1988 International League season

BR minors page

The 1988 International League season was the 103rd in the league's history, and ended with the Rochester Red Wings winning their first Governors' Cup in 14 years.

This was the first year of the Triple-A Alliance, where the IL and American Association's teams played 40 interleague games per team. The league split into two divisions, and the division winners would play for the Governors' Cup.

The Red Wings would lose the first Triple-A Classic to the AA's Indianapolis Indians.

Final standings

Playoff teams in bold.

East Division	W	L	Pct.	GB	Manager	Affiliation
Tidewater Tides	77	64	.546	-	Mike Cubbage	New York Mets
Richmond Braves	66	75	.468	11	Jim Beauchamp	Atlanta Braves
Pawtucket Red Sox	63	79	.444	14½	Ed Nottle	Boston Red Sox
Maine Phillies	62	80	.437	15½	George Culver	Philadelphia Phillies

West Division	W	L	Pct.	GB	Manager	Affiliation
Rochester Red Wings	77	64	.546	-	Johnny Oates	Baltimore Orioles
Syracuse Chiefs	70	71	.496	7	Bob Bailor	Toronto Blue Jays
Columbus Clippers	65	77	.458	12½	Bucky Dent	New York Yankees
Toledo Mud Hens	58	84	.408	19½	Pat Corrales	Detroit Tigers

Governors' Cup Finals

Rochester vs. Tidewater Date Away Home September 3 Rochester 0 Tidewater 3 September 4 Rochester 1 Tidewater 0 September 5 Tidewater 2 Rochester 4 September 6 Tidewater 3 Rochester 4 Rochester wins series 3-1 and advances to Triple-A Classic

League Leaders

Batting

• Batting Average Steve Finley, Rochester, .314
• Runs Scored Tom Barrett, Maine; Jeff Wetherby, Richmond; Eric Yelding, Syracuse, 69
• Hits Finley, 143
• Doubles Geronimo Berroa, Syracuse; Dana Williams, Pawtucket, 29
• Triples Kevin Ward, Maine, 8
• Home Runs Dave Griffin, Richmond, 21
• Runs Batted In Ron Jones, Maine, 75
• Stolen Bases Yelding, 59

Pitching

• Wins Scott Nielsen, Columbus; Steve Searcy, Toledo, 13
• Earned Run Average Dave West, Tidewater, 1.80
• Complete Games Bob Milacki, Rochester, 11
• Shutouts Tommy Greene, Richmond; Milacki; Nielsen, 3
• Strikeouts Searcy, 167
• Saves Joe Boever, Richmond, 22

All-Star Team

• First Base Dave Griffin, Richmond
• Second Base Tom Barrett, Maine
• Shortstop Randy Velarde, Columbus
• Third Base Craig Worthington, Rochester
• Outfield Steve Finley, Rochester; Carlos Quintana, Pawtucket; Mark Carreon, Tidewater
• Catcher Bob Geren, Columbus
• Designated Hitter Lonnie Smith, Richmond
• Starting Pitcher Steve Searcy, Toledo
• Relief Pitcher Mark Huismann, Toledo

References

Brian Bennett, On A Silver Diamond: The Story Of Rochester Community Baseball from 1956-1996. Triphammer Publishing, 1997.

The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball W. Lloyd Johnson and Miles Wolff, editors. Baseball America, 1993.

1989 Baseball Guide

External Links

1988 Rochester Red Wings review – On A Silver Diamond

1988 IL - The Baseball Cube