Double-A Central

The Double-A Central is a 10-team Minor League Baseball league that began operating in the United States in 2021.[1] Along with the Double-A Northeast and the Double-A South, it is one of three leagues playing at the Double-A level, which is two grades below Major League Baseball (MLB). The league was created in 2021 in conjunction with MLB's reorganization of the minor leagues.[1] The league is made up of eight teams formerly of the Texas League and two formerly of the Triple-A Pacific Coast League.[2][3]

Double-A Central
SportBaseball
Founded2021
No. of teams10
CountryUnited States
Most recent
champion(s)		Northwest Arkansas Naturals (2021)
Most titlesNorthwest Arkansas Naturals (1)
ClassificationDouble-A

Current teams
Division Team Current MLB Affiliation City Stadium Capacity
North Arkansas Travelers Seattle Mariners North Little Rock, Arkansas Dickey–Stephens Park 7,200[4]
Northwest Arkansas Naturals Kansas City Royals Springdale, Arkansas Arvest Ballpark 7,305[5]
Springfield Cardinals St. Louis Cardinals Springfield, Missouri Hammons Field 10,486[6]
Tulsa Drillers Los Angeles Dodgers Tulsa, Oklahoma ONEOK Field 7,833[7]
Wichita Wind Surge Minnesota Twins Wichita, Kansas Riverfront Stadium 12,000
South Amarillo Sod Poodles Arizona Diamondbacks Amarillo, Texas Hodgetown 6,631[8]
Corpus Christi Hooks Houston Astros Corpus Christi, Texas Whataburger Field 7,679[9]
Frisco RoughRiders Texas Rangers Frisco, Texas Riders Field 10,316[10]
Midland RockHounds Oakland Athletics Midland, Texas Momentum Bank Ballpark 6,669[11]
San Antonio Missions San Diego Padres San Antonio, Texas Nelson W. Wolff Municipal Stadium 9,200

Champions

In the Double-A Central's first season, the two teams with the highest winning percentages in the regular season competed in a best-of-five series to determine the league champion.[12]

Champions
Season Champion Score Runner-up Ref.
2021 Northwest Arkansas Naturals 3–0 Wichita Wind Surge [13]

Awards

Four awards were presented in the Double-A Central's first season: Most Valuable Player, Pitcher of the Year, Top MLB Prospect, and Manager of the Year.[14]

Most Valuable Player
Most Valuable Player
Season Winner Team Organization Position BA HR RBI Ref.
2021 MJ Melendez Northwest Arkansas Naturals Kansas City Royals First baseman .285 28 65 [15]

Pitcher of the Year
Pitcher of the Year
Season Winner Team Organization Record ERA SO Ref.
2021 Cole Winn Frisco RoughRiders Texas Rangers 3–3 2.31 97 [16]

Top MLB Prospect
Top MLB Prospect
Season Winner Team Organization Position BA HR RBI Ref.
2021 Bobby Witt Jr. Northwest Arkansas Naturals Kansas City Royals Shortstop .295 16 51 [17]

Manager of the Year
Manager of the Year
Season Winner Team Organization Division Finish Record Refs.
2021 Ramon Borrego Wichita Wind Surge Minnesota Twins North 1st 69–51 [18][19]

References
  1. Mayo, Jonathan (February 12, 2021). "MLB Announces New Minors Teams, Leagues". Major League Baseball. Retrieved February 12, 2021.
  2. "Texas League (AA) Encyclopedia and History". Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. Retrieved February 13, 2012.
  3. "Pacific Coast League (AAA) Encyclopedia and History". Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. Retrieved February 12, 2012.
  4. "Dickey-Stephens Park". Arkansas Diamonds: The Ballparks of Arkansas and Their History. Archived from the original on May 5, 2015. Retrieved September 22, 2017.
  5. Bergeron, Angela (2008). "Feature Story - August 2008". Engineering News-Record. McGraw-Hill. Archived from the original on February 27, 2014. Retrieved September 22, 2017.
  6. Mock, Joe. "Hammons Field in Springfield, Missouri". Baseball Parks. Retrieved September 22, 2017.
  7. "ONEOK Field". Tulsa Sports Commission. 2010. Retrieved May 4, 2015.
  8. Reichard, Kevin (April 10, 2019). "Sod Poodles Launch Crowd-Pleasing Ballpark". Ballpark Digest. August Publications. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  9. Goldberg-Strassler, Jesse (November 19, 2012). "Whataburger Field / Corpus Christi Hooks". Ballpark Digest. Retrieved May 4, 2015.
  10. Goldberg-Strassler, Jesse (November 14, 2012). "Dr Pepper Ballpark / Frisco RoughRiders". Ballpark Digest. Retrieved May 4, 2015.
  11. "Security Bank Ballpark". Stadiums USA. Archived from the original on May 8, 2016. Retrieved September 22, 2017.
  12. Heneghan, Kelsie (July 1, 2021). "Playoffs Return to the Minor Leagues". Minor League Baseball. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
  13. Horrorbin, Jordan (September 25, 2021). "Hicklen's Slam Powers Northwest Arkansas to Title". Minor League Baseball. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
  14. "Postseason All-Stars". Minor League Baseball. Archived from the original on October 8, 2021. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
  15. "MJ Melendez Minor Leagues Statistics & History". Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
  16. "Cole Winn Minor Leagues Statistics & History". Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
  17. "Bobby Witt Minor Leagues Statistics & History". Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
  18. "Ramon Borrego Minor Leagues Statistics & History". Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
  19. "2021 Double-A Central". Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. Retrieved October 8, 2021.

Further reading
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