IL1 International League

Governors' Cup Playoff Preview

Published on August 14, 2015 under International League (IL1) News Release


International League's 132nd Season Season Approaches Finish Line

With just over three weeks remaining in the 2015 International League regular season, eight teams still find themselves within 6.0 games of a berth in Governors' Cup postseason play. Three of the circuit's longest-tenured managers have their clubs in position to win the division races and potentially force the remaining contenders to battle for the lone Wild Card entry.

The largest lead belongs to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in the IL North, where after five straight wins Dave Miley's RailRiders enjoy a 6.0 game-advantage over Buffalo and 7.0 games over Rochester. In the South, Ron Johnson has Norfolk in sight of its first division title in a decade, currently sitting 5.0 games better than Gwinnett and 6.0 ahead of Charlotte. At 70-49 the League's best overall record belongs to Dean Treanor's Indianapolis Indians, who pace the West Division by 3.5 games over Columbus.

If the season ended today, the Clippers would claim the Wild Card by virtue of a 3.0-game advantage over Gwinnett. Columbus is the only one of last year's playoff participants in contention to get back there this season. The last time the Governors' Cup playoffs had four new teams from the previous season was 1998. In addition to Gwinnett, the Clippers are also trying to hold off Charlotte, Buffalo, and Rochester, all of whom are within 6.0 games of catching the Wild Card leaders. It's been five years since the Wild Card was won by a team from either the South or West Divisions.

While North teams have already completed interdivisional play for this season, the four clubs from the South all travel to the West this evening to open a two-city, five-day trip outside of their division. The West teams will return the favor next week, heading South before interdivisional play concludes August 23.

2015 INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE POSTSEASON SCHEDULE.

Governors' Cup First Round (Best of Five):

September 9,10 West Division Winner at South Division Winner, North Division Winner at Wild Card Winner

September 11,12*,13* South Division Winner at West Division Winner, Wild Card Winner at North Division Winner

* If Necessary

Governors' Cup Finals (Best of Five):

September 15,16 North/Wild Card Series Winner at South/West Division Series Winner

September 17,18*,19* South/West Division Series Winner at North/Wild Card Series Winner * If Necessary

Gildan Triple-A National Championship Game (Winner-Take-All):

September 22 Pacific Coast League Champion at International League Champion (El Paso, Texas)

GOVERNORS' CUP CHAMPIONSHIPS FOR MAJOR LEAGUE AFFILIATES

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

15 New York Yankees (1937,1938,1940,1945,1969,1970,1976,1979,1980,1981, 1987,1991,1992,1996, 2008)

7 St. Louis Browns / Baltimore Orioles (1950,1964,1971,1974,1988,1990,1997)

7 Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers (1941,1946,1948,1949,1951,1953,1958)

7 Cleveland Indians (1944,1960,1993,1998,2004,2010,2011)

6 Boston Red Sox (1965,1966,1973,1984,2012,2014)

6 Cincinnati Reds (1934,1942,1943,1947,1959,2001)

6 New York Mets (1968,1972,1975,1982,1983,1985)

5 Atlanta Braves (1976,1986,1989,1994,2007)

5 St. Louis Cardinals (1939,1952,1955,1956,1962)

4 Tampa Bay Rays (2002,2003,2009,2013)

3 Detroit Tigers (1967,2005,2006)

2 Chicago White Sox (1963,1999)

2 Philadelphia Phillies (1954,1961)

1 Houston Astros (1977)

1 Kansas City Athletics (1957)

1 Milwaukee Brewers (2000)

1 Montreal Expos (1995)

Yankees Organization Chasing Record 16th Governors' Cup Title

No Major League franchise has had its affiliates enjoy anywhere near the level of postseason success in the IL as has the New York Yankees. Fifteen times since the Governors' Cup was first presented in 1933 it has gone to the top farm club of the Bronx Bombers - more than double the number of Cups won by any other organization.

The Yankees captured four Governors' Cups with Newark between 1937 and 1945, then claimed three through the Syracuse Chiefs between 1969 and 1976. The Yankees later enjoyed an extended run of success while affiliated with the Columbus Clippers, winning seven more Governors' Cups between 1979 and 1996.

In 2008, in just their second season as partners, the Yankees brought the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre franchise its first-ever Governors' Cup under the tutelage of Dave Miley. This year Miley tries to guide the RailRiders back to the playoffs for the first time in three seasons.

Scranton/WB owns the IL's best record in one-run games this season at 24-14, and their 37 road wins are easily the most in the League. On the flip side, the RailRiders are the IL's only team not to have come back and won a single game in which they trailed after eight innings.

Timers Will be Used in 2015 Triple-A & Double-A Postseason Play

Timers have been utilized in the International League during the 2015 regular season to monitor the time between innings and pitches as part of Minor League Baseball's pace of game initiatives. The average length of 9-inning games in the IL this season has been 2 hours 41 minutes, down from 2 hours 56 minutes a year ago. The Pace of Game Regulations enacted this season at the Double-A and Triple-A levels will remain in effect throughout the playoffs.

2005: Toledo Ends Nearly Four-Decade Drought in the Governors' Cup Playoffs

Current Scranton/Wilkes-Barre hitting coach Marcus Thames was a star outfielder on the 2005 Toledo Mud Hens team that captured the franchise's first Governors' Cup since 1967, and the first of two consecutive. Toledo had the League's best record that season at 89-55, then proceeded to defeat Norfolk in a five-game first round series before sweeping Indianapolis in the finals. Thames hit .407 in the playoffs and was the postseason IL leader with three home runs and 10 RBI.

The 2005 campaign was the last prior to the introduction of the Triple-A National Championship Game. The Mud Hens would fittingly be the first IL representative in the event (known originally as the Bricktown Showdown) when they repeated as Governors' Cup champions in 2006.

Playoff Races Enter Final Stretch; Nothing Settled Yet in Hunt for League's Four Postseason Berths

NORTH DIVISION REPORT: With the division's two playoff teams from a year ago currently occupying the bottom two slots of the standings, the door is wide open for a club such as the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (New York Yankees) to secure the North flag in 2015. In hot pursuit of the RailRiders are the Buffalo Bisons (Toronto Blue Jays) and Rochester Red Wings (Minnesota Twins). 25 days remain in the regular season schedule, and on thirteen of those days, two of the three leading North Division contenders will be engaged in head-to-head battle. The schedule down the stretch could favor the Bisons, who are 14 games over .500 within the North Division this season (40-26) compared to 12 games over for the RailRiders (39-27) and five games over for the Red Wings (36-31).

WEST DIVISION REPORT: In last season's West Division race, the Indianapolis Indians (Pittsburgh Pirates) were in 1st place for nearly three months before being surpassed by the eventual winners, the Columbus Clippers (Cleveland Indians). This time around, the Indians are holding tight to their grip atop the division race. Indy is 18-10 since the All-Star break, despite having sent three of its players to Omaha in catcher Elias Diaz, second baseman Alen Hanson, and closer Blake Wood. The top two teams in the North meet four more times this season, coming in a home-and-home series beginning August 31. The Indians and Clippers last got together in late July, where they split a four-game set in Columbus.

SOUTH DIVISION REPORT: The Norfolk Tides (Baltimore Orioles) haven't been South champions since 2005, but after winning three of their last four they currently enjoy a 5.0 game lead over the 2nd-place Gwinnett Braves (Atlanta Braves). A good omen for Norfolk came Tuesday when the Tides turned their first triple play since 1997. Norfolk and Gwinnett have met just three times since early June, but the two clubs have eight tilts remaining on the schedule. The Braves are seeking their first division title since relocating to Gwinnett in 2009. Also lurking 6.0 games back are the Charlotte Knights (Chicago White Sox), who spoiled a chance to gain ground this week when they split a four-game series at home with Gwinnett. The Knights comfortably lead the League with 111 home runs this season, 79 of which have come in their home BB&T Ballpark.

WILD CARD REPORT: The Wild Card team has gone on to win three of the last five Governors' Cups. Heading down the stretch this season, Columbus leads Gwinnett by 3.0 games as the teams prepare for a crucial four- game, three-day series beginning tonight at Huntington Park. The Braves split a four- game series this week at Charlotte, leaving the Knights 4.0 games back in the Wild Card hunt.

Two other contenders also squared off this week in Buffalo, where the Bisons won three times over the Red Wings during a five-game set played over three days.

After a brief reprieve this weekend, the two clubs get together for three more in Rochester starting Monday.

SERIES TO WATCH NEXT WEEK:

August 14-16: Scranton/Wilkes-Barre at Rochester

The RailRiders and Red Wings still have eight games to play against each other this season, beginning with a three-game series at Frontier Field this weekend.

August 14-16: Gwinnett at Columbus

This Wild Card showdown series at Huntington Park opens with the completion of a suspended game from May in which the Braves are the home team.

August 17-18: Norfolk at Indianapolis

Division leaders collide in a potential first round preview series. The Indians swept a three-game set last weekend at Harbor Park in Norfolk and own a 6-1 record overall this season against the Tides.

IL Champion Headed to Gildan Triple-A National Championship Game

Date: Tuesday, September 22 Time: 8:00 P.M. EST Location: Southwest University Park

El Paso, Texas

Matchup: Pacific Coast League Champion at International League Champion

(Home team determined by IL's 4-3 win at Triple-A All-Star Game)

Broadcast: NBCSN & Gildan Triple-A National Championship Game Radio Network

PREVIOUS RESULTS - TRIPLE-A NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME

2006 Tucson 5, Toledo 2 - Oklahoma City, OK

2009 Durham 5, Memphis 4 (11) - Oklahoma City, OK

2012 Reno 10, Pawtucket 3- Durham, NC

2007 Sacramento 7, Richmond 1 - Oklahoma City, OK

2010 Columbus 12, Tacoma 6 - Oklahoma City, OK

2013 Omaha 2, Durham 1 - Allentown, PA

2008 Sacramento 4, Scranton/WB 1 - Oklahoma City, OK

2011 Columbus 8, Omaha 3 - Albuquerque, NM

2014 Omaha 4, Pawtucket 2 - Charlotte, NC

Check out the International League Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



International League Stories from August 14, 2015


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.


Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central