Myrtle Beach Hurricanes

• Location: Myrtle Beach, SC
• League: South Atlantic League 1991-1992
• Affiliation: Toronto Blue Jays 1991-1992
• Ballpark:

In 1991 the Myrtle Beach Blue Jays changed their name to the Myrtle Beach Hurricanes. The team from Myrtle Beach, SC remained a Toronto Blue Jays affiliate. In their first year they went 60-79, 12th in the 14-team South Atlantic League, under manager Garth Iorg. The team had the #3 prospect in the league according to a poll of managers, C Carlos Delgado (.286/~.390/.458) and All-Star infielder Howard Battle (.279/~.340/.473, 33 2B, 20 HR) at third base. Future NBA player Scott Burrell was 1-0 with a 2.00 ERA in 5 starts, striking out 31 in 27 innings and allowing just 18 hits. Ricardo Jordan (9-8, 2.74) also had a good year on the mound for the team.

The next season Doug Ault replaced Iorg at the helm. The team began 5-22 but finished the first half 27-15 and had the best second-half record (39-28). They then won all five postseason matches to capture the SAL title. OF Rick Holifield hit .199 in the regular season but .444 in the postseason. The team had a couple top prospects playing the field - 1B Chris Weinke (.240/~.341/.369) and SS Alex Gonzalez (.271/~.320/.402, the #9 prospect in the league as per managers). Additionally 3B Chris Stynes hit .284/~.307/.401 with 36 doubles and 28 steals and utility infielder Joe Lis Jr. hit .300/~.394/.447, posting the 8th-best average in the league. The staff had even better credentials - Paul Spoljaric (10-8, 2.62, 161 K and 111 H in 163 IP) was named to the All-Star team and voted the #3 prospect in the circuit; Travis Baptist (11-2, 1.45) lost the All-Star spot to Spoljaric but led the league in ERA by 0.75; Giovanni Carrara (11-7, 3.14) was a good #3 starter; Gregg Martin (2-1, 27 Sv, 1.02, 11 BB, 19 H, 57 K in 44 IP) and Al Montoya (4-4, 10 Sv, 99 K in 99 IP, 2.82) were a fine closing duo.

When the city repeatedly refused to use stadium welfare to give the Hurricanes a new home, the team was moved to Hagerstown, MD where they became the Hagerstown Suns.

Year-by-Year Record

Year	Record	Finish	Manager	Playoffs	Team MVP	Hitting Coach	Pitching Coach
1991	60-79	12th	Garth Iorg		Howard Battle	Leroy Stanton	Darren Balsley
1992	71-65	7th	Doug Ault	League Champs	Alex Gonzalez	Leroy Stanton	Darren Balsley