1998 International League season

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The 1998 International League season was the 113th in the league's history, and ended with the Buffalo Bisons winning their first Governors' Cup since 1961. The Bisons would go on to lose the Triple-A World Series.

With the dissolution of the American Association, the IL expanded from 10 to 14 teams. Buffalo, Louisville and Indianapolis came over from the AA, and the Durham Bulls were added as an expansion team. This necessitated a realignment into three divisions, and the playoff format was modified as well. The three division winners and the North Division's second-place team qualified for the playoffs.

Final standings

Playoff teams in bold .

North Division	W	L	Pct.	GB	Manager	Affiliation
Buffalo Bisons	81	62	.566	--	Jeff Datz	Cleveland Indians
Syracuse SkyChiefs	80	62	.563	½	Terry Bevington	Toronto Blue Jays
Pawtucket Red Sox	77	64	.546	3	Ken Macha	Boston Red Sox
Rochester Red Wings	70	74	.486	11½	Marv Foley	Baltimore Orioles
Ottawa Lynx	69	74	.483	12	Pat Kelly	Montreal Expos
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons	67	75	.472	13½	Marc Bombard	Philadelphia Phillies

South Division	W	L	Pct.	GB	Manager	Affiliation
Durham Bulls	80	64	.556	--	Bill Evers	Tampa Bay Devil Rays
Norfolk Tides	70	72	.493	9	Rick Dempsey	New York Mets
Charlotte Knights	70	73	.490	9½	Fredi Gonzalez	Florida Marlins
Richmond Braves	64	80	.444	16	Jeff Cox	Atlanta Braves

West Division	W	L	Pct.	GB	Manager	Affiliation
Louisville Redbirds	77	67	.535	--	Gary Allenson	Milwaukee Brewers
Indianapolis Indians	76	67	.531	½	Dave Miley	Cincinnati Reds
Columbus Clippers	67	77	.465	10	Stump Merrill	New York Yankees
Toledo Mud Hens	52	89	.369	23½	Gene Roof	Detroit Tigers

Playoffs

	First Round					Governors' Cup Finals
	N1	Buffalo Bisons	3
	N2	Syracuse SkyChiefs	0
						N1	Buffalo Bisons	3
						S1	Durham Bulls	2
	S1	Durham Bulls	3
	W1	Louisville Redbirds	0

First Round

Syracuse vs. Buffalo Date Away Home September 9 Syracuse 3 Buffalo 7 September 10 Syracuse 1 Buffalo 5 September 11 Syracuse 0 Buffalo 6 Buffalo wins series 3-0

Durham vs. Louisville Date Away Home September 9 Durham 8 Louisville 3 September 10 Durham 8 Louisville 3 September 11 Louisville 2 Durham 3 Durham wins series 3-0

Governors' Cup Finals

Buffalo vs. Durham Date Away Home September 14 Durham 6 Buffalo 9 September 15 Durham 4 Buffalo 6 September 16 Buffalo 8 Durham 9 September 17 Buffalo 6 Durham 7 September 18 Buffalo 3 Durham 1 Buffalo wins series 3-2 and advances to Triple-A World Series

League Leaders

Batting

• Batting Average Todd Haney, Norfolk, .345
• Runs Scored Ron Belliard, Louisville, 114
• Hits Marlon Anderson, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, 176
• Doubles Brian Daubach, Charlotte, 45
• Triples Anderson, 15
• Home Runs Daubach, 35
• Runs Batted In Daubach, 124
• Stolen Bases Scott Pose, Columbus, 47

Pitching

• Wins Shannon Withem, Syracuse, 17
• Earned Run Average Terry Burrows, Rochester, 2.92
• Complete Games Carlton Loewer, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, 5
• Shutouts Three tied with 2
• Strikeouts Juan Peña, Pawtucket, 146
• Saves Todd Williams, Indianapolis, 26

All-Star Team

• First Base Roberto Petagine, Indianapolis
• Second Base Ron Belliard, Louisville
• Shortstop Jolbert Cabrera, Buffalo
• Third Base Scott McClain, Durham
• Utility Player Todd Haney, Norfolk
• Outfield Allen Battle, Ottawa; Brian Daubach, Charlotte; Alex Ramirez, Buffalo
• Catcher Einar Diaz, Buffalo
• Designated Hitter Willis Otáñez, Rochester
• Starting Pitcher Shannon Withem, Syracuse
• Relief Pitcher Todd Williams, Indianapolis

References

Baseball America's 1999 Almanac. Allan Simpson, editor. Simon & Schuster, 1998.

External Links

1998 IL - The Baseball Cube