The Southeastern League was the name of four separate

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

leagues in

minor league baseball Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National Le ...

which operated in the Southeastern and South Central United States in numerous seasons between 1897 and 2003. Two of these leagues were associated with organized baseball; the third and most recent incarnation was an independent league that operated for two seasons in 2002–03.

History

Class D league (1910–12)

After playing a season in 1897, the Southeastern League reformed and lasted for three years, from through . At Class D, it was considered on the lowest rung of the minor league ladder, and had six clubs located in the American states of

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

and

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

. Stung by the midseason collapse of two of its six franchises, this league disbanded on August 2, 1912.

Class B league (1926–50)

In a new, Class B Southeastern League took the field, with six teams — representing

Montgomery, Alabama Montgomery is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Alabama. Named for Continental Army major general Richard Montgomery, it stands beside the Alabama River on the Gulf Coastal Plain. The population was 2 ...

;

Jacksonville Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

and St. Augustine, Florida; and Albany, Columbus and

Savannah, Georgia Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia and the county seat of Chatham County, Georgia, Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the Kingdom of Great Brita ...

. Although this league would be periodically shut down by the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

and

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, it continued as a Class B circuit, four levels below

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

, through . Its lineup of teams in its final season included the champion Pensacola Fliers, Meridian Millers, Montgomery Rebels, Jackson Senators, Vicksburg Billies, Selma Cloverleafs, Gadsden Pilots and Anniston Rams. Both Gadsden and Anniston withdrew from the league before the end of the season.

Independent league (2002–03)

The most recent version of the Southeastern League was an independent circuit, with member teams were not affiliated with any

team. The league began play in 2002 after the demise of the All-American Association. For its inaugural season, it placed teams in Montgomery, Ozark, and

Selma, Alabama Selma is a city in and the county seat of Dallas County, in the Black Belt region of south central Alabama and extending to the west. Located on the banks of the Alabama River, the city has a population of 17,971 as of the 2020 census. Abou ...

, along with

Pensacola, Florida Pensacola ( ) is a city in the Florida panhandle in the United States. It is the county seat and only incorporated city, city in Escambia County, Florida, Escambia County. The population was 54,312 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. ...

Americus, Georgia Americus is the county seat of Sumter County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 16,230. It is the principal city of the Americus Micropolitan Statistical Area, a micropolitan area that covers Schley ...

, and

Baton Rouge, Louisiana Baton Rouge ( ; , ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It had a population of 227,470 at the 2020 United States census, making it List of municipalities in Louisiana, Louisiana's second-m ...

. The Ozark Patriots and Americus Arrows franchises folded at mid-season. The Pensacola Pelicans won the inaugural league championship. After completing the season, the league added two franchises for 2003. The league had high hopes for its new team in

Macon, Georgia Macon ( ), officially Macon–Bibb County, is a consolidated city-county in Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States. Situated near the Atlantic Seaboard fall line, fall line of the Ocmulgee River, it is southeast of Atlanta and near the ...

, and

Houma, Louisiana Houma ( ) is the largest city in and the parish seat of Terrebonne Parish in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is also the largest principal city of the Houma– Bayou Cane– Thibodaux metropolitan statistical area. The city's governme ...

, along with the already successful clubs in Montgomery and Pensacola. However, after just two games the Selma Cloverleafs folded, forcing the league to operate the club as a road team for the duration of the season under the name "Southeastern Cloverleafs." The

Macon Peaches The Macon Peaches was the predominant name of the American minor league baseball franchise representing Macon, Georgia, during the 20th century. Although Macon did not field teams during and immediately after World War I, the height of the Great ...

also fared a lot worse than expected. Still, the league completed the year, with Pensacola compiling the league's best mark at 42-23 and Baton Rouge defeating Pensacola, 3 games to 1, in the league championship series. Ultimately, the league could not survive the arrival of affiliated baseball to Montgomery. The Orlando Rays of the Southern League, who had played at

Walt Disney World The Walt Disney World Resort is an destination resort, entertainment resort complex located about southwest of Orlando, Florida, United States. Opened on October 1, 1971, the resort is operated by Disney Experiences, a division of the Wa ...

for four years, became the Montgomery Biscuits and effectively drove the Wings out of town. In addition, the Springfield/Ozark Mountain Ducks of the Central Baseball League moved to Pensacola and assumed the Pelicans name. As a result, the league folded prior to the 2004 season.

Cities represented

Member teams (2003)

* Baton Rouge, LA: Baton Rouge Riverbats * Houma, LA: Houma Hawks * Macon, GA:

* Montgomery, AL: Montgomery Wings * Pensacola, FL: Pensacola Pelicans * Selma, AL: Selma/Southeastern Cloverleafs

1910-1950

Albany, GA Albany ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. Located on the Flint River, it is the county seat of Dougherty County, Georgia, Dougherty County, and is the sole incorporated city in that county. Located in Southwest Geo ...

: Albany Nuts (1926-1928) * Anniston, AL: Anniston Models (1911-1912); Anniston Rams (1938-1942, 1946-1950) * Asheville, NC: Asheville Moonshiners (1910) * Bessemer, AL: Bessemer Pipemakers (1912) * Columbus, GA: Columbus Foxes (1926-1930, 1932) * Decatur, AL: Decatur Twins (1911) * Gadsden, AL: Gadsden Steel Makers (1910-1912); Gadsden Pilots (1938-1941, 1946-1948); Gadsden Chiefs (1949); Gadsden Pilots (1950) * Huntsville, AL: Huntsville Westerns (1911); Huntsville Mountaineers (1912) * Jackson, MS: Jackson Senators (1932, 1937-1942, 1946-1950) *

Jacksonville, FL Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

: Jacksonville Tars (1926-1930) * Johnson City, TN: Johnson City Soldiers (1910) * Knoxville, TN: Knoxville Appalachians (1910) * Macon, GA:

(1932) * Meridian, MS: Meridian Scrappers (1937-1939); Meridian Bears (1940); Meridian Eagles (1941-1942); Meridian Peps (1946-1948); Meridian Millers (1949-1950) * Mobile, AL: Mobile Red Warriors (1932; Mobile Shippers 1937-1942) * Montgomery, AL: Montgomery Lions (1926-1930); Montgomery Capitals (1932); Montgomery Bombers (1937-1938); Montgomery Rebels (1939-1942, 1946-1950) * Morristown, TN: Morristown Jobbers (1910) * Pensacola, FL: Pensacola Pilots (1927); Pensacola Fliers (1928-1930); Pensacola Pilots (1937-1942); Pensacola Fliers (1946-1950) * Rome, GA: Rome Romans (1910); Rome Hillies (1911); Rome Romans (1912) * Savannah, GA:

Savannah Indians The Savannah Pathfinders was the original name of the American minor league baseball franchise that represented Savannah, Georgia, during the 20th century. While Savannah's minor league teams sported at least ten nicknames during the century, ...

(1926-1928) *

St. Augustine, FL St. Augustine ( ; ) is a city in and the county seat of St. Johns County, Florida, United States. Located 40 miles (64 km) south of downtown Jacksonville, Florida, Jacksonville, the city is on the East Coast of the United States, Atlantic c ...

: St. Augustine Saints (1926-1927) * Selma, AL: Selma Centralites (1911-1912); Selma Selmians (1927); Selma Cloverleafs (1928-1930, 1932, 1937-1941, 1946-1950) * Talladega, AL: Talladega Highlanders (1912) *

Tampa, FL Tampa ( ) is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. Tampa's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the county seat of Hillsboroug ...

: Tampa Krewes (1928);

Tampa Smokers The Tampa Smokers was a name used between 1919 and 1954 by a series of minor league baseball, minor league baseball teams based in Tampa, Florida. The nickname was a nod to the History of Ybor City, local cigar industry, which was the most impor ...

(1929-1930) *

Vicksburg, MS Vicksburg is a historic city in Warren County, Mississippi, United States. It is the county seat. The population was 21,573 at the 2020 census. Located on a high bluff on the east bank of the Mississippi River across from Louisiana, Vicksburg ...

: Vicksburg Billies (1946-1949); Vicksburg Hill Billies (1950) * Waycross, GA: Waycross Saints (1927)

Standings & statistics

Year 1897

1897 Southeastern League Columbus disbanded April 29; Asheville entered the league May 6

Years 1910-1912

1910 Southeastern League 1911 Southeastern League 1912 Southeastern League Huntsville (24-29) moved to Talladega July 9; Bessemer disbanded July 14; Anniston disbanded July 19
Second half started July 22. The league disbanded August 2 with the following official second half standings: Gadsden (7-4), Talladega (5-5), Selma (5-6), and Rome (5-7).

Years 1926-1930, 1932

1926 Southeastern League Playoff: Columbus 4 games, Montgomery 1 1927 Southeastern League St. Augustine (42-53) moved to Waycross July 25 1928 Southeastern League Albany and Savannah disbanded August 12
Playoff: Montgomery 4 games, Pensacola 2 1929 Southeastern League Playoff: Montgomery 4 games, Tampa 3 1930 Southeastern League 1932 Southeastern League The league folded May 21

References

* Johnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, eds., ''The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball,'' 3d edition. Durham, N.C:

Baseball America ''Baseball America'' (BA) is a sports publication company that covers baseball at every level, including Major League Baseball (MLB), with a particular focus on up-and-coming players in Minor League Baseball (MiLB) college, high school, and inte ...

, 2007. {{Professional Baseball Defunct independent baseball leagues in the United States Baseball leagues in Alabama Baseball leagues in Florida Baseball leagues in Georgia (U.S. state) Baseball leagues in Louisiana Baseball leagues in Mississippi Baseball leagues in North Carolina Baseball leagues in Tennessee Sports leagues established in 1910 Sports leagues established in 1926 Sports leagues established in 2002 Defunct minor baseball leagues in the United States