The 2004 Southern League was a Class AA baseball season played between April 8 and September 6. Ten teams played a 140-game schedule, with the top team in each division in each half of the season qualifying for the post-season.
The Mobile BayBears and Tennessee Smokies were co-champions of the Southern League championship.
Team changes The Orlando Rays relocated to Montgomery, Alabama and were renamed to the Montgomery Biscuits. The club moved from the East Division to the West Division. They remained affiliated with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. The Chattanooga Lookouts moved from the West Division to the East Division.
Teams 2004 Southern League Division Team City MLB Affiliate Stadium East Carolina Mudcats Zebulon, North Carolina Florida Marlins Five County Stadium Chattanooga Lookouts Chattanooga, Tennessee Cincinnati Reds Bellsouth Park Greenville Braves Greenville, South Carolina Atlanta Braves Greenville Municipal Stadium Jacksonville Suns Jacksonville, Florida Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville Tennessee Smokies Sevierville, Tennessee St. Louis Cardinals Smokies Park West Birmingham Barons Birmingham, Alabama Chicago White Sox Hoover Metropolitan Stadium Huntsville Stars Huntsville, Alabama Milwaukee Brewers Joe W. Davis Stadium Mobile BayBears Mobile, Alabama San Diego Padres Hank Aaron Stadium Montgomery Biscuits Montgomery, Alabama Tampa Bay Devil Rays Montgomery Riverwalk Stadium West Tenn Diamond Jaxx Jackson, Tennessee Chicago Cubs Pringles Park
Map of teams
Regular season Summary The Chattanooga Lookouts finished the season with the best record in the league for the first time in franchise history.
Standings 2004 SOUL Standings at stats-crew.com, URL accessed March 17, 2025 East Division Team Win Loss % GB Chattanooga Lookouts 87 53 – Carolina Mudcats 73 66 13.5 Tennessee Smokies 69 71 18 Jacksonville Suns 66 71 19.5 Greenville Braves 63 76 23.5West Division Birmingham Barons 73 66 – Mobile BayBears 73 67 0.5 West Tenn Diamond Jaxx 70 68 2.5 Huntsville Stars 65 75 8.5 Montgomery Biscuits 57 83 16.5
League Leaders Batting leaders 2004 SL Batting Leaders at baseball-reference.com, URL accessed March 17, 2025 Stat Player Total AVG Napoleon Calzado, Greenville Braves .359 H Skip Schumaker, Tennessee Smokies 163 R Michael Spidale, Birmingham Barons 87 2B Edwin Encarnación, Chattanooga Lookouts Kelly Johnson, Greenville Braves Rickie Weeks Jr., Huntsville Stars 35 3B Dwaine Bacon, West Tenn Diamond Jaxx 11 HR Greg Sain, Mobile BayBears 28 RBI Josh Barfield, Mobile BayBears 90 SB Dwaine Bacon, West Tenn Diamond Jaxx 60
Pitching leaders 2004 SL Pitching Leaders at baseball-reference.com, URL accessed March 17, 2025 Stat Player Total W Steve Kelly, Chattanooga Lookouts Heath Phillips, Birmingham Barons 12 ERA Renyel Pinto, West Tenn Diamond Jaxx 2.92 CG Bobby Brownlie, West Tenn Diamond Jaxx Jason Cromer, Montgomery Biscuits Jeremy Cummings, Tennessee Smokies Clay Hensley, Mobile BayBears Brad Thompson, Tennessee Smokies 2 SHO Brad Thompson, Tennessee Smokies 2 SV Brad Baker, Mobile BayBears 30 IP Steve Kelly, Chattanooga Lookouts Nic Ungs, Carolina Mudcats 161.1 SO Renyel Pinto, West Tenn Diamond Jaxx 179
Playoffs Due to Hurricane Ivan, the final round of the playoffs was canceled. The Mobile BayBears and Tennessee Smokies were declared co-champions. The Mobile BayBears won their second Southern League championship. The Tennessee Smokies won their third Southern League championship.
Playoff bracket
Awards Southern League awards Award name Recipient Most Valuable Player Richard Lewis, West Tenn Diamond Jaxx Pitcher of the Year Brad Baker, Mobile BayBears Manager of the Year Jayhawk Owens, Chattanooga Lookouts
See also 2004 Major League Baseball season
References
External links Minor League Baseball official website