Philadelphia, PA (My Sportsbook) - Many amazing performances were seen througho with the likes of Mobile's Brad Baker being lights out from the closer's role an West Tenn's Richard Lewis amassing impressive offensive numbers on his way to the MVP award. After watching Tennessee upset league power Chattanooga in the first round of the playoffs to set up a match up with Mobile, it was a shame to see the championship series cancelled due to Hurricane Ivan. Because of the cancellation, Tennessee and Mobile shared the Billy Hitchcock Championship Trophy as the Southern League champions. It marked the second time in league history that the final series was cancelled. Huntsville and Jacksonville were named co-champs in 2001 following the September 11th attacks.

BIRMINGHAM BARONS - The Barons used a second-half surge to finish atop the West Division and earn a playoff birth in the Southern League. After going 35-34 in the first half of the season, good for a third place finish, Birmingham went 38-32 in the second half, 4 1/2 games ahead of West Tenn. Even a six-game losing streak to end the season could not spoil their playoff hopes. When the playoffs rolled around, the Barons could not keep up with a tough Mobile team and lost the series three games to one. Mike Spidale finished in the top 10 in batting with a .306 average, including 27 doubles, 47 RBI, and 87 runs scored. Spidale struck out just 72 times in 484 at-bats this season and his 148 hits ranked him third in the Southern League. Carlos Maldonado led the team with 30 doubles and 68 RBI and finished with a .265 batting average. On the hill, Jim Bullard led a pitching staff that posted an impressive 3.43 team ERA, good for second in the league behind Chattanooga. Bullard went 8-4 with a 3.47, making him the only Baron in the top 10 in pitching. Reliever Matt Smith topped the Southern League in appearances with 70 and posted a solid 1.83 ERA with a team- leading 13 saves in 78 2/3rd innings pitched.

CAROLINA MUDCATS - Despite a respectable 73-66 overall record, the Mudcats finished second in the East Division and were unable to earn a birth in the postseason. As a team, Carolina hit .257 with Josh Wilson and Billy Hall leading the way with a .315 and .300 average, respectively, landing both players in the top 10 for the season. Wilson smacked 21 doubles, 10 homers, and knocked in 41 runs in 81 games before his call-up to Triple-A Albuquerque. Hall, a speedy infielder, swiped 40 bases this season, good for third place in the league, to go along with his 18 doubles and 30 RBI. The Mudcats displayed power all season, finishing second in total home runs with 131, one behind Mobile. Josh Willingham, Jason Stokes, and Chip Ambres all ranked in the top 10 in home runs with 24, 23, and 20, respectively. Willingham was second on the team with 76 RBI, two behind Stokes' total of 78. Ambres found himself in the top 10 in numerous offensive categories, including extra-base hits (51), runs scored (81), and stolen bases (26). Pitching was a sore spot for Carolina during the 2004 campaign as they posted a dismal 4.34 team ERA, topped only by Montgomery's 4.53 clip. Nic Ungs led the team with 11 victories to go with eight losses and posted a 4.24 ERA for the year. He was tops on the squad with 134 strikeouts and tied for the Southern League lead with 161 1/3rd innings pitched. Relief pitcher Randy Messenger finished third in the league with 21 saves and posted a 6-3 record in 58 appearances to provide some stability out of the bullpen.

CHATTANOOGA LOOKOUTS - The Lookouts ended the season with the best record in the Southern League at 87-53, earning Jayhawk Owens the manager of the year award. Whether it was at home or on the road, Chattanooga was virtually unstoppable as they posted a 45-25 record at home and an incredible 42-28 record on the road. Despite the amazing overall record, the Lookouts fell in the first round of the playoffs to Tennessee, three games to one. They placed first in team batting and team pitching with a .276 average and a 3.33 ERA which will make any manager happy. Pitcher Steve Kelly tied for first with 12 wins and 161 1/3rd innings pitched to go with a stifling 2.96 ERA. He also ranked ninth in the league with 116 strikeouts. Brian Rose added a solid 10-3 record with a 3.30 ERA, good for fifth in the Southern League, and was named the best right-handed pitcher for the league. Closer Todd Coffey nailed down 20 saves and posted a 4-1 record in 40 appearances this season. On the offensive side, Brian Peterson finished eighth with a .300 batting average and knocked in 40 runs while striking out just 61 times in 313 at-bats. The offense boasted three players that drove in 70 runs or more led by Jesse Gutierrez's 82 with Edwin Encarnacion a close second with 76 followed by Jeff Bannon's 73. Gutierrez stroked 53 extra-base hits including 32 doubles and 17 home runs. Encarnacion led the team with 35 two-baggers with Bannon in third with 31.

GREENVILLE BRAVES - After a horrendous first half of the season that saw them finish last in the East Division with a 26-43 record, the Braves finished strong going 37-33 in the second half, good for second place and a 63-76 overall record. Led by all-stars Adam Stern and Napolean Calzado, Greenville was second in the league with a .270 batting average. Calzado, the Southern League batting champion with a .359 average, finished in the top 10 in offensive categories such as hits (161), triples (7), on-base percentage (.395), and slugging percentage (.506). Stern was not far behind Calzado as he finished third in batting with a .322 average. He roped 26 doubles, six triples, knocked in 47 runs, and finished seventh in the league with 27 stolen bases. The pitching staff was suspect this season as they did not record a single pitcher in double digit wins. Kyle Davies and Jose Capellan provided a spark in the starting rotation after both were called up from Single-A Myrtle Beach. Davies went 4-0 with a 2.32 ERA in 10 starts before being promoted to Triple-A Richmond at the end of the season. Similarly, Capellan went 5-1 with a 2.50 ERA in eight starts before his promotion to Richmond. The Braves' solid second half provides them with some confidence as they look ahead to the 2005 campaign.

HUNTSVILLE STARS - Huntsville's 65-75 overall record can be attributed to reasons such as poor play on the road (28-39) and a team batting average of .241, tied for last in the league. Brad Nelson, the lone all-star for Huntsville, ended the year in the top 10 with 31 doubles, 19 homers, and 77 RBI but struggled with just a .254 average. Prince Fielder matched Nelson's power numbers as he cracked 29 doubles, 23 home runs, knocked in 78 runs, and faired better in the average column, hitting at a .272 clip. Pitching was not a problem for the Stars as they finished third in the league with a 3.57 team ERA. Despite a 5-8 record on the mound, starter Jeff Housman sparkled, finishing fourth in the league with a 3.13 ERA. In 112 innings, Housman fanned 121 batters compared to just 38 walks. John Novinsky was a bright spot out of the bullpen, posting a 7-1 record with 17 saves and a 2.93 ERA in 45 relief appearances. Ryan Costello led the team in wins with eight and finished second on the squad with 125 innings pitched to round out a solid starting rotation.

JACKSONVILLE SUNS - The Suns had a disappointing 2004 season finishing with a 66-71 overall record and at the bottom of most offensive categories including a dismal .250 team average, second-worst in the league. Willy Aybar and Brennan King led a sluggish offense all season as they hit .276 and .277, respectively. Aybar finished in the top 10 in hits (133) and RBI (77) while King tied Aybar with 133 hits of his own and finished tenth in the league with 29 doubles. Aybar added 15 home runs during the year while King pitched in 13 round- trippers and 47 RBI. The pitching staff did a good job of keeping the Suns from falling farther below .500 with a solid 3.88 team ERA. Ryan Ketchner was the leader of the rotation, posting an 8-7 record with a very impressive 3.02 ERA, placing him third in the Southern League. Derek Thompson also had a solid year, tossing 118 2/3rd innings with a 5-7 record and a 3.72 ERA. Yhency Brazoban nailed down 13 saves out of the pen and finished with a 2.65 ERA in 37 appearances before his eventual call-up to the Dodgers. Two other starting pitchers, Glenn Bott and TJ Nall, ranked ninth and tenth, respectively, with 146 1/3rd and 143 1/3rd innings pitched.

MOBILE BAYBEARS - Mobile's dreary second half could not put a damper on a first half that saw them go 40-30 and finish atop the West Division. After defeating Birmingham in the semi-finals of the playoffs, the BayBears were named co-champions due to the cancellation of the final round. Led by Most Outstanding Pitcher Brad Baker, Mobile's pitching staff posted a solid 3.82 team ERA. Baker established himself as a dominant reliever this past season as he led the Southern League with 30 saves, allowing just 37 hits in 57 1/3rd innings and striking out 68 batters. He finished the year with an impressive 1.57 ERA in leading his team to the first-half championship. Also helping out on the mound was Mike Thompson and Chris Rojas. Thompson went 10-2 with a 3.41 ERA in 121 1/3rd innings while Rojas posted a 7-5 record with a 3.31 ERA in 103 1/3rd innings pitched. Pacing an offense that finished with a league-worst .241 batting average was All-Star designated hitter Greg Sain. Sain batted just .235 for the season but crushed 28 home runs, first in the league, and knocked in 74 runs. Despite the dismal averages, the BayBears knew how to score runs, leading the league with 132 home runs and scoring 601 runs for the year. Josh Barfield and Ben Johnson finished one-two in the Southern League with 90 and 85 RBI, respectively. Both players finished in the top ten in runs scored with Johnson ranking sixth in the league with 23 home runs.

MONTGOMERY BISCUITS - The Biscuits finished the season with the worst record in the Southern League at 57-83, 16 1/2 games behind first place Birmingham. With BJ Upton and Joey Gathright, two of their premier offensive players, being promoted to Triple-A early in the year, Montgomery struggled to just a .253 team batting average. Upton batted .327 with 15 RBI in 29 games before the call up while Gathright hit .341 with 23 runs scored in 32 games. Dan DeMent finished fifth in the league with seven triples and batted .256 with 34 RBI to highlight a dismal offensive season. Jace Brewer led the team with 49 RBI, finished second with 10 home runs, and hit .252 in 110 games. Also contributing to the poor season was a pitching staff that compiled a league- worst 4.53 ERA. Josh parker nailed down 19 saves in 42 relief appearances to finish fifth in the league in that category. Jarod Matthews pitched the best of all the starters as he ended with a respectable 3.67 ERA in 15 starts. Despite his decent ERA, Matthews posted a 3-7 overall record in 100 2/3rd innings pitched.

TENNESSEE SMOKIES - After winning the first half of the season with a 39-31 record, the Smokies limped their way into the postseason by finishing in last place in the second half with a 30-40 record. Despite the poor second half, Tennessee eliminated powerhouse Chattanooga in the first round of the playoffs on their way to being named co-champions along with Mobile. Skip Schumaker, a 2004 Southern League all-star, led the team and finished fourth in the league with a .316 batting average. He also finished in the top 10 in the league in other offensive categories such as hits (1st), runs scored (8th), and on-base percentage (7th). Papo Bolivar also contributed immensely this season, hitting .295 with 25 doubles, 15 homers, and 60 RBI. Gabe Johnson led the team in RBI with 66, home runs with 18, and finished second on the squad with 27 doubles to help a club that smacked 129 home runs and scored 634 runs. On the hill, Brad Thompson led the staff before his early call up to Triple-A. Thompson went 8-2 with a 2.36 ERA in 12 starts. He ended his Southern League season with two complete games and two shutouts and tossed 72 1/3rd total innings. Carmen Cali posted a 2.91 ERA and recorded 14 saves in 38 appearances out of the bullpen to lead the relief staff.

WEST TENN DIAMOND JAXX - The Cubs' Double-A affiliate ended the 2004 season with a 70-68 overall record, good for third place in the West Division. Led by all-world second baseman Richard Lewis, the offense finished third in the league with a .265 batting average. Lewis was named the 2004 Southern League Most Valuable Player for his outstanding season. Lewis ranked among the league's leaders in several categories, including batting average (second, .329), triples (second, 10), and slugging percentage (second, .532). He was also the starting second baseman for the Western Division team in the 2004 all- star game. Micah Hoffpauir also dazzled with the bat this past season, batting .306, sixth in the league, and finishing tenth with 75 RBI. Hoffpauir also smacked 20 doubles, 11 home runs, and scored 58 runs. Starting pitcher Renyel Pinto baffled hitters all season, leading the league with a 2.92 ERA and holding opponents to a .213 average. He finished with an 11-8 record, striking out 179 batters in 141 2/3rd innings pitched. His 11 victories tied him for second in the league while his 179 strikeouts ranked him first. Closer Jermaine Van Buren placed second in the Southern League with 21 saves.