WooSox to be part of new 20-team baseball league

Photo | Grant Welker Polar Park under construction in Worcester

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By Grant Welker

The Worcester Red Sox have survived a realignment of Minor League Baseball that eliminated professional affiliation for teams in Lowell and Norwich, Conn. Now, the WooSox will be part of a new 20-team league with six more teams than the old International League.

With the new Triple-A East league, as the minor league's top affiliation level is known, the WooSox won't play just nearby teams in places such as New York and Pennsylvania, as was often the case in the former 14-team league. The new league includes teams in Iowa, Florida, Minnesota, Nebraska and Tennessee.

The new league for the WooSox will now include six teams not in the former International League: Iowa Cubs, Omaha Storm Chasers, St. Paul Saints, Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, Memphis Redbirds and Nashville Sounds. Four of those teams have moved from the Pacific Coast League: Iowa, Omaha, Memphis and Nashville. The other two, St. Paul and Jacksonville, were moved up to the Triple-A level during off-season realignment last year.

Minor League Baseball hasn't determined whether the 2021 season will begin in April as it normally would, or will be delayed because of the coronavirus pandemic. The 2020 season was canceled.

The Triple-A East teams:

Northeast division:
Buffalo Bisons
Lehigh Valley IronPigs
Rochester Red Wings
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders
Syracuse Mets
Worcester Red Sox

Midwest division:
Columbus Clippers
Indianapolis Indians
Iowa Cubs
Louisville Bats
Omaha Storm Chasers
St. Paul Saints
Toledo Mud Hens

Southeast division:
Charlotte Knights
Durham Bulls
Gwinnett Stripers
Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp
Memphis Redbirds
Nashville Sounds
Norfolk Tides