro Patriots def. Concord Weavers 4-0

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1946 Notables and Retirements

Cleaning up the 1946 baseball season across North Carolina. I always love to find the notable or quirky achievements:

• Dunn-Erwin and Angier-Fuquay Springs played an 19-inning thriller on May 19, won 9-8 by the Twins at home. The teams combined for 33 hits. Chris Hulshizer went 6-for-8, the only Tobacco State League player with six hits in a game on the season
• Dunn-Erwin’s Dave Parson went 4-for-5 with 7 RBIs in another game against Angier-Fuquay Springs. Two North Carolina State League players earned 7 RBIs in a game: Brian Woods (Mount Airy) and Josh Salvatore (Statesville), who each had two homers. The Carolina League had one: Greensboro’s Eric Ammann (4-for-4, 0 HRs)
• Statesville’s Mike Messenger went 6-for-6 in an NCSL game against Salisbury. He had 4 RBIs in the contest.
• Clinton’s Gabriel Gomez walked four times, hit a home run and recorded 3 RBIs against Smithfield Selma in late August
• No one has been able to hit 3 HRs in a game anywhere across North Carolina in two seasons …
• Burlington destroyed Leaksville-Draper-Spray 22-4 in a July 16 Carolina League game. The poor Triplets.
• Greenville pitcher Ryan Yohn pitched 12 innings of shutout ball against New Bern, striking out 10 and walking 2 in 136 pitches. It wasn’t enough for a decision though as teammate Rich McLauchlin earned the win in a 1-0 game that went 13 innings. New Bern’s Mike Parrish had a shutout going for 10.2 innings before giving way to the bullpen.
• There were a handful of one-hitters but zero no-hitters in 1946.

1946 Notable Retirements

Checking in on who is checking out of our dynasty story:

1B Tony Rios: The most accomplished player to hang ‘em up so far. He played for Durham (1945) and Mount Airy (1946), finishing with 234 hits, 106 RBIs and a .304 average.

OF Jordan Espinosa: Played in 204 games with Asheville, Kinston and Winston-Salem, collecting 162 hits and 75 RBIs with a .259 average. He won a championship with the Kinston Eagles.

That’s a wrap on 1946. On to 1947, where more changes and fun are in store!

(Fade out to Appalachian bluegrass music…)

PS: If anyone wants more details on any teams/players, just let me know. Thanks for reading along -- AZ

[AZTarHeel]

1947 News & Notes


Cubs split from Coastal Plain League

Fayetteville has withdrawn its baseball club from the Coastal Plain League, officials announced. The Cubs posted a 54-70 record in 1946, seventh place in the eight-team circuit.

Fayetteville owner Steve Nelson says he does not plan to disband the team and is actively seeking another league home for the 1947 season.

“We just weren’t a good fit in the CPL,” Nelson said.



Bunch of Bull: Baseball is done in Angier

The Angier-Fuquay Springs Bulls are no longer.

The club announced that it will cease operations after just one season in the Tobacco State League. The Bulls were competitive, finishing 57-63 (fifth place). Chris Hulshizer was the Tobacco State League batting champ (.331 average) and so far is the only player with six hits in a game in that division.

Reports are the club lost more than $12,000 and no longer has enough financial backing to play in 1947.

“We just couldn’t make it work,” one Angier official said on the condition of anonymity.

The Bulls’ demise leaves the Tobacco State League with only five teams as the 1947 campaign approaches, a precarious spot with an unbalanced number of clubs.



New branding in Rocky Mount

The Rocky Mount baseball club told its 1946 nickname to kick rocks. The team has shed “Rocks” as its moniker for the 1947 season. The franchise, paying tribute to the area’s tobacco farming economy and heritage, will now be known as the Rocky Mount Leafs.

The club will use the same uniforms as in 1946, which featured “ROCKY MOUNT” in block letters on the front in navy blue script (or white lettering on navy blue for the away uniforms).

Rocky Mount finished 62-62 in 1946, ending up fifth in the Coastal Plain League standings.



Hoo! Statesville reclaiming pre-war nickname

The Statesville baseball club will once again play under the nickname “Owls”. The team announced the change with the 1947 season approaching, discarding the “Cubs” moniker after two seasons.

Statesville teams went by “Owls” while competing in the North Carolina State League from 1939-42.

“All feels right again,” one fan noted. “This is our identity as a franchise.”

The club will keep its red and white color scheme. Statesville wrapped up the 1946 campaign with a 54-60 record, 7th overall in the NCSL.

[AZTarHeel]

1947 Preseason - More News & Notes



Plus-Two: Carolina League will be a 10-team circuit in 1947!

The flagship professional baseball league in North Carolina will add two teams for the 1947 season. The Carolina League will grow to 10 teams with the additions of the:

Fayetteville Cubs
Reidsville Luckies

The Cubs will move into the Carolina League after spending 1946 as members of the Coastal Plain League (hey, it’s the 1940s baseball transfer portal!).

The Reidsville franchise returns to the diamond after a seven-year hiatus. The Luckies played in the Bi-State League from 1935-40 before shutting down.

Reidsville wasn’t so lucky in the standings during its previous iteration, finishing dead last twice (1935, 1940) and in sixth place twice (1937, 1939). The Luckies’ best finish in the Bi-State League came in 1938 when manager Jim Poole led the squad to a 71-48 record, good enough for third.

Reidsville is rumored to be pursuing Poole for the post again but it is not yet clear who will lead the club’s rebirth.

Housekeeping Notes: In real life, both Fayetteville and Reidsville joined the Tri-State League in 1947 (which also featured Asheville and Charlotte as mentioned earlier). For simplicity’s sake, and to keep all NC teams together, it was easiest to fold them into the Carolina League here.



Pro baseball returns to Roanoke Rapids!

The Coastal Plain League will replace the outgoing Fayetteville Cubs with a club from Roanoke Rapids for the 1947 season.

The Roanoke Rapids Blue Jays will play home games in 2,300-seat Simmons Park. Corey Spickler, who grew up in the northeastern North Carolina town, will be the club’s first manager.

This will be Roanoke Rapids’ first foray into professional baseball since a 1916 team from the town played one season in the Virginia League.



Tobacco State League bolsters ranks, adds three new members

The Tobacco State League lost one team but added three new ones heading into the 1947 campaign. While Angier-Fuquay Springs disbanded, the small-town circuit located in southeastern North Carolina will reload with:

Lumberton Auctioneers
Red Springs Red Robins
Warsaw Red Sox

The three newcomers bring the TSL up to eight teams for the 1947 season.

The Auctioneers will play their games at the Lumberton Armory Field (1,100). Red Lucas will manage the club.

The Red Robins will play at the cozy Robbins Park (yes, that is the correct spelling), which seats roughly 900. The perfectly named Red Norris will be the first manager for Red Springs. The team colors will be blue and white. Kidding, kidding. Fire engine red is the only way to go here…

The Warsaw Red Sox, who have no affiliation with the major league club in Boston and DON’T have a manager named Red (but maybe they should), will play at Warsaw Park (1,100 capacity).

James Milner will skipper the club. Milner has already declared that Sunday home games at Warsaw Park will be designated as “Ladies Days” for the season.

Editor’s Notes: Yes, these are the names of the real managers from the 1947 Tobacco State League, per Wikipedia.

Also, in real life, Lumberton baseball teams were called “Cubs” in 1947 and 1948, part of their affiliation with the big club in Chicago. But since we’ve already had multiple teams here named Cubs – and because “Auctioneers” is too good not to use right away – I ushered in the name change two years early.

Per history, the Lumberton club held a contest to come up with a new name prior to 1949. Seven judges, led by Rev. R.L. Alexander, selected “Auctioneers” to reflect the local culture and economy, where tobacco auctions were a frequent and important part of Robeson County life.

OK, I think those are all the changes in North Carolina for 1947.

Let’s play some baseball!!

(Fade out to the sound of a tobacco auction in Lumberton...)

[AZTarHeel]

1947 Landis Millers – Off-Season Report

Here is the latest from Boone Tucker and the Landis Millers organization

Boone Tucker gets a raise!
The Landis manager got a hefty monetary upgrade heading into 1947 – receiving a two-year contract extension that will take his pay from $288/season up to $1,100. I genuinely wondered if Boone might get fired after the Landis owner changed his expectations from “Win now” to “neutral” following the team’s poor 1946 start. But Boone’s work to steady the ship was enough to keep him safe – and a little more financially secure – for now…

“Win Now!” talks return
If at first you don’t succeed… Landis owner Randy Winn has said that he wants to see the club “win the whole dang thing” in 1947. At least he is putting his money where his mouth is. He did give the budget a significant boost in the off-season, which Boone Tucker put to work nicely. (We’ll see if he put that money to work wisely).

Biggest Roster Loss

CF Phil Durham, age 27
It was tough decision – will we regret it? – but we opted to let 1945 league MVP outfielder Phil Durham walk after the season. He became a free agent and wanted superstar money ($10K+ / year) and a deal of at least seven years. His 1946 dip in production (.230 batting average) and my stinginess (I get squeamish with contracts longer than 4 years with a low budget team) just couldn’t justify shelling out that much. But I hate to see him go. I saw him as a franchise cornerstone when we drafted him. Time will tell if this was a bone-headed move by me. He wants Carolina League $$$.

(Update: Durham signed a 7-year, 10.5K deal with the Kinston Eagles, champions of the Coastal Plain League. Our fans weren’t happy to see him go and let me know. I let them know I didn’t think we could have afforded that type of contract. Best wishes. Glad he’s not in our league, at least).

Other players who are no longer wearing Millers’ colors:
C Jim Brown: free agent (not nearly as good as the football player by the same name)
SS Mike Pasch: traded to Lexington for 19-year-old LHP Justin Hall. Had too many shortstops and not enough left-handed pitching.

Who's Joining the Landis Roster
I am still pretty new to the layers of depth in modern-day OOTP. In the past I have either simmed multiple seasons and just “watched” what unfolded or played a one-year “winner take all” without regard to long-term roster building. My first two seasons as Boone Tucker were basically just me throwing crap against the wall and hoping enough stuck for us to be competitive.

Our rough start to 1946 gave me impetus to start paying attention and building with a plan in mind. I felt like I did that during the offseason heading into 1947. Either I am brilliant – or I’m an idiot – because all five of my top free agent targets signed with Landis. We only paid superstar money for one.

Meet the newest Millers obtained via free agency:
LF Chris Latter (from Mooresville): 3 years, $13,620 total
LF Dan Perozzi (Fayetteville): 3 years, $7,050
2B Mike Cahill (Mooresville): 3 years, $10,000
SP Jerry Hedrick (Greenville): 3 years, $25,100 – 1946 CPL Pitcher of the Year (!)
RP Dave Brownlee (Clinton): 2 years, $4,080

Even with Phil Durham gone, we have a strong outfield core returning with LF Kymani Moses, Mike Andersen taking over at CF (our up-and-coming star) and RF Sergio Garcia. Latter (age 27) has a stronger bat against lefties and can cover all three OF posts. He may push for starts. Perozzi is a speed demon and defensive whiz.

Cahill will back up Ross Stokes at 2B. He may be the future as Stokes heads toward his mid-30s.

Hedrick is either the steal of the year or a gigantic blunder. The lefty’s ratings scream below average/mediocre. But he went 17-4 with a 1.20 ERA at Greenville in 1946. We’ll put a solid defense behind him, so I think he’ll do fine here (fingers crossed).

We hope Brownlee will be another fireman in the late-game bullpen alongside setup man Kevin Meadows and stopper Dave Hallstrom. We had the best ‘pen in the NCSL in 1946 and I think we can be better this year.

[AZTarHeel]

1947 Preseason Predictions - Who's Going to Win It All?


Carolina League: Big bat moves to Asheville, Winston looks strong

Predicted Order of Finish
Winston-Salem Cardinals 91-49
Asheville Tourists 83-57
Raleigh Capitals 83-57
Burlington Bees 80-60
Greensboro Patriots 79-61
Charlotte Hornets 76-64
Durham Bulls 76-64
Leaksville-Draper-Spray Triplets 70-70
Fayetteville Cubs 38-102
Reidsville Luckies 27-113 (yeesh)

Preseason MVPs
RF T.J. Hoover (Asheville)
SP David Ruf (Raleigh)

Quick Hitters
Mario Lopez, a super slugger in ‘46, changed teams from Greensboro to Asheville and is listed as the second-best hitter in the league behind Hoover. Why don’t teams like to keep their stars? It could be a rough season for the Cubs and Luckies…



Coastal Plain League: Defending champs look ready to soar again

Predicted Order of Finish
Kinston Eagles 82-58
Greenville Greenies 77-63
Goldsboro Goldbugs 74-66
Wilson Tobs 74-66
Rocky Mount Leafs 70-70
Roanoke Rapids Blue Jays 62-78
Tarboro Tars 62-78
New Bern Bears 61-79

Preseason MVPs
CF Phil Durham (Kinston) – sigh
SP Bryant Fry (Rocky Mount)

Quick Hitters
The top two teams from 1946 could lead the way again in 1947... I winced when I saw Phil Durham listed as the top hitter in the league (formerly with the Landis Millers). Teammate Tris Boone (1B) was right behind him. The Eagles could be tough to dethrone…

Both Greenville and Kinston have three pitchers listed in the preseason top 10 … Roanoke Rapids looks to be competitive in its first season.

[AZTarHeel]

1947 Preseason Predictions, Continued - Who's Going to Win It All?


North Carolina State League: Can Landis really break up Concord Weavers’ domination?

Predicted Order of Finish
Landis Millers 65-49 (!!)
Thomasville Dodgers 64-50
Concord Weavers 63-51
Mooresville Moors 63-51
Salisbury Pirates 57-57
Mount Airy Graniteers 54-60
Statesville Owls 54-60
Hickory Rebels 53-61
Lexington A’s 52-62
Lenoir Red Sox 48-66

Preseason MVPs
CF Steve Martin (Hickory)
SP Jay Terry (Mooresville)

Quick Hitters
Oh boy, didn’t expect to see Landis on top of the preseason predictions. Guess we made a decent splash in the off-season and got the attention of the OOTP prediction engine. Yet, only one of our players – CF Mike Andersen – gets any consideration as preseason top 10 hitters/pitchers. Meanwhile, FOUR of Concord’s pitchers are listed in the top 10, including Steve Allen, 1946 pitcher of the year. We have our work cut out for us…



Tobacco State League: Sanford hopes to challenge ‘46 front runners

Predicted Order of Finish
Dunn-Erwin Twins 82-42
Wilmington Pirates 81-43
Sanford Spinners 79-45
Smithfield-Selma Leafs 70-54
Clinton Blues 64-60
Lumberton Auctioneers 45-79
Red Springs Red Robins 39-85
Warsaw Red Sox 38-86

Preseason MVPs
RF Shane Moore (Wilmington)
SP Jamie Robertson (Wilmington)

Quick Hitters
New teams make up nearly half the league. OOTP prediction engine predicts a rough spring and summer for all three … Dunn-Erwin and Wilmington look like the teams to beat again… Clinton could be sneaky good with an up-and-coming pitching staff… Sanford is poised to make the biggest jump.

I’ll be watching Red Springs for two reasons. One, the Red Robins were my team when I created a modern-day Tobacco State League single-season OOTP dynasty (2025) last year. Also, the Robins signed a Landis castoff pitcher, Travis Shropshire. Dude has sick stuff (79/100), solid movement (53/100), a devastating changeup (103/100) and splitter (101/101) – with an ace slider (72/100), curveball (81/100) and cutter (70/100). BUT BUT BUT his control is 1(!!). That’s 1 out of 100.

He had a BB/K ratio of 8.9 in his one season in Landis in 1945. Somehow he still finished with a 4-3 record and a save! Boone Tucker couldn’t handle the drama every time he took the mound. Was he going to strike out the side or walk seven batters in a row? I wish him well. This might be a great spot for him. He was 7-14 as a starter for Fayetteville in the CPL in 1946 after we let him go (134 walks!).