Eighteen years after moving their High-Single A team out of Durham, the Braves will move it back in North Carolina.
The Braves are switching the affiliate from the Lynchburg Hillcats to the Carolina Mudcats, located in Zebulon, N.C. The move allows the Braves to have their High-A team a little closer to home while remaining a part of the Carolina League, which Braves president John Schuerholz said was an important aspect of the move.
The Mudcats play at Five County Stadium, about 25 miles east of Raleigh, N.C. The Braves and Rangers had been vying for the Mudcats affiliate, with the High Desert Mavericks in California as the only other available High-A option.
Nearly two years after a referendum to build a proposed new stadium for their High-A team failed in Wilmington, N.C., the Braves still landed that affiliate in North Carolina, signing a two-year deal with Zebulon. The Mudcats had been an Indians affiliate in recent years, and Lynchburg will now serve as the Indians’ High-A affiliate.
The Braves’ High-A team spent four seasons in Lynchburg and won the Carolina League championship in 2012. The Braves’ contract with Lynchburg expired after the 2014 season, and the original plan was to have a ballpark built in Wilmington for the 2015 season.
After that referendum failed, the Braves sought other accomodations.
The Research Triangle area of North Carolina is familiar ground to the Braves, who had their high-A team in Durham from 1980-1997.
