![Charlotte Stone Crabs shortstop Wander Franco (1) warms up on the field before the game against Clearwater Threshers on Thursday, July 25, 2019 in Clearwater.](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 900 506"/%3E "Charlotte Stone Crabs shortstop Wander Franco (1) warms up on the field before the game against Clearwater Threshers on Thursday, July 25, 2019 in Clearwater.")
ST. PETERSBURG — Hurricane Dorian is threatening to make landfall in Florida this weekend, prompting the Class Single-A Florida State League to cancel the remainder of its regular season and the entire postseason, league officials announced Thursday.
“This was a tough decision to make,” said Florida State League President Ken Carson. “The safety of our players, staff, umpires and fans are top priority to us.”
League clubs will conclude play on Thursday. All future games are canceled.
The league previously canceled its championship finals in 2017 due to Hurricane Irma, a category 5 storm that churned through Florida. The league named the Dunedin Blue Jays and Palm Beach Cardinals as co-champions that season.
The Charlotte Stone Crabs, a minor league affiliate of the Rays, will conclude their season with a Thursday evening doubleheader against the Florida Fire Frogs in Port Charlotte.
“Due to impending threat of Hurricane Dorian, the 2019 (Florida State League) playoffs have been canceled,” the Stone Crabs tweeted.
The Stone Crabs (81-52) already clinched the South Division and qualified for the league playoffs. The club is now offering refunds for fans who purchased postseason tickets.
“We apologize to all the fans who were looking forward to watching us compete for a (Florida State League) title,” the Stone Crabs tweeted. “We thank you for your incredible support all season long.”
For playoff ticket refunds, fans can call the Stone Crabs at 941-206-4487.
Charlotte, 2½ games ahead of the North Division-leading Dunedin Blue Jays in the overall standings before play on Thursday, will finish with the best record in the Florida State League.
Other Florida State League clubs, including the Fort Myers Miracle and Tampa Tarpons, thanked their fans and confirmed the cancelation on social media.
“Please be safe over the weekend,” the Tarpons tweeted. “Thank you for a wonderful season and we look forward to seeing you in 2020!"
![](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 160 90"/%3E "Where to go for a lazy weekend lunch? This French bistro in St. Petersburg")