Columbia, South Carolina hosted a New York Mets Class A farm club in the South Atlantic League for 22 seasons from 1983 until 2004. The team was initially known as the Columbia Mets (1983-1992). In 1992 the club adopted the Capital City Bombers identity, while maintaining the long-time Mets partnership. In 2005, the franchise moved to Greenville, South Carolina.
The Greensboro Hornets were a popular Class A minor league baseball team that played from 1979 through 1993. The Hornets led the Western Carolinas League and its successor, the South Atlantic League, in attendance for fourteen consecutive seasons between 1979 and 1992. While serving as a New York Yankees farm team during the early 1980’s, the Hornets would three consecutive South Atlantic League championships in 1980, 1981 and 1982. The franchise remains in Greensboro to this day, but gave up the Hornets name in favor of the ‘Bats’ in 1994 and changed names again in 2005, becoming the ‘Grasshoppers’.
The Augusta Pirates were a Class A farm of the Pittsburgh Pirates for six seasons during the late 1980’s/early 90’s. The franchise relocated from Macon, Georgia in 1988 after years of effort by Bill Heaton to bring pro baseball back to Augusta after a quarter century absence. The club was re-branded as the Augusta Greenjackets in 1994.
Charleston, West Virginia went without pro baseball for three summers after the Charleston Charlies pulled up stakes for Maine in late 1983. The Charlies were a triple-A club just one step removed from the Major Leagues. But by 1983, Charleston was the smallest Class AAA city in America by population. So it was little surprise that when pro ball returned with the formation of the Charleston Wheelers in the spring of 1987, local hardball fans had to accept a two-level demotion to the Class A South Atlantic League. The Wheelers era at Watt Powell Park lasted for eight summers. Ahead of the 1995 season, a new set of owners re-branded the ball club as the Charleston Alley Cats.
Western Carolinas League (1963-1979) South Atlantic League (1986-1994) Born: 1963 – Western Carolinas League expansion franchise Moved: 1995 (Piedmont Phillies) Western Carolinas League Champions: 1966, 1967, 1972,
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