1953 Carolina League season

1953 Carolina League season
League	Carolina League
Sport	Baseball
Duration	April 22 – September 7
Number of games	140
Number of teams	8
Regular season
Season MVP	Ramón Monzant, Danville Leafs
Playoffs
League champions	Danville Leafs
Runners-up	Reidsville Luckies

The 1953 Carolina League was a Class B baseball season played between April 22 and September 7. Eight teams played a 140-game schedule, with the top four teams qualifying for the post-season.

The Danville Leafs won the Carolina League championship, defeating the Reidsville Luckies in the final round of the playoffs.

Team changes

• The Danville Leafs ended their affiliation with the Washington Senators and began a new affiliation with the New York Giants.
• The Fayetteville Athletics are rebranded as the Fayetteville Highlanders. The club remains affiliated with the Philadelphia Athletics.
• The Greensboro Patriots ended their affiliation with the Chicago Cubs and began a new affiliation with the Boston Red Sox.

Teams

1953 Carolina League
Team	City	MLB Affiliate	Stadium
Burlington-Graham Pirates	Graham, North Carolina	Pittsburgh Pirates	Graham High School
Danville Leafs	Danville, Virginia	New York Giants	League Park
Durham Bulls	Durham, North Carolina	Detroit Tigers	Durham Athletic Park
Fayetteville Highlanders	Fayetteville, North Carolina	Philadelphia Athletics	Pittman Stadium
Greensboro Patriots	Greensboro, North Carolina	Boston Red Sox	World War Memorial Stadium
Raleigh Capitals	Raleigh, North Carolina	None	Devereaux Meadow
Reidsville Luckies	Reidsville, North Carolina	None	Kiker Stadium
Winston-Salem Cardinals	Winston-Salem, North Carolina	St. Louis Cardinals	South Side Park

Map of teams

Burlington-Graham

Danville

Durham

Fayetteville

Greensboro

Raleigh

Reidsville

Winston-Salem

Carolina League Teams

Regular season

Summary

• The Raleigh Capitals finished with the best record in the regular season for the second consecutive season.

Standings

Carolina League
Team	Win	Loss	%	GB
Raleigh Capitals	83	57	.593	–
Danville Leafs	79	59	.572	3
Burlington-Graham Pirates	75	65	.536	8
Reidsville Luckies	73	66	.525	9.5
Greensboro Patriots	70	70	.500	13
Winston-Salem Cardinals	69	70	.496	13.5
Durham Bulls	64	75	.460	18.5
Fayetteville Highlanders	44	95	.317	38.5

League Leaders

Batting leaders

Stat	Player	Total
AVG	John Radulovich, Durham Bulls	.349
H	Jack Mitchell, Reidsville Luckies	184
R	George Hott, Burlington-Graham Pirates	104
2B	Robert Caldwell, Danville Leafs	43
3B	Jim Edwards, Raleigh Capitals	13
HR	Jack Hussey, Raleigh Capitals	29
RBI	Don Buddin, Greensboro Patriots	123
SB	Jack Mitchell, Reidsville Luckies	52

Pitching leaders

Stat	Player	Total
W	Ramón Monzant, Danville Leafs	23
ERA	Duane Wilson, Greensboro Patriots	2.21
CG	Joseph Micich, Reidsville Luckies Eddie Neville, Durham Bulls	23
SHO	Albert Cleary, Raleigh Capitals Duane Wilson, Greensboro Patriots	5
SO	Ramón Monzant, Danville Leafs	232
IP	Eddie Neville, Durham Bulls	264.0

Playoffs

• The Danville Leafs won their second Carolina League championship, defeating the Reidsville Luckies in six games.

Playoff bracket

	Semi-finals					Finals
	1	Raleigh	2
	4	Reidsville	3
						4	Reidsville	2
						2	Danville	4
	2	Danville	3
	3	Burlington-Graham	1

Awards

Carolina League awards
Award name	Recipient
Most Valuable Player	Ramón Monzant, Danville Leafs
Manager of the Year	Herb Brett, Raleigh Capitals

See also

• 1953 Major League Baseball season

External links

• Minor League Baseball official website