Midwest League 1999

Summary

• Midwest League Champion: Burlington Bees (White Sox)
• Team with Best Won/Lost Record: Kane County Cougars (Marlins) 78-59, .569

• Most Valuable Player: Aaron McNeal (Michigan/Astros)
• Prospect of the Year: Corey Patterson (Lansing/Cubs)
• Manager of the Year: Rick Renteria (Kane County/Marlins)
• Executive of the Year: Jeff Sedivy (General Manager, Kane County)

• League Attendance: 2,774,427
  • 14 teams in three divisions played a 140 game, split-season schedule.
  • The MWL had teams in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, and Wisconsin.

• Best Big League Career: Corey Patterson (Lansing/Cubs)

Overview

Composite Record for Each Team

                Nickname        Affiliate    Won Lost  Pct (Rank)
Beloit          Snappers        Brewers      59  80   .424 (14)
Burlington      Bees            White Sox    71  68   .511  (7)
Cedar Rapids    Kernels         Angels       61  77   .442 (12)
Clinton         LumberKings     Reds         68  69   .496  (8)
Fort Wayne      Wizards         Padres       61  79   .436 (13)
Kane County     Cougars         Marlins      78  59   .569  (1)
Lansing         Lugnuts         Cubs         73  67   .521  (6)
Michigan        Battle Cats     Astros       76  62   .551  (3)
Peoria          Chiefs          Cardinals    63  76   .453 (11)
Quad City       River Bandits   Twins        77  62   .554  (2)
Rockford        Reds            Reds         76  63   .547  (4)
South Bend      Silver Hawks    Diamondbacks 68  71   .489  (9)
West Michigan   Whitecaps       Tigers       68  72   .486 (10)
Wisconsin       Timber Rattlers Mariners     72  66   .522  (5)

First Half

West         W  L   Pct  GB  Central     W  L   Pct  GB  East          W  L   Pct  GB
Clinton      41 27 .603  --- Rockford    45 24 .652  --- Lansing       38 32 .543  ---
Quad City    38 31 .551  3.5 Kane County 40 27 .597  4.0 Michigan      35 34 .507  2.5
Burlington   31 38 .449 10.5 Peoria      37 32 .536  8.0 South Bend    32 37 .464  5.5
Cedar Rapids 30 38 .441 11.0 Wisconsin   32 36 .471 12.5 West Michigan 29 41 .414  9.0
                             Beloit      25 44 .362 20.0 Fort Wayne    29 41 .414  9.0

First half ended on June 20.

Second Half

West         W  L   Pct  GB  Central     W  L   Pct  GB  East          W  L   Pct  GB
Burlington   40 30 .571  --- Wisconsin   40 30 .571  --- Michigan      41 28 .594  ---
Quad City    39 31 .557  1.0 Kane County 38 32 .543  2.0 West Michigan 39 31 .557  2.5
Cedar Rapids 31 39 .443  9.0 Beloit      34 36 .486  6.0 South Bend    36 34 .514  5.5
Clinton      27 42 .391 12.5 Rockford    31 39 .443  9.0 Lansing       35 35 .500  6.5
                             Peoria      26 44 .371 14.0 Fort Wayne    32 38 .457  9.5

1999 Post Season

Round 1:
Burlington d. Clinton, 2-1
Wisconsin d. Rockford, 2-0
Lansing d. Michigan, 2-0
Kane County d. Quad City, 2-1

Round 2:
Burlington d. Kane County, 2-1
Wisconsin d. Lansing, 2-0

Championship:
Burlington d. Wisconsin, 3-2

1999 All Star Game

June 22 @ Lansing, Michigan
West 1, East 0

        West 000 030 001 - 4 9 0
        East 000 000 000 - 0 1 1

WP: Kirk Griffin (Peoria/Cardinals)
LP: Mike Koplove (South Bend/Diamondbacks)
MVP: Jon Schaeffer (Quad City/Twins)

Box Score and Details

MWL changes during the 1998-99 off-season

Franchise changes

• Burlington Bees changed affiliation from Reds to White Sox.
• Clinton LumberKings changed affiliation from Padres to Reds.
• Fort Wayne Wizards were sold; changed logos; changed affiliation from Twins to Padres.
• Lansing Lugnuts changed affiliation from Royals to Cubs.
• Michigan Battle Cats changed affiliation from Red Sox to Astros.
• Quad City River Bandits were sold; changed affiliations from Astros to Twins.
• Rockford Reds were sold; changed name (from Cubbies); changed affiliation from Cubs to Reds.

Other highlights

Burlington's Community Field had many seats replaced and upgraded.
Quad City's John O'Donnell Stadium began a facilities upgrade during the season.

Sources:

• USA Today Baseball Weekly
• Midwest League Media Guide
• Baseball America
• The Minor League Baseball website
• Assorted correspondents
• 1999 & 2000 Programs/Yearbooks:
  • 1999 & 2000 Michigan Battle Cats
  • 1999 & 2000 Wisconsin Timber Rattlers
  • 1999 Lansing Lugnuts
  • 1999 Clinton LumberKings
  • 1999 Fort Wayne Wizards
  • 2000 South Bend Silver Hawks