Blog Update

Different Levels Of Minor League Baseball

By Aditya update Bhattarai / 22 July 2023 01:07 PM

There are four official levels where thirty Minor leagues teams compete in different regions under them.
Source : co

Different Levels Of Minor League Baseball are Triple A, Double A, High A, and Single A. Triple A is the highest division in MiLB while Single A is the lowest.

Minor League is a professional baseball organization affiliated with Major League Baseball as a farm league. Each MLB club has a few minor league teams in its network.

Since each MiLB team is linked with a Major club, they are often referred to as farm leagues and farm teams. These clubs farm talented players drafted in the MLB Draft each year by letting them play in the Minors.

Players are allocated among the four minor league divisions based on their skills and capabilities. Meanwhile, independent and rookie levels in MiLB are associated with the MLB clubs indirectly.

There are 120 franchises in Minor League with direct contact with the Major League clubs. On the other hand, the rookie and foreign divisions also contain 17 and 47 teams associated with the MLB.

Minor League Baseball Levels

MLB Minor League levels are Triple A, Double A, High A, and Single A classes. Players can be promoted or demoted based on their skills and playing quality.

There are thirty Major franchises affiliated with four Minor league affiliations making 120 MiLB teams in total. They are also referred to as the farm teams or farm leagues for the Major clubs.

Apart from these, there are additional Minor leagues for Rookie and Foreign divisions. The Rookie division has two complex leagues in Arizona and Florida.

The Arizona Complex League (ACL) has 18 teams while Florida Complex League has another 16 rookie franchises affiliated with their respective Major League Clubs. Similarly, the Foreign minor league contains the Dominican Summer League (DSL) as the only international extension of MLB.

Since each MLB franchise has taken at least one DSL Minor team under their wing, with a few of them even leading two of them, there are 47 DSL minor league teams playing in Boca Chica.

The following table includes the four official Minor League baseball levels;

Minor League Baseball LevelsLeagues They Manage
1. Triple-A LevelInternational League and Pacific Coast League
2. Double-A LevelEastern League, Southern League, and Texas League
3. High-A LevelMidwest League, Northwest League, and South Atlantic League
4, Single-A LevelCalifornia League, Carolina League, and Florida State League

High A Minor League Teams

Minor League High A teams consists of Asheville Tourists, Fort Wayne TinCaps, Brooklyn Cyclones, and 27 others. High A level is ranked third among the MiLB levels.

There are thirty affiliations from each Major League club divided into three regions of High A. They are Midwest, Northwest, and South Atlantic Leagues.

High A players of the week update form the three regional legaues in MiLB.
Source : facebook

Formerly known as the Class A-Advanced, the High A teams compete in three regional leagues. Their thirty affiliated MLB teams are further divided into two groups of American and National Leagues organized under East, West, and Central Regions.

The thirty MLB teams of High-A are also classified into the three regional Leagues of Midwest, Northwest, and South Atlantic. The Midwest and South Atlantic region governs twelve teams each, while the North has six teams under their jurisdiction.

Below is the tabular representation of each High-A Minor league team with their MLB affiliations and regions.

High-A MiLB Teams ( AL)High-A MiLB Teams (NL)
1. Aberdeen IronBirds (Baltimore Orioles)1. Rome Braves (Atlanta Braves)
2. Greenville Drive (Boston Red Sox)2. Beloit Sky Carp (Miami Marlins)
3. Hudson Valley Renegades (New York Yankees)3. Brooklyn Cyclones (New York Mets)
4. Bowling Green Hot Rods (Tampa Bay Rays)4. Jersey Shore BlueClaws (Philadelphia Phillies)
5. Vancouver Canadians (Toronto Blue Jays)5. Wilmington Blue Rocks (Washington Nationals)
6. Winston-Salem Dash (Chicago White Sox)6. South Bend Cubs (Chicago Cubs)
7. Lake County Captains (Cleveland Guardians)7. Dayton Dragons (Cincinnati Reds)
8. West Michigan Whitecaps (Detroit Tigers)8. Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (Milwaukee Brewers)
9. Quad Cities River Bandits (Kansas City Royals)9. Greensboro Grasshoppers (Pittsburgh Pirates)
10. Cedar Rapids Kernels (Minnesota Twins)10. Peoria Chiefs (St. Louis Cardinals)
11. Asheville Tourists (Houston Astros)11. Hillsboro Hops (Arizona Diamondbacks)
12. Tri-City Dust Devils (Los Angeles Angels)12. Spokane Indians (Colorado Rockies)
13. Lansing Lugnuts (Oakland Athletics)13. Great Lakes Loons (Los Angeles Dodgers)
14. Everett AquaSox (Seattle Mariners)14. Front Wayne TinCaps (San Diego Padres)
15. Hickory Crawdads (Texas Rangers)15. Eugene Emeralds (San Francisco Gaints)

Single A Minor League Teams

Minor League Single A teams contain Fayetteville Woodpeckers, Clearwater Threshers, Carolina Mudcats, and 27 more. Single A is the lowest level in MiLB.

The thirty Major League clubs have one minor franchise competing in the Single A division of MiLB. The farm players sent to this level have the lowest stats among the recruits.

Players of the week for the single A level of Minor league teams from the three regions in April.
Source : facebook

They can get promoted to other higher levels in the following year if they perform well over the season. Major league clubs follow the results of each player to decide on their promotion or demotion before a season begins.

The Single A was formerly called Low A Class in the Minor leagues, later rebranded by MLB after 2022. It contains three regional leagues namely Florida State, Carolina, and California League.

Below are all the thirty Minor League teams at the Single-A level with their affiliate MLB teams. They are divided into American League and National Leagues.

Single-A MiLB Teams (MLB Affiliation in AL)Single-A MiLB Teams (MLB Affiliation in NL)
1. Delmarva Shorebirds (Baltimore Orioles)1. Augusta GreenJackets (Atlanta Braves)
2. Salem Red Sox (Boston Red Sox)2. Jupiter Hammerheads (Miami Marlins)
3. Tampa Tarpons (New York Yankees)3. St. Lucie Mets (New York Mets)
4. Charleston RiverDogs (Tampa Bay Rays)4. Clearwater Threshers (Philadelphia Phillies)
5. Dunedin Blue Jays (Toronto Blue Jays)5. Fredericksburg Nationals (Washington Nationals)
6 . Kannapolis Cannon Ballers (Chicago White Sox)6. Myrtle Beach Pelicans (Chicago Cubs)
7. Lynchburg Hillcats (Cleveland Guardians)7. Daytona Tortugas (Cincinnati Reds)
8. Lakeland Flying Tigers (Detroit Tigers)8. Carolina Mudcats (Milwaukee Brewers)
9. Columbia Fireflies (Kansas City Royals)9. Bradenton Marauders (Pittsburgh Pirates)
10. Fort Myers Mighty Mussels (Minnesota Twins)10. Palm Beach Cardinals (St. Louis Cardinals)
11. Fayetteville Woodpeckers (Houston Astrios)11. Visalia Rawhide (Arizona Diamondbacks)
12. Inland Empire 66ers (Los Angels Angels)12. Fresno Grizzlies (Colorado Rockies)
13. Stockton Ports (Oakland Athletics)13. Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (Los Angeles Dodgers)
14. Modesto Nuts (Seattle Mariners)14. Lake Elsinore Storm (San Diego Padres)
15. Down East Wood Ducks (Texas Rangers)15. San Jose Giants (San Francisco Giants)

Double A minor league teams

Minor League Double A teams are the second highest level in the MiLB after Triple A. Tulsa Drillers and Bowie Baysox are some Minor clubs in this division.

The Double A division is officially known as the Class AA level in the Minor League. The thirty MLB clubs have one team each in this Class as they compete in the various MiLB leagues.

Minor League AA teams in the 2021 allocation under the three regions.
Source : sportslogos

They are further divided into the three regional leagues of this division namely Texas Leagues, Eastern League, and Southern League.  Furthermore, Texas and Southern have two more categories for North and South in each region. While the Eastern has Northeast and Southwest regions.

Players farmed in this level can get upgraded to the higher level or go down to High-A depending on their stats over the season. If they get promoted, they are one step closer to getting into the 40-man roster for the Major League teams.

The following table lists all thirty minor league teams in competing in the Double-A level. They are further classified along with their Major League clubs of AL and NL.

Double-A MiLB Teams (MLB Affiliation in AL)Double-A MiLB Teams (MLB Affiliation in NL)
1. Bowie Baysox (Baltimore Orioles)1. Mississippi Braves (Atlanta Braves)
2. Portland Sea Dogs (Boston Red Sox)2. Pensacola Blue Wahoos (Miami Marlins)
3. Somerset Patriots (New York Yankees)3. Binghamton Rumble Ponies (New York Mets)
4. Montgomery Biscuits (Tampa Bay Rays)4. Reading Fightin Phils (Philadelphia Phillies)
5. New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Toronto Blue Jays)5. Harrisburg Senators (Washington Nationals)
6. Birmingham Barons (Chicago White Sox)6. Tennessee Smokie (Chicago Cubs)
7. Akron RubberDucks (Cleveland Guardians)7. Chattanooga Lookouts (Cincinnati Reds)
8. Erie SeaWolves (Detroit Tigers)8. Biloxi Shuckers (Milwaukee Brewers)
9. Northwest Arkansas Naturals (Kansas City Royals)9. Altoona Curve (Pittsburgh Pirates)
10. Wichita Wind Surge (Minnesota Twins)10. Springfield Cardinals (St. Louis Cardinals)
11. Corpus Christi Hooks (Houston Astros)11. Amarillo Sod Poodles (Arizona Diamondbacks)
12. Rocket City Trash Pandas (Los Angeles Angels)12. Hartford Yard Goats (Colorado Rockies)
13. Midland RockHounds (Oakland Athletics)13. Tulsa Drillers (Los Angeles Dodgers)
14. Arkansas Travelers (Seattle Mariners)14, San Antonio Missions (San Diego Padres)
15. Frisco RoughRiders (Texas Rangers)15. Richmond Flying Squirrels (San Francisco Gaints)

Triple A minor league teams

Minor League Triple A teams has been the highest level of the Minor League division in 1946. It has 30 MiLB teams including Buffalo Bisons and Charlotte Knights.

The thirty Major League clubs each have a minor league franchise in the Triple A level. They operate under the Independent League and Pacific Coast League.

The Triple-A level is officially called Class AAA, where the thirty teams from all the MLB clubs compete in the Minor league tournaments. After MLB, Triple is the most popular game division in American baseball.

Coach Brady Williams holding the Triple A tournament trophy after leading Durham to win in 2022.
Source : facebook

Players and Coaches from the Class AAA are often selected by their MLB teams and officials for other post-season tournaments as well. The International League has twenty Minor League teams under its jurisdiction while the Pacific Coast monitors the remaining ten.

While the current Triple A division consists of American teams only, Canadian and Mexican teams had also played under this level in the past.

Here are all the Triple A Minor League teams along with their respective MLB team affiliations.

Double-A MiLB Teams (MLB Affiliation in AL)Double-A MiLB Teams (MLB Affiliation in NL)
1. Norfolk Tides (Baltimore Orioles)1. Gwinnett Stripers (Atlanta Braves)
2. Worcester Red Sox (Boston Red Sox)2. Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp (Miami Marlins)
3. Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (New York Yankees)3. Syracuse Mets (New York Mets)
4. Durham Bulls (Tampa Bay Rays)4. Lehigh Valley IronPigs (Philadelphia Phillies)
5. Buffalo Bisons (Toronto Blue Jays)5. Rochester Red Wings (Washington Nationals)
6. Charlotte Knights (Chicago White Sox)6. Iowa Cubs (Chicago Cubs)
7. Columbus Clippers (Cleveland Guardians)7. Louisville Bats (Cincinnati Reds)
8. Toledo Mud Hens (Detroit Tigers)8. Nashville Sounds (Milwaukee Brewers)
9. Omaha Storm Chasers (Kansas City Royals)9. Indianapolis Indians (Pittsburgh Pirates)
10. St. Paul Saints (Minnesota Twins)10. Memphis Redbirds (St. Louis Cardinals)
11. Sugar Land Space Cowboys (Houston Astros)11. Reno Aces (Arizona Diamondbacks)
12. Salt Lake Bees (Los Angeles Angels)12. Albuquerque Isotopes (Colorado Rockies)
13. Las Vegas Aviators (Oakland Athletics)13. Oklahoma City Dodgers (Los Angeles Dodgers)
14. Tacoma Rainiers (Seattle Mariners)14. El Paso Chihuahuas (San Diego Padres)
15. Round Rock Express (Texas Rangers)15. Sacramento River Cats (San Francisco Gaints)

Levels Of Baseball Before MLB

The levels of baseball before MLB goes lower from Triple A, Double A, High A, and Single A. There are four levels in the Minor leagues before entering the MLB.

After a player gets drafted by the Major League teams, they are allotted to one of the four levels depending on their records. Those in the Triple A gets faster upgrades to the Majors.

Likewise, players in the lower leagues can climb the ladder or get signed by other teams as free agents.

Related post of Blog Update

Read More